Both trips leave from Phuket and fill a whole day, but they are different days. The Similan Islands mean a 6:00 pickup and a long drive to Phang Nga before the boat; Phi Phi is a shorter day from a Phuket pier. The numbers below come from Phuket Tour’s programme cards and the national parks authority (DNP) as of 3 November 2026. Each trip has its own page with the details: Similan Islands and Phi Phi.
Phi Phi or the Similans: side by side
Phuket Tour speedboat programmes, price per person, 3 November 2026. The park fee is in the price of both.
| Phi Phi and Bamboo | Similan Islands | |
|---|---|---|
| Price, adult / child from 4, baht | 2,600 / 2,100 | 2,300 / 2,100 |
| Park fee, foreign adult / child, baht | 400 / 200 | 500 / 250 |
| Season | all year; Maya Bay closed 1 Aug-30 Sep | 15 Oct-15 May only |
| Pickup and back at the pier | 7:00 and 16:30 | 6:00 and 16:45 |
| Length of the day | 9 h 30 min | 10 h 45 min |
| Boat to the islands | 75 min out (9:00 to 10:15), 60 min back | 90 min out (9:00 to 10:30), 90 min back |
| Stops | Maya Bay, Pileh Lagoon, Monkey Beach, Viking Cave, lunch on Phi Phi Don, Bamboo | island 9 with turtles, island 8 with a beach and viewpoint, lunch, island 6, island 4 (Princess Beach) |
| Snorkelling | swim and snorkel in Pileh Lagoon | two stops, one at the turtle island |
| Beaches | Bamboo; Maya Bay, but no swimming | Ko Similan, Princess Beach |
| Crowds | speedboats reach Maya Bay from 9:00 | 1,409 visitors on the opening day; 2026/27 daily cap not found |
| Pregnancy | Love Andaman: speedboat not suitable | Love Andaman: speedboat not suitable |
Times and stops are from the programme cards. Phuket Tour’s cheapest Phi Phi day is THB 2,050 per adult (THB 1,800 child) for Phi Phi, Bamboo, Khai and Maiton with a 6:00 pickup, so the Similans are not always the cheaper trip.
How far it is and how long you are on the water
- Phi Phi. Phuket Tour’s card has the boat at the islands 75 minutes after leaving, and 60 minutes back. Love Andaman’s timetable puts the boat at Maya Bay 45 minutes after departure. The DNP gives the public ferry crossing from Chalong as about 40 km and 1.5-2 hours
- Similan Islands. Nothing sails from Phuket itself: every tour drives you to Thap Lamu pier in Phang Nga first. The OSRM route on OpenStreetMap is 71 km and about 67 minutes from Phuket airport, and about 100 km and 95 minutes from Patong. From the pier the DNP gives about 70 km by sea and about 1.5 hours on a direct speedboat
- Total. By Phuket Tour’s times the crossing to the islands and back is 2 hours 15 minutes for Phi Phi and 3 hours for the Similans, on top of the drive
When to go
| Dates | Phi Phi | Similan Islands |
|---|---|---|
| 15 Oct-15 May | open | open; the 2026/27 season began on 15 Oct |
| 16 May-31 Jul | open, weather decides on the day | closed |
| 1 Aug-30 Sep | open, Maya Bay and Loh Samah closed | closed |
| 1-14 Oct | open, Maya Bay reopened on 1 Oct 2026 | closed until 15 Oct |
The DNP closes the Similans because of the monsoon sea. Phi Phi tours keep running, but Tisland says that at waves of 2-3 m speedboats to far islands are the first to be cancelled, so ask about rescheduling before you pay. Today’s forecast from TMD (3 November 2026, 13:00) reads: waves about 1 m, 1-2 m offshore, above 2 m in thundershowers. Month by month rainfall is in Phuket climate.
