vacation - koh lipe or koh lanta or ?

[1FinickyOne]

Any tips and suggestions welcome.

We are looking to take a short 4-5 day vacation, flying out of Chiang Mai... any tips as to hotel, not looking to stay cheap but want some place nice..

Do any of the hotels have airport pick-up? What airlines? Is there any place else you might recommend for a short family vacation... part of the travel is to give my niece a first airplane ride...

thanks for helpful hints...

[innerspace]

Both are currently low season and it means it there.

Lanta has a car ferry so accessible year round even if travel agents say different, enough places open to make it possible but quiet means quiet and lots shut.

Not sure if new bridge open yet and changed things but lived through many low seasons there.

Lipe is much smaller, in a way more attractive but far more limited. Also ferries go longer distance so low season weather has more impact and not always accessible.

Love both islands, just be aware of low season.

[1FinickyOne]

Thanks Inner - saw a nice hotel on Phi Phi but not sure how empty it will be for low season... my wife will be uncomfortable if no other guests and also service usually suffers... is it that empty?

[Rimbuman]

Lipe and surrounding islands where certainly beautiful when I was there, only the trash everywhere (the usual styrofoam, plastic bags with decomposing food leftovers and even old carseats and mattresses in the bushes) where an absolute disappointment and huge turnoff.

We did the islands hopping day with snorkeling and the same thing, filthy trash everywhere.

I really tried to enjoy my trip but diep down I was disgusted and sad.

[aonangkrabi]

I suggest you give Thap Khaek (often mis-spelled as Tub Kaek) a thought. They have a couple of expensive resorts, a nice beach, a splendid view and most important: it is NOT an island so you have more opportunities to do interesting trips.

The most northerly resort is Anyavee Beach Resort, almost at the end of the road along the coast.

Thap Khaek is part of Khlong Muang, Tambon Nong Thale, Krabi Province. Krabi Airport can be reached by Air Asia on a non-stop flight from Chiang Mai. Airport taxis abound but the hotels also arrange airport transfers.

Enjoy your stay.

[recom273]

Both are currently low season and it means it there.

Lanta has a car ferry so accessible year round even if travel agents say different, enough places open to make it possible but quiet means quiet and lots shut.

Not sure if new bridge open yet and changed things but lived through many low seasons there.

Lipe is much smaller, in a way more attractive but far more limited. Also ferries go longer distance so low season weather has more impact and not always accessible.

Love both islands, just be aware of low season.

Yes! The bridge is open. I lived here when the concrete road wasn't built through a couple of low seasons. There's nothing worse than being the only person at a resort and it's wet and muddy.

.. So heard the bridge had been open for a couple of days and came to check it.

It's amazing ( there is a bump in the bridge looks like someone got the calculations wrong ) there are more ferries available, so no queues from the mainland. 15 mins across.

Then as fast as you can over Lanta Noi and over the bridge.

I would say it has knocked an hour or more off the journey.

In 5 years they will start the next apparently.

Another amazing thing, the locals had a ceremony to open the bridge with a street fair on the bridge with different food from over the country, dancing, sea gypsy dancing, beauty pageant and the like. Now it's continued every sunset since. People go sit on the hard shoulder and take selfies, the roti sellers turn up, and all the traffic slows down.

The ferry company must be screwing .. It's 15B for a motorbike+1 passenger to cross. Local price must be 10B.

[recom273]

I would check the ferry timetable to Lipe. It maybe soon that the boat stops running.

[Fookhaht]

Highly recommend Lanta for a family vacation. Been there three times over 10 years and would go again in a heartbeat.

[jphasia]

I am just back from a few days holidays including Ko Lanta and Koh Lipe. Little different for me as I live in Phuket, so been travelling by car from Phuket to Lanta, then Lanta to Lipe (the Pier of course).

I spent 4 nights in Ko Lanta and really enjoyed it. The main points for me about Lanta are that it's a bigger islands, nice beaches, more things inland to visit and also plenty of day-trip available to visit the small islands around. So, for me, spending 4 nights there was just fine and I could have extended for few more days.

