Getting to Koh Lipe and The Stay (Part 2) - Low Season

-
Continuing from Part I...Koh Lipe is known as Maldives of Thailand. I highly recommend this place to everyone who are already sick of travelling to Langkawi during the December school holidays. I truly understand that during the December holidays all our beautiful islands at the east coast are shut down due to rainy monsoon. To find a good island is very hard except Langkawi. Now, I am telling you that you only go to Langkawi to take a speedboat or a ferry to Koh Lipe. Langkawi cannot compare with this island. This island located at Andaman Sea has been named as top 10 best islands in the world in National Geographic. 
However, the speedboat or ferry from Langkawi to Koh Lipe is only available during high season which is between 1st November - 15th May. So in this post I only share about low season travelling to Koh Lipe because it is much harder. During the low season, scheduled boat has reduced their frequency, restaurants and chalets at Koh Lipe are mostly closed. 
The speedboat and the ferry has almost the same travelling time which is 1 hour 30 minutes and cost the same too! The only difference is you prefer to enjoy sea wind or air-condition air. If you are a person who is easily sea-sick, do take the ferry.
This is the ferry. They have two scheduled time to Koh Lipe per day which is at 11.30am and 3.00pm for both speedboat and ferry. I know it is quite stupid because they could have 4 time slots instead of 2 but this is how they work. The price is 350baht/person for a return ticket but...as usual, anything in Thailand can be negotiated especially you are coming in big groups. Don't be shy and negotiate with them.
Another difference between speedboat and the ferry is the ferry boat cannot land ashore like the speedboat here.
They need this smaller boat to take you from the ferry boat to the shore. The price is 40baht/person. Not included in the ticket fee which you paid for the ferry earlier on.
We arrived at the sunrise beach and had to pay 20baht/person for the island fee to the local government.
Not many selections as I mentioned earlier for accommodation but the best part is the price is cheap! We stayed at Forra Resort. This resort is big! They have 3 branches over this small island. They occupied every each beach in this island. For your information, there are 3 beaches which are called Sunrise Beach, Sunset Beach and Pattaya Beach.
We stayed in a bamboo chalet with fan only. It costs me 600baht/night and if you are diving with them on that day, you get a free night stay! ONLY on low season. Amazing!
This chalet is located at the Sunrise Beach. So at night, it is not that hot. Electricity here are opened 24 hours but no hot shower is provided. 
However, their restaurant is not open during the low season. All his workers are on holiday.
However, the most irritating part is not this spider but the mosquitoes. There are a lot of mosquitoes in this island so insect repellent is an essential item here.
This island is simply amazing despite the mosquitoes. Clear blue water and white sandy beach...it is a paradise for me. I would like to retire here if I could but I can see the island is pretty occupied by everyone.
Not much night life during low season. The activity here is basically just swimming, snorkeling, canoeing and diving. Not many dive centers are opened during the low season so you will have a hard time to get the best price out of them.
About going back to Pak Bara, there are also two time slots only which are 9.30am and 1.30pm. If you are holding an open ticket, please make sure that you go to your boat company 24 hours before boat departure to confirm your seating. If you do not do that, they will have the right to not let you on-board if the boat is fully occupied. Do take note on this. Once again for the ferry boat, you need to pay 40baht/pax to get to your boat.
There are not many restaurants opened during this season but take a little walk inside the island and you will see plenty more other choices waiting for you. Some of you may choose to fly to Hatyai and take a bus to Pak Bara. Do take note that the bus will take 90 minutes to arrive and there is only one bus for every hour. Sometimes, the bus is not really accurate with their timing. It is easy to get to Koh Lipe even it is low season if you get all the information right. Enjoy!
Summary:-

 1) Langkawi - only available during high season between December to April.

 2) Fly to Hatyai - My advice is to take a bus to Pak Bara and stay a night there. There are taxi van available if you are coming in larger group. If you are taking AirAsia, you should be able to catch 3.00pm boat without any stay required. For going back to KL, you need to stay a night at Hatyai. Make your half day worthwhile at Hatyai! Hatyai is a great place too!

 3) Drive to Thailand - If your group does not need land visa application, do take the route to Wang Kelian and you should be able to reach Pak Bara in one hour. Parking fee is 100baht/day. It is safe. If your group needs a visa such as from China, you need to go to Bukit Kayu Hitam and pay 1500baht for the visa. Another 3 hours drive, you should be able to reach Pak Bara.

