Nearly every Phi Phi day trip from Krabi visits the same handful of places, because they all sit within a few kilometres of each other around Phi Phi Leh and Phi Phi Don. What changes from tour to tour is the order, the time you get at each stop and when the day starts. The Phi Phi Speedboat with Buffet Lunch is a good example of the standard version: about seven and a half hours, a 45-minute crossing, two snorkel stops on the way out and an international buffet on Phi Phi Don.
Phi Phi Speedboat with Buffet Lunch
A standard day at a glance
This is how a typical standard tour runs, based on the published schedules of the shared speedboat tours we review. Times at each stop are the operators’ own; clock times are approximate and move with the tide and the traffic.
| When | Stop | Time there |
|---|---|---|
| About 7:50 to 9:00 | Hotel pickup, briefing at the pier | 15 to 30 min |
| Morning | Speedboat crossing from the Ao Nang side | 45 to 60 min |
| Mid-morning | Maya Bay, walking in from Loh Samah Bay | 45 to 50 min |
| Late morning | Pileh Lagoon | 30 to 45 min |
| Late morning | Viking Cave, from the boat | 5 to 20 min |
| Late morning | Monkey Beach | 10 to 20 min |
| Around 12:00 | Lunch on Phi Phi Don | 1 to 1.5 h |
| Early afternoon | Bamboo Island | 45 min to 1 h |
| Afternoon | Speedboat back to the mainland | About 50 min |
| About 16:00 to 17:00 | Drop-off at your hotel |
The Phi Phi Speedboat Tour with Lunch, for example, runs from 9:00 to 17:00 with lunch at 12:00.
Pickup and the crossing
Pickups in Ao Nang start around 8:00 on the standard tours; on the Maya Bay, Bamboo & Phi Phi Day Tour it is 8:00 to 9:00 in Ao Nang and from 7:50 in Krabi Town and Klong Muang. Your operator confirms the exact time by email or message before the trip.
At the pier there is a short safety briefing and the park fee, 400 THB per adult and 200 THB per child, usually paid in cash. Then the speedboat crosses about 42 km of open sea to Phi Phi Leh. It takes about 45 to 60 minutes. In a swell it is bumpy, and the back half of the boat is the smoother place to sit. Railay guests board by boat at the Railay East floating pier on the way.
The Speedboat with Buffet Lunch breaks up the crossing with two snorkel stops at quieter spots before reaching Loh Samah Bay.
Maya Bay
Most standard tours go to Maya Bay first. Boats moor at the pontoon in Loh Samah Bay on the back of Phi Phi Leh, and you walk about 5 to 10 minutes along a boardwalk to the beach. You have about 45 minutes to an hour there, which matches the park’s limit of one hour per landing round.
You can walk on the sand, take photos and wade in to your knees, but swimming at the front beach is not allowed. Maya Bay is open from 1 October to 31 July, and closed every year in August and September. Our Maya Bay rules guide has the details.
Pileh Lagoon, Viking Cave and Monkey Beach
Pileh Lagoon is a few minutes away, an inlet on Phi Phi Leh almost enclosed by cliffs, with calm green water. The boat stops inside and you jump off to swim, usually for 30 to 45 minutes. Keep your life jacket on if you are not a strong swimmer.
Viking Cave, also on Phi Phi Leh, is a photo stop from the boat. Visitors are not allowed inside; the cave is used for collecting swiftlet nests. On the Speedboat Tour with Lunch there is a 20-minute snorkel nearby.
Monkey Beach is a short stop of 10 to 20 minutes, often seen from the boat. One operator notes that the boats can only get in at low tide. Do not feed the monkeys.
Some tours add a separate snorkel stop off Phi Phi Leh at this point. On the Phi Phi, Maya Bay & Bamboo Island tour it lasts 40 minutes.
Lunch on Phi Phi Don
Around midday the boat docks on Phi Phi Don, the inhabited island, for a buffet lunch of about an hour to an hour and a half. On the Speedboat with Buffet Lunch it is an international buffet with halal food and no pork or beef; on several Sea Eagle and Srisawat tours it is at Arida Restaurant 2. On some tours there is time afterwards for a walk or a look at the shops.
