I know the water is quite shallow at the beaches on Northwest Ko Phangan.

But waist high is better than knee high.

Is Had Yao or Had Salad a better choice for me? Thnx.

Well it depends on how far you wade out, during April the tides really drop.... Of course after all the rain we've had this last few weeks, perhaps the tides won't drop so much!

You might even consider Maehaad Beach too, where the snorkeling can be very good... nice beach too.

IMHO Koh Salad is the better of the two beaches mentioned by farangguy, but I too agree with Samuijimmy. Mae Haad is by far the best beach of them all and worth the extra effort to ge there.

For what is worth, Tripadvisor ranks Haad Salad among the 25 best beaches of the world

see the link

But if you want some more water, better Mae Haad

For what is worth, Tripadvisor ranks Haad Salad among the 25 best beaches of the world

see the link

But if you want some more water, better Mae Haad

Some one must have paid big bucks for that review....

Pic of Mae Haad, with sand bar to Ko Ma at low tide....