What you get in the water and on the beach
- Snorkelling. The Similan card has two stops: island 9, where Phuket Tour says sea turtles live, and island 6 from the boat. Love Andaman calls its island 9 stop the best place to see many kinds of fish and says turtles and clownfish are often seen at island 7. At Phi Phi you swim and snorkel in Pileh Lagoon. If snorkelling is the point, the Similan day gives you more of it
- Beaches. The Similans have Ko Similan with a viewpoint walk and Princess Beach on Ko Miang. Phi Phi has Bamboo; Maya Bay is a beach to walk on, and the park has banned swimming there. Details on the Maya Bay page
- Crowds. Wikivoyage says speedboats from Phuket reach Maya Bay in force from 9:00 and that before 8:00 it can still be quiet. Tisland’s early catamaran lands at Loh Samah at 7:45, ahead of that. For the Similans we found no published daily limit for 2026/27 and no count of boats
Children, pregnancy and seasickness
- Children. The child fare starts at age 4 on both. Phi Phi is the easier day: 75 minutes shorter overall and 45 minutes less on the water. Love Andaman counts a child as 4-11 and not over 120 cm
- Under 4. Love Andaman marks its Phi Phi and Similan speedboat trips as not suitable for infants and puts toddlers at 1-3. For a small child Coral Island is gentler: THB 1,400 adult and THB 1,300 child at Phuket Tour, boat at 9:00, back at the pier at 14:00. A Khai half day is THB 1,000 and THB 800
- Pregnancy. Love Andaman marks both speedboat trips unsuitable and Tisland does not take pregnant guests on its catamaran. Phuket Tour’s Phi Phi and Similan cards state nothing either way, so ask in writing and check with your doctor
- Seasickness. Neither is a sheltered bay. The Similans are the longer open-sea crossing. Love Andaman advises taking something before boarding and sitting towards the middle. A bigger boat helps; see speedboat, catamaran or big boat
Which one to pick
- The Similans: you travel between 15 October and 15 May, snorkelling is why you are going and a 6:00 pickup and a day of almost 11 hours suit you
- Phi Phi: you travel in any other month, want a shorter day, or want the cliffs of Phi Phi Leh and Pileh Lagoon. For Maya Bay itself avoid August and September
- Neither: you have a child under 4 or a toddler who will not sit still. Take Coral Island or a Khai half day. If you are pregnant, ask Phuket Tour about the big boat to the James Bond Islands, which it says suits pregnant guests
- Both: book two separate days. They leave from different piers and each fills a whole day
What we could not confirm
- The daily visitor limit and number of boats at the Similans for the 2026/27 season: the DNP park page gives no cap
- How many people visit Phi Phi on a typical day: no published count
- Which place has clearer water: no source we found measures it, so the table compares what the programmes include
- The exact boat, its speed and capacity on Phuket Tour’s speedboat cards: the pages do not say
To check seats on a date, use the day trip picker. Prices for the rest of the island programmes are in how much Phuket tours cost.
FAQ
Phi Phi or the Similan Islands: which is better?
It depends on the month and on how long a day you want. Between 15 October and 15 May the Similans give you more water time on Phuket Tour's card: two snorkel stops, one at a turtle island, and two beaches, but the day runs 10 h 45 min from the 6:00 pickup. Phi Phi is shorter at 9.5 hours, runs all year and has Pileh Lagoon and the cliffs of Phi Phi Leh, but Maya Bay is busy from 9:00 and swimming there is banned.
Which is cheaper, Phi Phi or the Similans?
On 3 November 2026 Phuket Tour sells the Similans by speedboat at THB 2,300 per adult and Phi Phi and Bamboo by speedboat at THB 2,600. Its cheapest Phi Phi day is THB 2,050 for Phi Phi, Bamboo, Khai and Maiton, with a 6:00 pickup. The park fee is in every one of these prices, THB 500 at the Similans and THB 400 at Phi Phi.
Can I visit the Similan Islands in summer?
