Other than Phuket and Koh Samui, do any of you divers have suggestions for great places? I'm not a diver and this is one of the things I have little knowledge about when it comes to making recommendations.

Thanks in advance.

///MOVED/// to the Diving in Thailand forum--the divers tend to hang out in there

Hi onethailand, the most popular place , Probably, to learn is on Koh Tao. It has a lot of dive sites within easy reach and is a diiving island. Most of the dive schools on Samui will send you to Tao anyway so by going straight there you are saving yourself both time and money. Koh Lak and Krabi also have lots of good diving on the other coast of Thailand. I speak to a lot of peple who go to Tao, get certified then head off to the other side to do more dives. If money is not tight then get certified and do a 3-4 day live aboaard to the similans. Some of the best diving in the world. Enjoy

Thanks SBK for moving the topic.

H2oDunc, thanks for the reply. Next problem is that I have visitors who want to come beginning of next month - right during high season. This is the primary reason for avoiding Phuket and probably Samui. I was thinking about Koh Lanta or one of the islands on the Eastern Seaboard - any idea about dive locations there? Much appreciated...

Koh Lanta and Koh Lipe have some nice diving as well. problem with both locations; the highlights are not really suitable divespots for beginners.

Eastern Seaboard? You mean the northern Gulf of Thailand? Lanta is in the Andaman! Other side mate!

OK, for the seaboard you have a lot of choices. The nearest is Pattaya, while not the best, the Outer Islands are worth a a few visits. Head further East and hit Samaesan, beautiful location and a shipwreck. Heading East again, Ban Phe is the launch point for Koh Samet, where the diving is shallow and recommended for novices or skin divers. Eastwards once more and you reach Koh Chang. There are over 50 islands around Koh Chang, and most of them host fringing reefs.

One more thing to consider is who you go diving with. Once you are past Koh Samet, you are pretty much in the hands of your dive operator, so just make sure that they have the basics such as oxygen and first aid.

Also, if your mates get here between xmas and new years, Pm me.

There is a lot of places u try diving.

here is a diving site list of it for your reference.,

cheers

Have a look here : http://www.asiadivesite.com/thailand-dive-sites/ it covers the lot.

Personally I like the "off the beaten track" places like Chumphon.