I have no idea which airport desserve Lanta. I believe it is Krabi? As mentioned above, there are 2 ferries to access Lanta. One is from the main land to Lanta Noi and the other one is from Lanta Noi to Lanta Yai. It takes not longer than 10 minutes to cross with ferries. I was told before that the main problem is the waiting of each ferry. I was maybe lucky but I didn't have to wait more than half hours for each ferry (each way). However, as also mentioned, there is a bridge under construction between Lanta Noi and Lanta Yai. When I passed, the bridge was finish but not in operation yet. I was told by the residents in Lanta that the bridge is due to open sometime on April, 22 (So might be open already).

There are plenty of hotels in Lanta, for any budget. Location doesn't really matter I think but I was with my own car which might help. I saw that most tourists are renting scooters to travel around and there are some taxi.

For myself, I was staying in a resort about middle of the island. The resort was nice, I booked it online for 2 nights but I was disappointed and they are advertising it as beach resort but actually it is not on the beach and quite far from anywhere. It was costing me 3,200 THB / night. No much to complain about it except that it was not on the beach. Then I moved to another resort which I found by passing in the front. This one was really on the beach and nice accommodation, room with balcony and sea view, which was what I was originally looking for. It was also cheaper (about 2,500 THB) but budget was not my main concern.

Koh Lipe is very nice on my opinion, a paradise with Beautiful beaches, crystal water, perfect for swimming and snorkeling but much more smaller and then more limited. You enjoy the scenery, nice sunrise and sunset and beautiful snorkeling spot (or diving of course if you are up to that).

I am not a nightlife guy (or not anymore) and not going to bars much so I can’t comment much on this subject. I have seen in both Lanta and Lipe some bars, chill out places but I don’t think you can expect much if you are up to party’s...

Both have many restaurants with any kind of food and budgets, no issue for that.

It’s really depend on what you are up to for your holidays. I found Ko Lanta more options for few days. Going on day trip to paradise Islands like Koh Rok, Koh Kradan and enjoying a nice evening on the beach, restaurants, or spend a day going around Lanta, visiting the old town, the small national park in the down south with the cape, or exploring the difference beaches around the island. Nui beach seems to be a popular and nice place.

Lipe was more limited to beach and snorkeling (which was fine for me) but for few days only. There are a lot of resorts and guesthouse at different budgets also. I was in nice resort in Sunrise beach with a Villa on the beach, so not really on small budget but you can find many options nice on reasonable budget.

I was there during the week of 11-18 April and prices was probably still high season (even if it was quiet) and I understand the prices are dropping down after water festival.

If that help...

[eastendanto]

My wife and I went to Koh Lanta August 2011 having booked (via Expedia) the Lanta Pura Beach Resort which upon arrival around 10pm we found was under complete refurbishment. There was one other couple there and they left next morning and we left the Island the following morning and headed back to the mainland (having booked for 7 nights). I am assuming that the refurb has been completed and I would also assume that the hotel is in good stead and fully operational. From what we saw it looked a pretty decent hotel with a nice swimming pool, right on the beach.... room was fine, but severe lack of staff and building work throughout the day was not a big enticement for us to stay for 7 nights (Expedia denied all knowledge as well as a refund)...

That aside for the 2 nights we did stay we found a back street bar owned by an English guy and his Thai gf/wife which had excellent food (thai/english) and besides the refurb of the hotel the place was a modern day ghost town as it was low season and I'm talking very very low season. He advised that it was mainly scandinavian families that came there during the high season. There were loads of fish restaurants along the freshwater side which led directly to the sea, which I would imagine are full to the rafters during high season.

Unfortunately our experience put us off going back and still have no burning desire to go back there even with the new bridge which wasn't there when we went via a taxi and 2 ferries from Krabi airport.

If you go there wish you well and hope you have a better experience then we did...

rgds