Thailand Club Trip February 2022
Posted 28/3/2022
Scubanuts had waited a long time since their last club trip to Tobago in November 2019 and the Thailand trip originally scheduled for Feb 2021 certainly felt long overdue. Despite months of will we, won’t we, and the a myriad of complicated paperwork to obtain a Thailand Pass, finally 14 of us grouped at Heathrow on Saturday 5th Feb 2022, covid tests booked, ready to fly the following morning. Thankfully all 14 of us tested negative and buoyed with optimism, we boarded our 14 hour flight to Singapore the following morning.
Once we transited Singapore, it was a two hour hop to Phuket. More covid requirements and testing completed we set off to Khao Lak Palm Gardens to await our results, with the promise we could board our liveaboard later that day. Several bottles of rum, and a local whiskey called Hong Thong later, we had our clearance and we were on our way and boarded the Marco Polo.
Once we transited Singapore, it was a two hour hop to Phuket. More covid requirements and testing completed we set off to Khao Lak Palm Gardens to await our results, with the promise we could board our liveaboard later that day. Several bottles of rum, and a local whiskey called Hong Thong later, we had our clearance and we were on our way and boarded the Marco Polo.
Marco Polo is a small liveaboard owned by Sea Bees Thailand, which when we booked had a total occupancy of 14, now reduced by a refurb to 12, which meant two of us sharing what would normally be classed as the dive guides quarters. However the group pulled together and this proved no inconvenience as we set of on our cruise of the Surin and Similan Islands. Our crew were fantastic, particularly Om, the lovely Thai lady who took care of all our needs. The chef was excellent and we certainly didn’t want for quantity, quality and variety of food. Our dive guides were great too - Maren was German and had worked in Thailand for a while as well as all around the world. Jong was native Thai and the second guide, and titillated us all week with the promise of the elusive “Thai” Shark!
We spent the first few days in the Surin Islands - lots of pristine coral and masses of fish. After so long in the UK due to covid, the chance to dive in warmer waters was worth the wait. We had turtle fly bys on our surface intervals, and theses provided some great snorkelling opportunities. And who knew that turtles liked bananas - this was a handy tip from Maren that proved to be true. And we also discovered that trigger fish will come to the surface to eat just about anything you care to throw in!
Marco Polo is a small liveaboard owned by Sea Bees Thailand, which when we booked had a total occupancy of 14, now reduced by a refurb to 12, which meant two of us sharing what would normally be classed as the dive guides quarters. However the group pulled together and this proved no inconvenience as we set of on our cruise of the Surin and Similan Islands. Our crew were fantastic, particularly Om, the lovely Thai lady who took care of all our needs. The chef was excellent and we certainly didn’t want for quantity, quality and variety of food. Our dive guides were great too - Maren was German and had worked in Thailand for a while as well as all around the world. Jong was native Thai and the second guide, and titillated us all week with the promise of the elusive “Thai” Shark!
We spent the first few days in the Surin Islands - lots of pristine coral and masses of fish. After so long in the UK due to covid, the chance to dive in warmer waters was worth the wait. We had turtle fly bys on our surface intervals, and theses provided some great snorkelling opportunities. And who knew that turtles liked bananas - this was a handy tip from Maren that proved to be true. And we also discovered that trigger fish will come to the surface to eat just about anything you care to throw in!
Day 4 meant a return to land for our follow up covid test and once we were all clear with that it was back on the boat and off to the Similan Islands. On the way we dived a unique wreck site (a work platform) that proved to be porcupine fish heaven. The Similan islands themselves proved to be just as gorgeous as the Surin and we happily finished up our liveaboard portion of the trip.
Once back in Khao Lak we adjourned to the Palm Gardens hotel again for part two of our itinerary. We spent three nights here and the staff were superb, especially Bobby, who looked after our every need, regularly extending happy hour to well beyond an hour! After spending our first day sampling massages and cocktails at White Sands beach, the hotel arranged a days excursion for 10 of us to visit an elephant sanctuary, temple and local market. The elephant sanctuary was a fantastic experience. There were no exploitative rides, this was about removing the animals from poor environments and creating a safe haven for them. We fed and washed them and were routinely terrorised by a baby elephant who just wanted to play, and was totally unaware of his own size! The temple was serene and quiet in total contrast to the bustle of the local market with many local delicacies like deep fried chicken head that frankly we didn’t want to try!
Khao Lak done we moved onto to our final portion - 2 nights in Bangkok. The hustle and bustle of the city was in total contrast to the rural unspoilt quiet of Khao Lak. Temples, tuk tuks and river boat cruises were the order of the day - a whirlwind of activity plus the surreal experience of a trip to Bangkok hospital for the obligatory lateral flow test to transit Singapore again! The only thing we really missed was the nightlife - still hit by covid many of the bars and shows are still closed and the evenings are eerily quiet. Our first night there turned out to be a religious day meaning no alcohol - though an illicit deal was struck with our tuk tuk driver resulting in a bag full of bottles of beer!
All together Thailand provided us with three different holidays in one - liveaboard diving, beaches and quiet in Khao Lak, and then the city hustle of Bangkok. As we finished in the sky bar drinking cocktails prior to heading to the airport we all agreed what a fabulous time we’d all had. Thailand is highly recommended as a diving destination but it has so much more to offer besides. If you elect to visit this magical country make sure you take the time to sample all it has to offer!
