Diving in Krabi
Dive at Ao Nang Beach
Krabi, on Thailand's west coast, offers some beautiful beaches, wonderful resorts and excellent diving. While most make for Thailand's islands there is as much fun above and below water to be had by exploring this beautiful area of the coastline.
Diving in Ao Nang at one of Krabi's nearby group of 7 main islands means immersing yourself in some of Thailand's most diverse waters where schools of fish, beautiful soft corals and wondrous macro-marine life are all present in impressive quantities.
For big fish fans there are plenty of sharks, including leopard sharks, barracudas and large groupers all frequently patrolling the area. The area lies within the Hat Nopparat Thara - Mu Koh Phi Phi National Marine Park.
Highlights
In addition to Phuket's fabulous Shark Point, Kingcruiser Wreck and Anemone Reef, and the dive sites of Phi Phi there are some other local highlights that you can expect, such as:
In the afternoons the west side of Koh Dor Island often hosts a group of the usually shy black-tip reef sharks. Whilst brief sightings of these sharks are possible on scuba, it's best to watch them on snorkel at lunchtime. The island has a good mix of larger Porites and Diploastrea Heliopora hard corals and soft corals, sea whips, fans and leather corals. Several large barrel sponges are also dotted around the dive site.
Koh Ha has over 60 species and the many gorgonian fans host a range of fascinating shrimps and crabs. This Krabi dive site often has large schools of barracuda, some small groups of squid, and in early mornings leopard sharks are often seen lazing on the sea's sandy bottom.
Koh Si competes with Koh Yawasam for the best snorkelling site in Ao Nang, with 2 large shallow coral covered plateaus on either side of the island. The southern end is particularly picturesque and usually has good visibility. Big schools of snappers and sometimes large grouper make a breathtaking sight when the visibility is up. Otherwise you can always look for seahorses, nudibranchs and scorpionfishes that live amongst the rocks here. The northern end of the island has a steeper wall covered in Tubeastrea barrel corals, sponges, and sea whips. Black-tip reef sharks are here and dive sightings are common but brief as they commonly shun any contact with humans.
The large island of Koh Talu boasts 2 swim-throughs and large barracuda often circle the entrances. As you move to deeper waters, mantis shrimps are sometimes found scuttling across the bottom. The coral extends a long way south and it is even possible to swim on 1 dive from the western side of this island right across to the next site, GK Island.
Koh Yawabon has the longest swim-through in the area, but this has a large no light zone and can be subject to strong currents, so penetrating the swim-through requires specialised dive training. With the majority of dive boats going to the other islands around Ao Nang, this island is often swarming with large schools of unwary fish. Lobsters are commonly found here, as well the Kuhl's stingrays.
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How to Dive Krabi
The best way to dive in Krabi is by staying in one of the excellent resorts in the area, which are very reasonably priced and well-run. You can dive the local Ao Nang Beach area sites, which are a very short distance away, or you can join one of the daily trips to the further sites of the Phi Phi Islands, and Shark Point - Kingcruiser - Anemone Reef area.
Diving Season
The Krabi diving season is the same as that of Phuket with the high season (November to April) seeing the best conditions. Visibility may drop in the Ao Nang area by up to 20% in low season when there are fewer divers but less predictable weather.
Reef Summary
Good for: Small animals, beginner divers, snorkelling and non-diving activities
Not so good for: Drift dives and advanced divers
Depth: 5 - 25m
Visibility: 5 - 20m
Currents: Easy
Surface conditions: Calm, but can be choppy in rainy season
Water temperature: 27 - 31°C
Experience level: Beginner
Number of dive sites: >10
Distance: ~5-10 km west of Ao Nang Beach (¾ hour), ~70 km east of Phuket
Access: Scuba day trips
Recommended length of stay: 1 week to dive all destinations accessible from here
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