Maya Bay is a bay on Koh Phi Phi Leh, the uninhabited island south of Phi Phi Don, where the 2000 film "The Beach" starring Leonardo DiCaprio was filmed. Two decades of mass tourism have severely damaged the reef, which is why the bay was closed from 2018 to 2022 and has since been subject to strict regulations. Boats dock at a pier on the far side of the island, from which the beach is accessible on foot. Wading up to the knees is permitted, but swimming is not. Visits are allowed in one-hour groups of no more than 375 people. The bay is closed every year from August 1st to September 30th.
Foreign adults pay a parking fee of 400 baht. It remains the most beautiful bay in the country, and the key to success is timing. Be there from Phi Phi Don by 7:00 a.m., before the day boats arrive from Phuket and Krabi.
Arrival at the Phi Phi Islands
Accommodation on the Phi Phi Islands
This route ends in the Phi Phi Islands. Search for hotels in the Phi Phi Islands for your travel dates or narrow your search to the specific region you wish to visit. Filter for hotels with free cancellation if you'd like to book a room and decide later.
Open Booking.com with your travel dates · also on Expedia · Trip.com
My recommendations for every price category on the Phi Phi Islands
Key facts
Closed from August 1st to September 30th each year.
The park is closing Maya Bay and the two bays behind it, Loh Samah and Lo Ko, for two months due to renovations and because boats cannot safely dock due to the monsoon sea conditions. They will reopen on October 1st. Phi Phi tours will continue during these months, but the boats will not be docking.
The parking fee is 400 Baht.
Foreign adults pay 400 baht and children 200 baht for entry to the Hat Noppharat Thara–Mu Ko Phi Phi National Park, which includes Maya Bay, Phi Phi Leh, and Bamboo Island. Large tours from Phuket and Krabi usually include entry. Private longtail boats typically do not offer it, so you should bring cash.
Wade, don't swim!
Since its reopening, swimming in Maya Bay has been prohibited to protect the recovering reef and the blacktip reef sharks that breed in the shallow waters. Wading up to the knees is permitted. Lifeguards monitor swimming times, and violations are punishable by a fine of 5,000 baht.
Boats land on the back side of the island.
No boat goes into the bay itself. You are dropped off at the pier in Loh Samah, on the other side of the headland, and from there it's about a 300-meter walk along a wooden boardwalk, which takes five to ten minutes. There are restrooms and a café along the way.
One-hour rounds, 7:00 AM to 6:00 PM
The bay opens at 7:00 AM and closes at 6:00 PM. Tours take place in groups of up to 375 people for one hour each, totaling approximately 4,125 people per day.
Beat the day boats
Tours from Phuket and Krabi reach Maya Bay between approximately 9:30 and 11:00 AM. A 7:00 AM longtail boat trip from Phi Phi Don will get you there during the quieter early hours, making it the perfect reason to spend the night on the island.
Why Maya Bay is famous and why it was closed
Maya Bay was already beautiful before Hollywood discovered it: a bay with white sand enclosed on three sides by limestone cliffs. The 2000 film "The Beach" starring Leonardo DiCaprio made it the most photographed beach in Thailand, and in the 2010s, around 5,000 tourists visited the beach daily, with peak times reaching 7,000 to 8,000. Most of them arrived by boats anchored over the reef.
By 2018, reef cover had dropped to below 8%, and in June of that year, the park closed the bay. It remained closed until January 2022. During this time, over 30,000 pieces of coral were replanted, about half of which survived, and the blacktip reef sharks returned within a few months. They are now breeding in the bay, and on September 2, 2026, park staff counted 278 adult sharks near the shore—the highest count of the year.
The reopening came with the rules that now characterize a visit: access via the back entrance, the ban on swimming, the one-hour tours, and the two-month closure every year.
What a visit looks like today
Your boat will dock at the pier in Loh Samah Bay, behind Phi Phi Leh, and then proceed to a buoy while you walk. The wooden boardwalk will take you through the trees and across the headland to the beach in five to ten minutes. There you will have about an hour. You can stroll along the beach, take photos, and wade into the shallow water up to your knees. This is where you have the best chance of seeing sharks – small blacktip reef sharks that circle close to the shore.
Don't think of it as a typical beach day. Swimming, sunbathing, and lunch on the beach are not permitted, and drone flights require a permit. The focus is on the views, and they are truly breathtaking. If you'd like to spend time in the water, you'll find snorkeling stops along the same route and at Bamboo Island, accessible with the same park ticket.
All routes to Maya Bay compared
Maya Bay is closed to landings every year from August 1st to September 30th. During this time, tours offer excursions by water or bypass the bay altogether. Agree on the total price for a private longtail boat, including fees and stops, before boarding, as additional charges demanded on the day often lead to complaints.
Getting to Maya Bay
Maya Bay is located on Koh Phi Phi Leh, an uninhabited island with no accommodation. A boat trip is required for every visit, and the starting point determines the quality of the excursion.
From Phi Phi Don, the best way
Phi Phi Leh is a 20- to 30-minute longtail boat ride from Tonsai, the main town on Phi Phi Don. Every hotel and dive shop offers half-day tours to Maya Bay, Pileh Lagoon, and the snorkeling spots. The price is around 1,200–1,500 baht per person on a shared boat or 2,500–3,500 baht for a private longtail boat for up to six people. The key difference is the 7:00 AM departure: this allows you to reach the bay during the calm morning hours and leave Pileh Lagoon before the speedboats from Phuket arrive. For a private boat tour, be sure to agree on the price, parking fees, and each stop before departing from the beach.
