General
description:
Ko Lanta is located just south of Ko Phi Phi. It really depends on what you want in the
Thai islands. Ko Lanta itself is pretty diverse but one thing is does not have is crowds.
You can easily find utterly deserted places throughout the island. To get there, take a
ferry either from the mainland (which is actually more of a drive...very short) or the 30
min. ferry ride from the Phi Phi islands. You will be bombarded with people at the dock
wanting to take you to their place first but make sure you make it very clear you will not
pay for the shuttle (because they already get commission from the hotel/hostel) AND that
there is a non-rocky beach in front of the hotel. Many times they will take you way out of
the way and it is all rocks in front. Still, there are plenty of places where there are
beautiful beaches for miles on end. And the sunsets...indescribable.
 Favourite
spots: Rent a scooter and drive it
to the end of the road! Ahhh, what a great way. As you get off the dock from the Phi Phi
islands, keep taking the road south. When the road forks, stay right. It gets a little
rough, but not bad. Eventually, you are the middle of the jungle and soon come to an out
of the way restaurant with great bungalo's for rent. Beautiful beaches and great food
there. You have to walk down a rocky cliff line to get to the beach which makes it all the
more worthwhile.
What's really
great:
The isolation. But
that is also a detriment. It is nice to be completely alone, but there can be virtually no
company at night. This really depends on your mood.
Sights:
Fun to get lost in
the back roads on your scooter or motorbike you should rent. We found some really neat
places to hike around and it felt like we were the first ones there. You may want to see
if this is indeed completely safe, but we didn't have a hard time.
Accommodations:
All kinds of
backpacker type places to stay. No need to reserve ahead. Just haggle with the guys at the
dock. Again, make sure you ask them to take you to a place with a beach in front of the
hotel or you will get rocks! (the beaches are great all over, with some
exceptions)...about 5 USD a night on the low end...you can even get your own bungalo for
5-9 USD
 The Weather on Ko Lanta
The best time to
travel to Ko Lanta is from November to April. November is the coolest month of the year
with day temperatures of 28 - 30 C, the nightly temperature is regularly 5 - 7 degrees
lower.
The temperatures are slowly raising from November until May, in January, you can expect
temperatures of 30 - 33 C, in April the temperatures will climb up to 35 - 37C and
occasionally downpours might occur.
The monsoon
season lasts from May through to October with temperatures slowly declining to their
lowest level in November. During this period, the sea is rough and swimming is not
recommended. Most of the smaller resorts on the island will close down due to a lack of
customers. Transportation will be available only by minibus from Trang and Krabi via car
ferries. There is no diving available due to rough seas and insufficient visibility during
this period.
Most of the smaller resorts on the island will close down due to a lack of customers.
Transportation will be available only by minibus from Trang and Krabi via car
ferries.
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