How to Plan the Perfect Day Trip to the Phi Phi Islands

Imagine the pictures of clear blue water and towering rock formations that often define trips to Thailand. These came to life and formed in front of my very eyes when we visited the Phi Phi Islands.

We began our journey at Rassada Pier. We overslept and missed the last ferry to the islands, so we ended up buying a speedboat ticket there and a return ticket on the ferry. This actually worked out in our favor because we arrived well before the ferry we would have taken, which gave us more time to enjoy on the islands.

The speedboat was an hour long ride through the crystal blue waters of the Andaman Sea.As we got closer, large rocks covered in greenery loomed above us, welcoming us to the islands. When we docked at the pier, there were small wooden boats all along the beach, each with an individual tour guide willing to take the three of us to different parts of Phi Phi. We looked at the options and chose the route we wanted to take.

At first I was hesitant because it seemed so gimmicky and unreliable. However, we definitely made the right choice. A tour is really the only way to explore the island. Plus, the more legitimate-looking tours ended up being a large boat filled with 20+ people with barely enough room to sit down.

Our first stop was Monkey Island, where we stopped and interacted with the monkeys. They made me a little nervous, but our tour guide made sure they didn't get on the boat and told us to watch things like our phones or jewelry.

Next, we went to Maya Beach, which is where the movie The Beach was filmed. We got out of the boat and swam and hung out on the beach for a few minutes.

From there, our tour guide brought us farther out into the little inlet to swim and snorkel. There were little neon colored fish below along the small reef.

Finally, we headed back to the main island for lunch. However, a storm began forming and we had to battle huge foaming waves that seemed taller than the boat. It was mostly fun but a little rough!

This day trip was 100% worth it. Everyone kept saying we had to go to Phi Phi Island, and I didn't really know what to expect, but we decided to do it, and it was one of the best things we did on the trip. I broke down the costs below, so you can see how much we paid, and I think we did pretty well. We paid more for the ride there than expected, but it allowed us to do more and make the most of the short amount of time we had there.

Cost breakdown:

• Tuk tuk (we took a 35-minute ride there and then the same man came back at the right time to pick us up: 800 THB, or $25 USD (a little over $8 USD per person)

• Speedboat ticket: 1,100 THB, or $35 USD

• Ferry ticket: 350 THB, or $11 USD

• Island Tour: 2,000 THB, or $63 USD ($21 per person) plus a 200 THB, or $7 USD tip

• Food, drinks, and souvenirs: Estimated 400 THB, or $14 USD

• Grand total: $96