Phi Phi & Maithon: Catamaran Snorkel & Maya Bay from Phuket

★★★★★★★★★★ 4.89 (166 reviews) 93% rated it 5 stars

Free cancellationTravelers' pick

1/26

Duration8h

GroupUp to 40

LanguagesEN · TH +1

PickupAt your hotel

The Catamaran Fits 40 People But Feels Like You've Booked Something Private

You board a new catamaran with a maximum of 40 guests, get picked up from your hotel, and spend the day at Phi Phi Islands and Maithon with two snorkel sessions, a long-tail boat cruise through Pileh Bay, and free time at Maya Bay. Lunch, snorkel gear, national park fees, and the return transfer are all included, so you show up at the pier and the rest unfolds on a set schedule.

Step-by-step itinerary

Phuket to Phi Phi Island tour

Hotel pickup between 8:00 and 9:30
Depart from pier at 10:30
Take Thai longtail boat tour of Pileh Bay
Enjoy Thai buffet lunch on boat at 12:00
Visit Maya Bay and free time on beach
Snorkel near Phi Phi Island at 14:40
Arrive at Honeymoon Island at 16:30
Use water slides, kayaks, and inflatable pool
Second snorkeling session at Honeymoon Island
Return to pier at 18:10–18:30
Driver transfers back to hotel

The Experience

The boat leaves the pier at 10:30am, and by the time you're settled on the 360-degree open deck with a coffee, you realize the whole operation is built around not feeling crowded. Forty guests sounds like a lot until you're actually on a 2024 catamaran with an air-conditioned lounge, a sundeck, and enough space that you're not jostling for a snorkel spot or a place to sit. The bilingual guide meets you at your hotel between 8 and 9:30am for pickup, so there's no early scramble to find the pier or figure out transport—that's already handled.

The day splits into three main stops, and the timing is tight enough that it never drags. Around 12:30, you transfer to a traditional long-tail boat for a cruise through Pileh Bay, which is the moment the itinerary shifts from "nice boat day" to "okay, this is why people come here." The water is so clear you can see the limestone cliffs reflected in it, and the long-tail moves slowly enough that you can actually take photos without them being blurred. Then it's Maya Bay—the beach from the movies, the one that was closed for years to recover. You get free time to walk around, swim, or just stand there and confirm it's real. After that, the catamaran heads to Maithon Island (also called Honeymoon Island), where the second snorkel session happens around 16:30, and the water slides and kayaks come out. If you're the type who gets restless sitting still, there's always something: transparent kayaks if you want to see the reef without getting wet, inflatable pools, sea scooters.

Lunch is a Thai buffet served on board around midday, with fruit and soft drinks included, so you're not paying extra or hunting for a restaurant between stops. The snorkel gear—masks, snorkels, life jackets, disposable mouthpieces—is provided, and the national park fees are built in. You get towels, five edited photos from the day, and the whole thing ends with a drop-off back at your hotel around 6:30pm. The constraint is the schedule itself: everything runs on a fixed timeline, which is exactly what keeps the day from becoming a loose, half-planned thing where you're deciding at noon what to do next.

What’s included

Hotel pickup and drop-off across Phuket Island, Thai buffet lunch with fruit and soft drinks on board, snorkel equipment (masks, snorkels, life jackets, disposable mouthpieces), two snorkel sessions at Phi Phi and Maithon, long-tail boat cruise through Pileh Bay, free time at Maya Bay, water slides and kayaks at Maithon Island, towels, national park fees, bilingual guide, accident insurance, and five edited photos from the day.

Good to know

Moderate physical levelPublic transport nearbyNot for pregnant travelersNot for heart conditionsNot for back problemsInfants must sit on laps

Operated by Seven Plus Travel

Is this one for you?Book this if you want the main Phi Phi highlights—Maya Bay, two reef snorkels, and Maithon—without arranging transport, park fees, or timing yourself; the fixed schedule and hotel pickup remove all the logistics, and the 40-person limit keeps the boat from feeling like a floating tour bus.