Koh Phi Phi

Best months by our weather score: January, February, March. Daytime highs, rain and sunshine are 2016–2025 averages at Phuket International Airport (Open-Meteo historical weather archive); sea temperatures are 2022–2025 averages for the nearest sea area (Open-Meteo marine archive).

Gateway airport

Phuket International Airport (HKT)

US nonstops

None. No airport on Phi Phi and no US nonstops to Phuket (HKT), the gateway. Connect via Bangkok, Singapore, Doha, Dubai, Istanbul, Seoul or Hong Kong, then take a 1- to 2-hour ferry or speedboat from Rassada Pier; ferries also run from Krabi and Koh Lanta.

Distance

8,665 mi from Los Angeles, 9,031 mi from New York

Passport

Needed for US citizens

Hotel, one night

$187 on Jan 13, 2027 · $86 on Jul 14, 2027 (Phi Phi Don (Tonsai and Loh Dalum))

Visitors a year

4,458,941 overnight visitors (2025)

Bringing a dog

Possible: Thailand admits dogs through Bangkok, Phuket or Chiang Mai airport with an import permit, microchip, vaccines at least 21 days before departure and an original USDA-endorsed certificate; Phi Phi itself has no roads for cars, so you would carry the dog on the ferry and on foot.

Hotel prices: Cheapest hotel rated 4 stars or better with a Kayak guest score of 8.0+ from 100+ reviews (Phi Phi Harbour View Hotel on both dates), 1 night, 2 adults, Kayak 'Nightly total - Including all taxes + fees', checked 2026-10-20. The brief's plain rule (cheapest 3-star-or-better) gave $23 in January and $19 in July; the stricter rule is used for all six Asia islands because several 3-star floors fall below the checker's $20 minimum.. Visitor figures: Thailand Ministry of Tourism and Sports, Domestic tourism statistics Q1-Q4 2025, Southern region workbook, Krabi sheet (January-December 2025).

Phi Phi suits solo travelers and active teens. There are no cars on Phi Phi Don: roads are for walking and bikes, and only emergency vehicles drive. Hostels, dive shops and boat-trip desks line the village, and joining a group trip takes no planning.

Skip a long stay if you want calm. The Tonsai village is noisy at night, the bays fill with longtail boats by mid-morning, and beach space is limited. Families with small children are better off on Koh Lanta or in Phuket, with Phi Phi as a day trip. See how the four compare in our Thai island ranking.

• Tonsai and Loh Dalum. The village sits on a low, narrow isthmus between two curved bays, Ton Sai and Loh Dalum. This is where the pier, restaurants and bars are, and where we priced rooms. On Kayak on October 20, 2026, the cheapest 4-star-or-better hotel with a guest score of 8.0 or higher was $187 for January 13, 2027 and $86 for July 14, 2027 (Phi Phi Harbour View Hotel on both dates), taxes and fees included. The cheapest 3-star listing was $23 in January and $19 in July, but its guest score was low.
• Outer beaches and resorts. Quieter resorts on Phi Phi Don's other beaches, usually reached by longtail boat. You trade nightlife for peace and pay for every trip into the village.

The isthmus rises less than 6.5 feet (2 m) above sea level. The 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami struck here on December 26, 2004 and destroyed about 70% of the island's buildings; the village was rebuilt.

Loh Dalum is the village beach on the quieter side of the isthmus. Ton Sai is the working harbor, busy with boats. Long Beach and smaller beaches farther out are calmer.

Maya Bay, on Phi Phi Le, is run by Hat Noppharat Thara-Mu Ko Phi Phi National Park. Foreign adults pay $12 (400 baht) and children 4 to 11 pay $6 (200 baht); check whether your tour includes it. The bay closes every year from August 1 to September 30 to recover, and reopened for the 2026-27 season on October 1, 2026. Tour operators report the current rules as a cap of 300 people on the beach at once, about an hour per visit, no anchoring in the bay, and swimming only inside a marked area, with no snorkeling or fins. Day closures happen in rough weather.

We score Phi Phi's beaches 7.5 out of 10: some of the most striking settings on the site, held back by crowds, boats and rules.

• Boat trips. The main activity: Maya Bay on Phi Phi Le and Bamboo Island (Ko Mai Phai), which is billed under the same park fee system.
• Snorkeling and diving. Dive shops in Tonsai run trips to the surrounding reefs.
• Kayaking and swimming in the calmer bays on Phi Phi Don.
• Nightlife. Tonsai's bars run late; light sleepers should book away from the village.

That fills two or three days, which is why we score things to do 5.

Go from about November to April, when the Andaman Sea is usually calm and crossings are smooth. The Thai Meteorological Department describes the southwest monsoon arriving around mid-May, with rainfall on the southern west coast peaking in September. In that season boats run less often and the sea can be rough, and in August and September you lose Maya Bay entirely. Room prices halve: the same hotel dropped from $187 in January to $86 in July. Our December pick covers the start of the good season. The climate table on this page has each month from our dataset.

Phi Phi has no airport. Fly to Phuket, which has no US nonstops; connect via Bangkok, Singapore, Doha, Dubai, Istanbul, Seoul or Hong Kong. From Rassada Pier in Phuket, ferries and speedboats take about 1 to 2 hours; one speedboat operator listed $21 (700 baht) one way for a one-hour crossing. Ferries also run from Krabi and Koh Lanta. When you land at Tonsai, expect a small island visitor fee, set at 20 baht (about $0.60) in 2014 to pay for waste removal.

Entry is Thailand's standard: since September 15, 2026, a 30-day visa-free stay for US citizens, down from 60, with up to 30 more days by application. Your passport needs 6 months of validity, and you must file the free Thailand Digital Arrival Card within 72 hours before landing. The proposed tourist entry fee (450 baht, about $13) was not in force on October 20, 2026. More in our passport rules guide.

Phi Phi is the priciest of our four Thai islands to sleep on. A well-reviewed 4-star room ran $86 to $187 a night on our test dates, against $32 to $76 in Patong, and there are no cars, so every bag and supply arrives by boat. Add the round-trip ferry, the 400-baht ($12) park fee for Maya Bay if your tour does not include it, and longtail rides if you stay outside the village.

The cheaper way to see it is a day trip from Phuket or Koh Lanta, with one night at most. Baht conversions on this page use the European Central Bank reference rate of October 19, 2026, about 33.6 baht to the dollar.

Phi Phi Private Longtail: Maya Bay, Pileh Lagoon & Snorkel

Price is per boat, so it suits a group; the park fee (400 THB per adult) and lunch are not included.

3-7 hours

4.8★★★★★★★★★★(1,904 reviews)

Reserve

Rating as shown on GetYourGuide

Phi Phi: Avoid Maya Bay Crowds Tour w/ Baby Sharks & Snorkel

The 400 THB national park fee is included; hotel pickup is not, you meet at Tonsai. Maya Bay is closed in August and September and swimming there is restricted.

4-6.5 hours

4.7★★★★★★★★★★(1,337 reviews)

Reserve

Rating as shown on GetYourGuide

From Phi Phi: Sunrise & Beat The Crowds to Maya Bay by Speedboat

Lunch, snorkel gear and national park fees are included; it starts at 6 am, and guests away from Tonsai may need a paid longtail to the pier.

8 hours 30 minutes

4.8★★★★★★★★★★(129 reviews)

Reserve

Rating as shown on Viator

Booking through these links supports this site at no cost to you. Prices move by date, so we do not print them here; the official prices we checked are in the page above.