Liveaboard Diving in Phi Phi

What to expect on a Koh Phi Phi Liveaboard

Liveaboards to Koh Phi Phi give divers a chance to explore this small archipelago consisting of six islands: Koh Phi Phi Don (the largest and only inhabited island), Koh Phi Phi Leh, Koh Bida Nok, Koh Bida Nai, Koh Phai, and Koh Young. Lying in the Mu Koh Phi Phi National Marine Park, east of Phuket and west of Krabi, the remarkable Phi Phi islands' remarkable landscape ranks amongst Thailand's top 5 dive destinations. Along with its beautiful beaches, made famous by the movie 'The Beach' (on Koh Phi Phi Leh), paradisiacal coves and bays, and stunning, colossal monoliths rising from the sea, the underwater world is just as dramatic, making for some great diving opportunities.

Liveaboards to the Phi Phi Islands operate from October to May, with optimal conditions from February to May. While there are numerous dive centers and resorts on Phi Phi Island, a dive liveaboard safari will bring you to the best dive sites ahead of the crowds to ensure the best marine life encounters. Our liveaboard trips combine diving in Phi Phi with Hin Daeng, Phuket, Koh Lanta, and Koh Haa for a true South Andaman Sea experience.

What you can see

The Phi Phi Islands are famous for plunging limestone walls blanketed with colorful soft corals, large orange-colored fans, black corals, and long stringy sea whips. In many places, the islands are fringed with shallow coral gardens, where hard and soft corals thrive. Over a dozen exceptional dive sites among the Phi Phi Islands include walls, coral gardens, caves, caverns, and swim-throughs. Glassfish, green turtles, hawksbill turtles, banded sea snakes, squid, angelfish, black-tip reef sharks, and leopard sharks are common visitors to the Phi Phi Islands. Some sightings of delightful small creatures such as pipefish, seahorses, and razorfish are also common.

The Phi Phi Islands offer a notable variety of dive sites focused in a small area. Amongst the best sites visited by Phi Phi liveaboards are Koh Bida Nok & Koh Bida Nai (towards the southern end of the chain), Shark Point, Anemone Reef, and the King Cruiser Wreck, are but a few.

The King Cruiser wreck, which sank in May 1997, about halfway from Phuket to Phi Phi, is a more advanced dive due to its resting point at 30 meters; it has created a fantastic artificial reef with many fish circling the area, including a growing population of lionfish and scorpionfish, barracuda, schools of snappers. The Wreck is an extremely popular dive and considered one of the best in location, and it will most likely be included on your Koh Phi Phi liveaboard itinerary.

Although visibility in the area is less clear than in other parts of Thailand, often limited to 5-20 meters, the Phi Phi Islands are one of Southeast Asia's most popular diving locations partly because of its stunning landscape above and below water.

Getting There

Liveaboard.com offers good itineraries covering Thailand's best west coast. The best way to get to Phi Phi is on a Thailand liveaboard trip from Phuket. Dive safaris typically depart from Chalong Pier in Phuket or Pak Bara Pier from Hat Yai airport, both of which can be reached by domestic flight from Bangkok.


Phi Phi Diving Reviews

  • 9.0 Superb
  • 33 Verified Reviews
  • 7.6 Good
  • Paul G
  • United States United States

Very good diving. A few dives with bad visibilities, but some with excellent ones. Plus it was off season, so the clarity will be less.

Diving Phi Phi in June on the Giamani

  • 10.0 Exceptional
  • Alicia F
  • United States United States

An incredible experience, we saw so much! All types of sea animals and more fish than I could ever imagine. The visibility could have been better (perhaps during a different month), but regardless, it was fantastic.

Diving Phi Phi in June on the Gentle Giant

  • 9.6 Exceptional
  • Gerald B
  • United States United States

Very calm, as we were the first divers there

Diving Phi Phi in May on the Merdeka 3

  • 10.0 Exceptional
  • John P
  • United States United States

Great Wall dives, bright corals and morays

Diving Phi Phi in July on the The Junk

  • 9.6 Exceptional
  • Jeffrey L
  • United States United States

OK, but poor visibility and no real spectacular coral.

