Koh Phangan is Thailand’s fifth biggest island. It is situated in the tsunami free waters of the Gulf of Thailand, just 12 km from the neighboring island of Koh Samui and 70 km from the mainland. There are various businesses on the island offering dive courses and fun dives. And near the island there are a number of great spots to go scuba diving. This could be a great family vacation idea for the active family.
The water in the Gulf of Thailand is beautiful: it is warm and divers enjoy great visibility. There is a long stretch of coral reef that follows the North West coast of Koh Phangan. Excellent beaches to swim out from to either snorkel or dive the reefs are Haad Yao and Haad Salad. There is also the small island of Koh Ma just off the coast that also has a profusion of marine life to view.
There are numerous dive schools dotted around the island that use professionally trained instructors who speak a number of languages. The advantage of learning to dive on Koh Phangan instead of nearby Koh Tao is that the groups are usually smaller and the beaches are better. The more established dive schools are H20 Scuba in Thong Nai Pan Noi, Chaloklum Diving (in Chaloklum), Haad Yao Divers and Phangan International Diving School in Baan Tai. They offer various options from 1 day introductions to PADI Open Water Certificates to Advanced Courses leading to becoming a master diver and a dive instructor. PADI is an internationally recognized qualification that lets you dive anywhere in the world.
All the dive schools take you out in boats to the best dive sites in the area. There are a number of great places to dive, the best of which is the 5 star rated Sail Rock. Sail Rock is a small rock in the Gulf that has a profusion of fish and has a great chimney swim-through.
Near Koh Tao there is the nearby island of Shark Island and Southwest Pinnacle. Also not far away is Ang Thong Marine Park, a collection of over 40 islands that has undamaged corals where you can see rarer marine life such as turtles and sea snakes.
The fish you can expect to see include whale sharks, reef sharks, bull sharks, moray eels, clown fish, trigger fish and many more. If you want to learn how to dive than Koh Phangan is not only a good value option, but also a more relaxed option where you are going to get a more personalized service.
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