No. The DNP closes the park every year from 16 May to 14 October because of rough seas and heavy rain in the monsoon, and the 2026/27 season opened on 15 October. In those months Phi Phi, Coral Island, Khai and Phang Nga Bay keep running, with the weather deciding on the day.
Is Phi Phi worth it in August and September?
Tours run, but Maya Bay and Loh Samah are closed to visitors from 1 August to 30 September, so you see the bay from the water and swim in Pileh Lagoon instead. It reopened on 1 October this year. If Maya Bay is your reason for going, book for October or later.
Which is better with children, Phi Phi or the Similans?
Phuket Tour's child fare starts at age 4 on both. Phi Phi is the easier day: 9.5 hours against 10 h 45 min, and 75 minutes to the islands against about 90. With a child under 4 or a toddler who will not sit still, Coral Island (THB 1,400 adult, THB 1,300 child, back at the pier by 14:00) or a Khai half day (THB 1,000 and THB 800) is the gentler choice.
Which trip makes you more seasick, Phi Phi or the Similans?
Neither is sheltered. The Similans mean about 1.5 hours of open sea each way (DNP, direct speedboat) against 45-75 minutes to Phi Phi, so the Similans are the longer exposure for anyone prone to it. Love Andaman advises taking something before boarding and sitting towards the middle of the boat. For a steadier boat see speedboat, catamaran or big boat.
Can I do Phi Phi and the Similans in one trip?
Not on the same day. Similan tours drive you to Thap Lamu pier in Phang Nga, 71 km and about 67 minutes from Phuket airport, and the tour fills the whole day. Phi Phi leaves from a Phuket pier, so each one needs its own day.
Can pregnant women go to Phi Phi or the Similans?
Love Andaman marks its speedboat trips to both as not suitable for pregnant travellers, and Tisland Travel does not accept pregnant guests on its Phi Phi catamaran. Phuket Tour's Phi Phi and Similan cards state no restriction, so ask in writing and check with your doctor. One Phuket Tour programme that says it suits pregnant women is the big boat to James Bond Islands.
Sources
- DNP. Mu Ko Similan National Park: season, how to get there, boats
- DNP. National park entrance fees (dataset, CSV, edition of 02.06.2023)
- DNP. Hat Noppharat Thara-Mu Ko Phi Phi National Park: ferry from Phuket
- DNP. National park opening and closure status
- TMD. Shipping weather forecast, Andaman Sea, 03.11.2026 13:00
- Thai PBS. Phi Phi park announces the closure of Maya Bay and Loh Samah, 1 August-30 September (02.08.2023, in Thai)
- TAT Newsroom. Maya Bay limits daily visitors and bans swimming (June 2025)
- Time Out Bangkok. Maya Bay reopens October 1 after annual closure (September 2026)
- Pattaya Mail. Similan Islands welcome 1,400 tourists on opening day: 2026/27 season 15 October-15 May
- Phuket Tour. Similan Islands by speedboat: price and programme (in Russian)
- Phuket Tour. Phi Phi and Bamboo by speedboat: price and programme (in Russian)
- Phuket Tour. Phi Phi, Bamboo, Khai and Maiton by speedboat: price and programme (in Russian)
- Phuket Tour. Coral Island by speedboat (Rawai pier): price and programme (in Russian) (in Russian)
- Phuket Tour. Khai Islands half day: price (in Russian)
- Love Andaman. Phi Phi Islands and Bamboo Island day trip: timetable and who it is not suitable for
- Love Andaman. Similan Islands day trip: timetable, snorkelling and seasickness advice
- Tisland Travel. Phi Phi Islands day trip by catamaran: early departure, age and health rules
- Tisland Travel. How to read the TMD forecast before a sea trip: wave heights and which boats run
- Wikivoyage. Ko Phi Phi: when speedboat crowds reach Maya Bay
- OpenStreetMap, OSRM route: Phuket airport to Thap Lamu pier (71.3 km, 67 min)
- OpenStreetMap, OSRM route: Patong to Thap Lamu pier (99.7 km, 95 min)
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