What to Expect | 4 Island Tour Thailand
If you’re in or around Krabi and Ao Nang, we’re sure you’re going to hear about the 4 Island Tour. Indeed, it could be through friends, your accommodation staff or people hassling you on the street whenever you walk by. However, it is for good reason, as doing this tour you will experience breath-taking limestone cliff views, crystal clear waters and silky white sand. With this in mind, we are going to provide you with the breakdown of the 4 Island Tour, explaining the route, the individual Islands, costs and what to expect to see and do. Be sure to read on until the end as we provide some tips to ensure you fully enjoy the 4 Island Tour.
What is the 4 Island tour?
Departing from Ao Nang Beach, the 4 Island Tour is a public or private long tail boat tour, hopping from 1 Island to the next. In general, the order of the tour is as follows:
- Phra Nang Cave Beach
- Chicken Island
- Tup Island
- Poda Island
How long does the 4 Island tour last?
Approximately, the whole day will last 7-8 hours. Firstly, It will start off by you getting picked up from your accommodation early in the morning around 7-8am. Secondly, you will be dropped off at a pier where you will get on a long tail boat to start the 4 Island Tour. Lastly, you will be returning to Ao Nang around 3-4pm.
Where can I purchase the 4 Island tour?
You won’t be short of options for purchasing a 4 Island Tour if you are in or around Ao Nang Beach. There are tourist stalls set up where you can book this tour, scattered on every street and the main strip, as well as your accommodation probably able to book your 4 Island Tour. Alternatively, you can purchase tickets from Krabi. As a matter of fact, it wouldn’t surprise us if you asked about the 4 Island Tour and could purchase tickets from Phi Phi Island or Phuket as well.
We purchased our 4 Island Tour from our accommodation, Baan Kure Ngern Ao Nang, near Ao Nang Beach. This was after the event of haggling with other vendors and getting the price down. We were a group of 4 people and paid 2700 TBH total for a private long tail boat. All this included fruit, water and fried rice for each of us. That’s 675 TBH each. Feel free to check with other accommodations around Ao Nang Beach.
Phra Nang Cave Beach
First stop is Phra Nang Cave Beach. What separates this Island from the others is that you can rock climb on the cliffs! Oh and there is a penis shrine located here too. Yes, no typo, a penis shrine. The shrine is decorated with penises from all shapes and sizes, as well as colourful ribbons and offerings. Jokes aside, this is serious to the locals as this shrine is used to pray for fertility and to conceive a child, so please respect those who are there for worship.
Chicken Island
Second is Chicken Island. As you get closer to Chicken Island you will understand why it is called that. The Island has a head and neck shape which some say looks like a chicken. You decide for yourself. Here you will be dropped in the open water with snorkel gear to see some colourful fish in crystal clear waters. The snorkel gear is included in the price.
Tup Island
Thirdly, is Tup Island. The uniqueness of Tub Island is that, at low tide, you can see a separation between Tub Island and another Island called Mor Island. You can even walk between them. More bang for your buck. The water here is very clear and there are fish that swim close by. We stayed here the longest because the weather was perfect for sunbathing and there weren’t as many other tourists around. All things considered, if we had to pick, we would say this was our favourite of the 4 Islands.
Poda Island
Lastly, is Poda Island. Another beautiful beach with white sands, clear ,warm, crystal blue waters. If you haven’t had enough sun bathing done for the day then finish it off here. It is truly peaceful and a great place to relax. There are even bamboo shacks and vendors on long tail boats selling food and drinks. In addition, there are tree logs turned into seating areas and benches to sit down on, just in case you have done too much laying down and you want to spice things up a bit by sitting down. It’s a hard life.
TOP TIPS
- You will have to pay a National Park fee for Tup Island, which was around 400 TBH. This is separate from the 4 Island Tour price
- Book a private boat instead of a public boat – As a result, you can choose the order of the Islands to go in and also spend any amount of time on them, thus no one rushing you off an Island and no other tourists interrupting your day
- Bring a towel, sun lotion and extra water
- Bring a waterproof bag to keep your items dry just in case it rains!
- Stack enough cash if you wish to buy food and water. There are no ATMs on any of the Islands
To sum up
We would definitely recommend doing the 4 Island Tour. Undoubtedly, the best place to book it from would be in or around Ao Nang Beach. Booking around there will be cheaper due to you being close to where you will set off. With this in mind, you have more people to haggle with, so don’t settle on the first person you come across. Depending on the time of year, the tour could be busy or quiet, due to this, in our tips we recommend a private tour so you have more freedom. We rarely do tours/guides on our journeys as we often do things ourselves for a bit more of an adventure and to save money, yet, we took the plunge on the 4 Island Tour and did not regret it.
In addition to this, there is also a tour which includes Hong Island which is also very popular.
Want a more secluded Island to relax on? Check out our blog on Koh Yao Yai and Koh Yao Noi.
Let us know if you did the 4 Island Tour or if you are thinking of doing it and need anymore information. Have fun!