If your tour lands at Tonsai pier, there may be a small local charge of about 20 THB per person; ask whether the tour pays it.
Bamboo Island and the way back
The last stop is usually Bamboo Island, north-east of Phi Phi Don, with a long white beach and snorkeling off the shore. Tours give it 45 minutes to an hour. It is the most relaxed part of the day, and a good moment to reapply sunscreen.
From Bamboo Island the speedboat takes about 50 minutes back to the Ao Nang side, and the van drops you at your hotel in the late afternoon.
Variations: early bird, reverse order and sunset
Early-bird tours run the same loop two to three hours earlier, to reach Maya Bay before the late-morning boats. On the Phi Phi Early Bird & 4 Islands, pickup is 05:50 to 06:30. The day goes: coffee on the Tup Island sandbar (40 min), Maya Bay (1 h), Pileh Lagoon (40 min), Viking Cave and Monkey Bay (15 min each), a snorkel stop (45 min), lunch on Bamboo Island (105 min), Chicken Island and Ko Poda (50 min), back at the pier around 15:45 to 16:00. Maya Bay opens at about 7 am, so even the early tours arrive after the gates open, not at dawn on the beach.
Some small-group tours reverse the loop. The Phi Phi Small Group Speedboat Tour starts at Bamboo Island and Nui Bay, has lunch on Phi Phi Don, then visits Pileh Lagoon and Maya Bay in the afternoon, after the midday crowd.
Sunset tours start later and come back after dark. On the Phi Phi Sunset, BBQ & Plankton tour, pickup is 9:00 to 9:50 and the boat leaves at 10:00. You do the Phi Phi stops by day, then stop at Ko Poda near Krabi for a BBQ dinner and sunset (80 min) and at Ko Rang for a plankton swim (20 min). The Phi Phi & 4 Islands Sunset & Plankton picks up later still, from 10:30. On both, the sunset and the plankton are near Krabi, not at Phi Phi, since Maya Bay closes around 6 pm.
Which version suits you?
If you want the classic day without a 6 am start, a standard tour like the Speedboat with Buffet Lunch ($47 on the dates we checked in early November 2026, 4.6 from 1,052 reviews) covers every stop. If Maya Bay with fewer people matters most, an early bird is the better fit; our early bird guide weighs it up. If you would like to end the day with dinner on a beach, look at the sunset tours on our sunset tours page.
For the full comparison, see the best Phi Phi island tour from Krabi and our review → of the buffet-lunch tour. Our packing list covers what to bring for the day.
Frequently asked questions
How long is a Phi Phi island tour from Krabi?
A standard tour takes about 7 to 8 hours, hotel to hotel. Early-bird tours run about 9 hours, starting from about 6:00, and sunset tours about 9.5 hours, ending after dark.
What time does the Phi Phi tour start?
Standard tours pick up in Ao Nang between about 8:00 and 9:00. Early-bird tours pick up from 05:50 to 06:30, and sunset tours from about 9:00 to 11:00.
What islands does a Phi Phi tour visit?
Phi Phi Leh for Maya Bay, Pileh Lagoon and Viking Cave, then Monkey Beach, lunch on Phi Phi Don and Bamboo Island. Early-bird and sunset tours add some of the 4 Islands near Krabi, such as Tup, Chicken Island and Ko Poda.
How long do you get at Maya Bay?
About 45 minutes to an hour on most tours, which matches the park’s one-hour limit per landing round. You walk in from Loh Samah Bay and cannot swim at the front beach.
Is lunch included on a Phi Phi island tour?
Yes, on every shared tour we review, usually a buffet on Phi Phi Don or Bamboo Island. The private charter is the exception, with lunch at 280 THB per person extra.
Pick your Phi Phi day and check the boat
Free cancellation up to 24 hours before on the tours we review. The national park fee (400 THB per adult) is usually paid in cash on the day.
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