Ko Tao
Small Gulf Island Known As One Of The World'S Busiest Centres For Scuba Diver Certification · Ko Tao, Surat Thani
Ko Tao is a small, hilly island of granite boulders and coves in the Gulf of Thailand, north of Ko Pha Ngan and Ko Samui, and one of the busiest places in the world to learn to scuba dive. Dozens of dive schools line its west coast, certifying many thousands of new divers a year on cheap, competitive Open Water courses, and reaching shallow coral gardens, granite pinnacles such as Chumphon Pinnacle and Sail Rock, and the sunken navy ship HTMS Sattakut, with whale sharks passing in some seasons. Ferries land at Mae Haad, the port village, beside long Sairee Beach with its sunset bars and dive shops. Just offshore, three tiny islets joined by sandbars form Ko Nang Yuan. Around the coast, Shark Bay has snorkelling with blacktip reef sharks, Freedom Beach and Tanote Bay have clear water among boulders, and viewpoints such as John-Suwan look over the southern bays. The island is quieter than Samui or Pha Ngan, but its steep, rough roads cause many scooter accidents, fresh water is scarce, and the north-east monsoon brings rough seas late in the year.
Mae Haad Pier, Ko Tao, Ko Tao, Surat Thani, 84360, Thailand
NO OPENING TIME HERE WAS CHECKED. The typical pattern: the beaches are open at all times, while dive schools run morning and afternoon boats, typically leaving early in the morning and around midday, with Open Water courses starting on most days; Ko Nang Yuan has admitted day visitors from about morning to late afternoon, and viewpoints and beaches that charge fees are usually attended during daylight hours. Ferries run mainly in the morning and early afternoon, with no fast boats at night, and are cancelled in rough weather. The traps that ruin a day are booking a dive on the morning of a flight, a scooter fall on day one that closes the sea to you, arriving at Ko Nang Yuan at midday with plastic, and a monsoon ferry cancellation on the day you have to leave. Confirm current times before relying on them.