Diving Phi Phi in December on the The Phinisi

  • 10.0 Exceptional
  • Jeffery D
  • United States United States

There’s a lot of diverse dives in the Phi Phi islands. We did several drift dives, a wreck dive, and a few wall dives. We experienced some coral restoration work and saw a lot of sea life that was new to us.

Diving Phi Phi in July on the Merdeka 3

  • 10.0 Exceptional
  • Dore S
  • United States United States

Actual diving was poor visibility most of the time which I attribute to it being off season. If I come back to dive in Thailand I will do it at a better time of year.

Diving Phi Phi in July on the Merdeka 3

  • 10.0 Exceptional
  • Zachary D
  • United States United States

Very good! Lots of wildlife

Diving Phi Phi in August on the Merdeka 3

  • 9.6 Exceptional
  • Alexandre R
  • Switzerland Switzerland

Great region with wonderful sites. From koh nua to viking cave, underwater scenery was great.

Diving Phi Phi in March on the The Phinisi

  • 10.0 Exceptional
  • Fynn Joshua C
  • Germany Germany

Perfectly nice. Saw rare marine life there.

Diving Phi Phi in July on the The Junk

  • 8.0 Very good
  • olivier L
  • Switzerland Switzerland

Great, shark, turtle, so many different fishes

Diving Phi Phi in July on the The Junk

  • 8.8 Fabulous
  • Taketo N
  • Japan Japan

Did a night dive in Phi Phi and it was awesome.

Diving Phi Phi in August on the The Junk

  • 9.6 Exceptional
  • Aiden P
  • United Kingdom United Kingdom

Excellent, good visibility and interesting wildlife

Diving Phi Phi in January on the Giamani

  • 10.0 Exceptional
  • Hui Ling H
  • Singapore Singapore

Strong currents meant visibility was not optimal, but still a decent 7-10m

Diving Phi Phi in August on the Merdeka 3

  • 8.4 Very good
  • Kjell K
  • Sweden Sweden

Bad, too much current and bad visibility

Diving Phi Phi in November on the Manta Queen 8

  • 8.4 Very good
  • David D
  • United Kingdom United Kingdom

Very good with a lot of fish life but the visibility was poor.

Diving Phi Phi in December on the Manta Queen 8

  • 5.2 Review score
  • Thomas W
  • France France

Busier than the remote Hin Muang and Hin Daeng spots. Still good visibility and plenty to see underwater!

Diving Phi Phi in December on the Merdeka 3

  • 8.4 Very good
  • Gerd K
  • Germany Germany

Nice but Phi Phi Island is a bit crowdy

Diving Phi Phi in January on the Merdeka 3

  • 8.8 Fabulous
  • Elisabeth U
  • Austria Austria

Surprisingly nice reefs, huge schools of fish, blacktips and leopard sharks, in the daytime many boats

Diving Phi Phi in January on the Manta Queen 8

  • 8.8 Fabulous
  • Axel S
  • Germany Germany

I am a well traveled diver, and had modest expectations about diving here, but I was positively surprised about the state of the reefs and fish abundance.

Diving Phi Phi in February on the Merdeka 1

  • 9.6 Exceptional
  • Craig H
  • Australia Australia

Nice dive out of season plenty fish 🐟

Diving Phi Phi in July on the The Junk

  • 9.6 Exceptional
  • Alexander E
  • Germany Germany

Er had a fantastic wall dive at Piley wall

Diving Phi Phi in August on the The Junk

  • 9.6 Exceptional
  • Enrique H
  • Spain Spain

Good but the visibility is reduced

Diving Phi Phi in August on the Merdeka 3

  • 8.8 Fabulous
  • Koen V
  • Netherlands Netherlands

Phi Phi Islands are wonderful. Diving there was easy and relaxt.

Diving Phi Phi in November on the Lucky Marine Liveaboard