The very top of the reef of Hin Muang is about 12 meters below the surface. It’s like the mountains that come up and you can swim around them. It goes down very deep. The bottom at Hin Muang is around 40 to 50 meters. You can find octopus, snapper, barracuda and tuna but in total there are about 200 different species under water. Some divers say that in one dive, they can find up to seven species. The atmosphere down in the water is like a garden.

Koh Haa (Five Islands)
          It takes one hour to get to Koh Haa. There are actually five and a half islands at Koh Haa. The islands two, three and four make up a beautiful area called ‘the lagoon.’ Island number three has a very nice white sandy beach on it which is perfect for snorkeling and beautiful for diving as well. The water is shallow so Koh Haa is the place for beginners. Koh Haa is considered as a gemstone according to diving professionals as there are many rare things to see underwater and the visibility here is exceptional. On a normal day you can see 20 to 25 meters. On a good day, it’s about 30 to 35 meters. The water is clean and clear. It’s good a place to look for ghost pipe fish, lots of shrimps and octopus. Koh Haa has more octopus than any other site. This area is also popular for turtles as well. Koh Haa is the most exquisite looking place above the water. If you don’t dive, you can swim or snorkel. The lagoon area is between three to five meters deep. It has a white sandy bottom with coral heads that come up so you can easily swim around and you can see everything. Kids tend to love it here. Even people who don’t really swim very much can put a life jacket on and enjoy the day as the water is so clear that you don’t have to be afraid of anything. Koh Haa also has beautiful caverns that you can swim into. On island number five (also call ‘Koh Ha Yai’—the biggest of the five) there are two very big chambers where the light comes in from both sides. The opening is about nine meters deep and six meters wide in both chambers. The light comes through the water which makes everything green and magical. From the ceiling there are stalactites and stalagmites to explore. Then you can go back down and swim through into the second chamber to find tiger shells, glass shrimps, and hermit crabs. Finally island number one also has a good cavern system as well. You can swim in and come out through an exit similar to a chimney. All of them are wonderful for diving around.

Koh Phi Phi
          It takes two hours and 20 minutes to reach Koh Phi Phi from Koh Lanta. There are two islands: Koh Phi Phi Don and Koh Phi Phi Lay. The first one is where the people, hotels and resorts are concentrated, and the second one is the national park. Koh Phi Phi is a well known place to dive—there are 30 to 35 dive sites. You can dive there many times. The underwater scenery in PhiPhi is spectacular, and it has a huge variety of corals and marine life. You can swim through the rocks and sometimes it’s full of fish there, you have to swim through, making it seem like a huge wall of fish. If you only have one dive, Phi Phi is the right place. The largest amount fish and different corals are here to see. Koh Phi Phi is very famous for leopard sharks and big red sea fans. The visibility is not as good as Koh Haa—on a normal day, you can expect 15 to 20 meters. On a very good day, 20 to 25 meters and occasionally 30 meters. There is every kind of diving, there is a wall that goes straight down to 30 meters which you can swim along. They have pinnacles that you can swim around. They have small reefs and big reefs. The down side to Phi Phi is that it’s so well known, you can have 20-30 dive boats in one place with hundred of divers. You see lots of fish but you see lots of divers too. The two other famous diving points of Koh Phi Phi are Bida Nok and Bida Nai (also called fantasy rock) but it’s half way back to Koh Lanta and they are located next to Phi Phi Lay. If you haven’t been to Thailand before, it is well worth a visit to Koh Phi Phi.