 Pros & Cons of travelling to Koh Lipe during Low Season

 Pros:
1) Low number of tourists/not too crowded
2) Competitive price for accommodation and water entertainment
3) Highly negotiable boat fare

Cons:
1) Only one route to Koh Lipe which is through Pak Bara
2) Limited boat schedule
3) Limited chalets and restaurants available
Location: Ko Tarutao, Satun, Thailand

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Bao Seng Durian Farm, Balik Pulau

-
Image
Have you ever stay in a Durian Farm before? No? At Bao Sheng Durian Farm, you can do it! This 6.7 acres durian farm has been established in Balik Pulau since 1959. It really took them full 60 years to get the fruit of their hard work. Their villa is well equipped with air-con, hot shower and LCD TV with hundreds of Blu-Ray quality movies in it! They have existing queen size or king size bed and extra bed can be requested. To get close and personal with the King of Fruit...the accommodation charges will be Deluxe Villa is charged at RM280/night and standard villa will cost you RM180/night. They only have 1 Deluxe Villa and 2 Standard Villa only. So it is very easy to be fully booked during the durian season. Advance booking is greatly recommended for at least 3 months ahead so that you will be able to choose the right schedule for the durian you wish to taste. Why stay in a durian farm? This is what you see when you open the window with all the durian trees around you. The fre
Read more

Hawker Center @Jalan MacAlister, Penang

-
Image
What will people think first when we talk about Penang? Penang Hill? Batu Feringghi? Hard Rock Cafe? I doubt any of them come first but their local food! Penang famous with their local foods and that is the reason there are a lot of hawker center at Penang. One of them is at Jalan MacAlister. No name for this hawker center but the local good foods are concentrated here. A lot of hawker stall like this here. There are just too many to choose from. Prawn Mee @RM5.00 Outlook: 3/5 Creativity: 3/5 Taste: 3/5 Price: 2/5 Overall: 2/5 - As I mentioned in my previous post at Raodifang, I just hate to eat a prawn mee with small prawns in it. Loh Mee @RM5.00 Outlook: 3/5 Creativity: 3/5 Taste: 2/5 Price: 2/5 Overall: 2/5 - Nothing special for an expensive small portion. Carrot Cake in chinese style @RM6.00 Outlook: 3/5 Creativity: 4/5 Taste: 4/5 Price: 3/5 Overall: 3/5 - We ordered two plates and one plate is very delicious and fragrant but another one is too s
Read more

Sports Shooting Club Hatyai (SSC)

-
Image
Most of people think if you travel to Hatyai and not visiting their temples, you are just wasting your time at Hatyai. As for my personal opinion, if you come to Hatyai and did not go to Sports Shooting Club (SSC) Hatyai to experience the shooting experience with a real gun, I think you are not just wasting your time at Hatyai but you are wasting your time being a human. You only live once and there is no better way to understand these guns than coming over to SSC.   Their gun selections are enough to satisfy your urge. From rifle, pistols, revolvers to shotguns. You would be surprised that their rifle is the cheapest. The price is stated from 890 baht nett for a 15 rounds.  I have tried the rifle, beretta and this Smith and Wesson 4506 .45 ACP. This 45 is my favorite among all with 50m shooting range and 8+1 capacity. One of the most expensive gun to rent here. Basically you are shooting at the target paper like this. You can adjust the range of the target to your prefer
Read more

Kedai Kopi Lotus, Kota Kinabalu

-
Image
Kota Kinabalu doesn't have huge hawker center like you will see in Peninsular Malaysia or Kuching but I have to reckon that the best hawker center in Kota Kinabalu is in Kedai Kopi Lotus. Kedai Kopi Lotus themselves do serve their own food which was very terrible and beyond edible state. So do not eat anything from this restaurant. You just pick the stalls beside this restaurant. There are 4 stalls which I will introduce one by one to you but the only stall which will not be introduced is the stall which is selling Guo Tie ( a kind of dumplings) -  not my favorite. The best and the most popular stall of all is this chicken wing stall. Everyone is there lining up for them either taking away or dining there. You may need to wait for 15-20 minutes for it. However, it will be definitely worthwhile. RM2.65/pc for this chicken wing. The reason it is taste so good is because of the perfect combination of the honey and the BBQ fragrance. They blend it so well inside the fresh and
Read more

Restoran Makanan Laut Lau Heong, Bandar Baru Sentul

-
Image
This is my first time dining at Sentul and glad to know this great Chinese restaurant which is known as Restoran Makanan Laut Lau Heong. This is the crowd at 6.00pm on Sunday. Crazy right? Let you see from another angle. They just own one shop lot but seems like owning an extra 4 parking space but still they are people standing and waiting for their seat including me! Curry Fish Head @RM25.00 Outlook: 4/5 Creativity: 4/5 Taste: 4/5 Price: 3/5 Overall: 3/5 - This is their signature. You can choose a normal fish meat or a fish head like this. The curry is not really spicy at all. It contains more coconut milk taste than the curry itself. The fragrance of the curry and the coconut milk work perfectly. I can smell it before it is served. The fish heads are soft, tender, fresh and delicious. Highly recommend to everyone to try. Ginger Squid and Prawn @RM18.00 Outlook: 4/5 Creativity: 5/5 Taste: 5/5 Price: 2/5 Overall: 4/5 - Hardly taste the ginger but what makes me
Read more

