Phi Phi Le

Phi Phi Le is an island in the Andaman Sea, which became famous to many for filming the movie "The Beach" on it in 2000. Today it is a popular island among tourists and divers.

The main attraction of the island is Maya Bay beach, which is a bay 400 by 300 meters, which is surrounded on 3 sides by cliffs about 100 meters high. The beauty of the limestone cliffs is amazing, complemented by clean coral sand, clear water and an extensive coral reef, where many divers like to spend time. By the way, there are quite a lot of scuba diving enthusiasts among tourists. Someone swims among coral reefs, and someone with a snorkel dives to a shallow depth, looking at underwater inhabitants and landscapes.

During the day, the beach is crowded, so to admire the local expanses in silence, you need to stay in the bay overnight, for this you need a permit from the Phi Phi National Park, but it's quite easy to buy such a permit. It can be purchased at almost all travel agencies on Phi Phi Don Island. Staying overnight, you can take great pictures of Maya Bay during sunset and sunrise.

If you settle on the island of Phi Phi Don, then right in the morning you can rent a boat for several people for 1,500 baht and go on a trip for a few hours. Usually such a tour includes a visit to Maya Bay, Phi Leh and Loch Samah, a trip around the island of Phi Phi Le. If you stay overnight, it will cost about 2,500 baht.

It is worth noting that the filming of the movie "The Beach" was associated with a big scandal. The point is that for filming, the management of the film company used heavy machinery to change the natural terrain, destroying trees and sand dunes. After that, of course, the film company allocated money for the restoration of the beach, but a serious scandal broke out and, by decision of a Thai court, Thai officials and the film company were charged.

Until 2004, the island was not interesting to tourists, now it is attached to the Phi Phi National Park, campgrounds, toilets, bars have been set up on its beaches. Divers are charged 600 baht for diving.