Koh Lanta travel guide

Where to base yourself

The Tourism Authority of Thailand describes Koh Lanta Yai as about 6 kilometres wide and more than 30 kilometres long, with nine beaches, mangroves, a waterfall, and forested hills. A road runs from north to south. Most people arrive at Ban Saladan.

Places and experiences

• Hat Khlong Dao and Hat Phra Ae. TAT names both. Use them as the swimming days. They are different bays; do not assume the photo of one is the hotel on the other.
• Ao Nui. Listed by TAT among the places to explore. Treat it as a smaller beach day, and check access before you promise a sunset there.
• Lanta Old Town and Baan Sangka U. The east-coast walk and the Sea Gypsy house. Go in the late afternoon, when you are done with the west-coast sun.
• Tanod Cape. TAT names the viewpoint and the lighthouse at the southern tip, near the national-park headquarters. It is a drive. Make it the day’s outing.
• Mu Ko Lanta National Park. The headquarters and the southern road are the easy part. The smaller islands are the part with a season.
• Koh Ngai, Koh Kradan, Koh Muk, Koh Rok, and Koh Haa. TAT names these as beaches and dive sites around Lanta, including islands that administratively sit toward Trang. They are boat days.
• A dive or a snorkel, if that is your reason. TAT points to Hin Muang–Hin Daeng, Koh Rok, and Koh Haa for coral. Book with a dive shop that can show current conditions. This page is not that shop.

A three-day pace

1. Day one, one west-coast beach. Arrive, stop moving, swim if the sea is calm.
2. Day two, south. National park road and Tanod Cape, back before dark.
3. Day three, Old Town or a small island. Old Town if you want no boat. A small island only after you have checked the closure note below.

If the weather turns

TAT says the smaller islands in and around Mu Ko Lanta National Park, including Koh Ma, Koh Hai, Koh Rok, Hin Daeng–Hin Muang, and Koh Haa, are typically closed from May through October. If your dates fall in that window, do not buy a trip that depends on them. Use the west-coast beaches, Old Town, and the cape. If a boat is cancelled outside that window, the same fallback applies. The cape road can be enough of a day.

Getting there and getting around

Public boats and car ferries meet Saladan from the Krabi mainland. Confirm the pier on the mainland side; Krabi has more than one. On the island, the north–south road is the structure of the trip. A hired motorbike is common and is also how people get hurt. Use a helmet. If you would rather not ride, hire a car or a driver for the cape day and walk the rest of the time.

Before you leave

• Read the May–October closure as TAT’s current wording, then ask the park office because seasons are enforced locally.
• Check national-park fees at the office. They are not printed here.
• Give the arrival day no other job than arriving.

Information Tourism Authority of Thailand — Ko Lanta.