Gua Tempurung (Tour 1 - Golden Flowstone), Gopeng

-
Image
Talking about caving, at East Malaysia, we will surely talk about Gua Niah . While at West Malaysia, many of us will think of is this, Gua Tempurung. So here I am at the entrance of one of the famous caves in Malaysia. A little history about this cave for you to know more. These are the prices and packages that you can choose from based on the difficulty and the adventure you would like to experience. Please take note on the number of people as well in your group. Tour 3 (Top of the World & Short River Adventure) & 4 (Grand Tour) have to be minimum of 8 pax. Tour 2 (Top of the World) is 4 pax and for any lesser than that will be Tour 1 (Golden Flowstone) .  Here are the sample pictures of what you going to experience depending to the tour you took.  So you have a good picture on what you will be experiencing. If you only have three pax or below and you do not wish to go for the tour 1, you have 2 options; 1) Wait for other visitors to come. NOTE: Not many visi
Read more

Trang An Boat Tour, Ninh Binh

-
Image
It’s known as the Ha Long Bay of the land. About 150 kilometers from the famous Vietnamese bay where hundreds of islands form a natural wonder is another equally as impressive landscape. This one, known as Trang An, is nowhere near the coast, though. The mountains are connected by rice paddies, not water. You can cycle to them, not sail. And – best of all – they are not full of foreign tourists. Such is the joy of a Trang An boat tour. Trang An Heritage Complex is a part of Ninh Binh province, it is about 100km away from Hanoi city center. If Halong holds an impressive and magnificent beauty, Trang An will be its best rival. Though smaller in size, you will be lost in a wonderland with the karst mountains, lush green forests, sparkling and crystal-clear river and the endless rice field running to the horizon. In general, the cost of entrance fees & boat trip of three routes is the same ( 200.000vnd/ person) on a shared- rowing boat (maximum 4 people/ 1 boat). You can ch
Read more

Skyline Luge, Sentosa

-
Image
After taking the cable car from Harbourfront to Sentosa Island, Skyline Luge is what you will see when you reach there at Imbiah Lookout. Riding this can get you faster to the Siloso Beach and extremely exciting too! The price is as above and as you can see there is an express queue charges if you got bored of queuing. Luge is a very light sled where over here it is functioned by wheels instead of skate. It slides down the hill without using engines to run it. They have two types of trails which are Dragon Trail and Jungle Trail. Choose either one you prefer but if you choose more than 1 ride, you should try both! Luge is the most dangerous sports in the Winter Olympics. So it is the same goes to this. You must adhere to their warnings and instructions at all times to avoid any unwanted accidents happen which will spoiled your entire day.  The first thing to do is to get the right size of helmet. Then, you listen to the instruction on how to control the luge. Do not a
Read more

City Square Shooting Gallery @Menara TKSS, Segambut

-
Image
I have been always wanted to get hold of a real gun and shoot like James Bond, Neo in Matrix and Max Payne. I have invited my buddy, Suyin who is very interested in it as well to accompany me. Thanks to ILoveDiscounts , this dream is no longer a dream and it is made possible and affordable to everyone. The link of the deal as follows: RM105 for a handgun experience + 25 Rounds of Ammo Before we attend, we are required to submit our passport photo, photocopy of our IC and filling up their Vetting form. The documents are required for a background check to eliminate those who has criminal record especially related to gun. 14 working days are required to run the check. After that, it is compulsory to attend their briefing which is lasting at most 2 hours to learn and understand the safety rules. At the same time, to learn the basic techniques in shooting. Since this is a real gun and it is not a gun we are playing in a fun fair, we must adhere to their strict rules not just for prot
Read more

Blue Moon Valley, Lijiang

-
Image
Blue Moon Valley actually is an extremely blue river meandering through a lush valley of Jade Dragon Snow Mountain. Seen from a distance, it resembles a blue crescent moon inlaid at the foot of the mountain. That's how the place got its beautiful name! However, blue is not the only colour of the river. If it rains, the white mud and limestone rubble at the riverbed will be swirled up, making the water as white as milk. Therefore, local Naxi people name it White Water River (Baishui River). Blue Moon Valley is a popular spot inside the Jade Dragon Snow Mountain Scenic Area, 15 kilometers (9 miles) away from Lijiang Old Town. You can either take a through bus or charter a minibus to get to the Snow Mountain first. Take a through bus at Yuhe Parking Lot near the northern gate of Lijiang Old Down. You can buy the ticket in Tourist Service Center at the northern end of Lanhua Street, opposite Tianyu Hotel. The bus leaves for the Snow Mountain at 8.30pm and returns at 4.30pm;
Read more