From Phuket
A speedboat day trip is the most efficient way to get around from Phuket. You'll be picked up directly from your hotel, the tour lasts 8 to 11 hours, and costs approximately 1,900–6,200 baht. A standard speedboat tour is available from around 2,400 baht and usually includes Pileh Lagoon, Monkey Beach, and lunch on Phi Phi Don. Park fees are included on some tours but not on others. Book the earliest possible departure, as later boats all arrive at Maya Bay at the same time.
From Krabi and Ao Nang
Phi Phi is about a 45-minute speedboat ride from the piers in Krabi. Day trips from Ao Nang and Krabi Town, including hotel pick-up, lunch, and four to five stops, cost from around US$33 on booking websites, plus parking fees if not included. A private longtail boat trip from Ao Nang for a group of six costs about 7,000 baht – a long journey in an open boat, but with flexible scheduling.
The best-rated hotels on the Phi Phi Islands
Here is my ranking of the 9 best hotels on the Phi Phi Islands. Each button will take you directly to the hotel's page on Booking.com, where you have already entered your travel dates.
The best time to travel to Maya Bay
The time of day is more important than the month. The bay opens at 7:00 AM, and the day boats from Phuket and Krabi arrive between about 9:30 and 11:00 AM. Before then, you'll be sharing the beach with one or two other boats that arrive early, and after that, it's busiest until the afternoon. If you can only do a day trip, book the first departure offered by your tour operator.
From November to April, the Andaman coast experiences its dry season with exceptionally calm seas. From May onwards, the monsoon season intensifies, boat trips are cancelled due to rough seas, and the bay is completely closed from August 1st to September 30th. Even in October, shortly after reopening, it still rains, so you should plan an extra day if Maya Bay is the reason for your trip.
Day trip or stay on Phi Phi?
If you want to visit Maya Bay, you should spend two nights on Phi Phi Don. A day trip from Phuket or Krabi takes four hours or more by boat and arrives at Maya Bay at the same time as everyone else. If you stay overnight on Phi Phi Don, you'll reach Maya Bay at 7:00 am by longtail boat, allowing you to visit Pileh Lagoon before the speedboats arrive, and you'll have the afternoon free to explore the viewpoint and Long Beach.
A day trip is still worthwhile if your journey begins in Phuket and the days are packed, or during the monsoon season. In these cases, a flexible tour that you can reschedule is cheaper than staying overnight on the island in bad weather. The Koh Phi Phi travel guide provides information on accommodation on the island and how to get there.
What else is there to see and do on the Maya Bay Circuit?
Almost all excursions to Maya Bay circumnavigate Phi Phi Leh. Another highlight is Pileh Lagoon, a verdant pool enclosed by sixty-meter-high cliffs, into which the boats sail. The tours also pass the Viking Cave and offer a snorkeling stop off Loh Samah. Longer excursions additionally include Monkey Beach on Phi Phi Don and Bamboo Island, a white sand beach in the northeast – all with the same park ticket.
Plan the rest of Phi Phi.
Frequently Asked Questions
Frequently asked questions about the Maya Bay Guide.
It was closed from August 1st to September 30th, 2026, and reopened on October 1st, 2026. It closes on the same dates every year, meaning it is open from October to the end of July.
Since the bay reopened in 2022, swimming has been prohibited to protect the reforested reef and the blacktip reef sharks that breed in the shallow waters. Wading up to the knees is permitted, and lifeguards monitor compliance with the swimming zone.
The 2000 film "The Beach," starring Leonardo DiCaprio, was filmed here. The resulting influx of tourists damaged the reef so severely that the bay was closed from 2018 to 2022. Its recovery, including the return of the sharks, made it famous a second time.
The national park fee is 400 baht for foreign adults and 200 baht for children. It is usually included in larger tours. For private trips on longtail boats, it is typically paid in cash.
Accessible only by boat. From Phi Phi Don, the longtail boat trip takes 20 to 30 minutes. A shared tour costs approximately 1,200–1,500 baht per person, a private boat 2,500–3,500 baht. From Phuket and Krabi, the island is included in speedboat day trips. The boats dock at Loh Samah on the far side of the island, from where you continue on foot.
The bay is open from 7:00 AM from November to April. Day boats from Phuket and Krabi arrive between approximately 9:30 and 11:00 AM. The bay is closed from August 1st to September 30th.
Approximately one hour. Tours take place in groups of up to 375 people for one hour each between 7:00 am and 6:00 pm.
Yes, blacktip reef sharks, which are small and harmless to wading birds. They returned after the closure in 2018 and are now breeding in the bay. Park staff counted 278 adult sharks near the beach on September 2, 2026.
No. Koh Phi Phi Leh is uninhabited and the bay closes at 6:00 PM. Stay overnight on Phi Phi Don, which is a 20-30 minute longtail boat ride away, and take the first boat in the morning.
Compare prices on the major booking portals and filter for rooms with free cancellation if you want to book now and decide later.
Compare prices on Booking.com
Compare prices on Trip.com
We may receive a commission for bookings made through these links – this will not incur any additional costs for you. Learn more.
You might also like this
Bangkok travel guide
A city with three zones and a river – once you understand the structure, everything else falls into place.
Chiang Mai City Guide
A walled square, a mountain, and the best value for money for good living in Thailand – if you know the calendar.
Things to do in Bangkok
Ten experiences worth traveling to – sorted by rank, price and time, so you can experience each one at the best time.
Things to do in Chiang Mai
Twenty-five things worth a trip to the north, ranked by rank, price and time of year to visit, centered around the mountain, the markets and the smoke-free months.
Best time to travel to Thailand
The best time to travel is from November to February; the rest of the year is best on the east coast.
I lived in Bangkok for four years and traveled throughout the country from there. The guidebooks reflect my personal opinion and are written as I would explain things to a friend planning a trip.
Ready to create your travel itinerary?
Use our free trip planner to save places, organize days, and share your trip.
Community
Comments 0
Start the conversation.