Sailing Thailand

January 2026 Sailing (1 Week)

Phuket

We left from Perth early in the morning, arriving in Phuket. We stayed in phuket for one night in a villa, visiting the local beach Choeng Thale for a sunset walk and mornings swim. After a morning dip on the second day we ventured to the marina, stopping along the way at a local shopping centre to stock up on food, water and essentials for the week ahead.

As we left the dock we instantly met calm, blue waters and large green rocks faces. Boulders surrounded the water in a variety of shapes and sizes. As we dodged local fisherman flags we spent the week exploring, surfing, foiling, fishing, snorkelling, cooking and eating.

Without a set plan due to ever changing conditions this is where we came to venture.

Aopo Grand Marina

We left from Aopo Grand Marina. The first stop was the bat cave. We journeyed off the catamaran onto ISUPs with torches to travel through the cave, some of us got through to see the open water, others unfortunately missed out due to a broken torch. The outside of the cave is still worth it for the beautiful cliff face wall. Note: This experience is purely based on the tide at the time.

Kohong Island

This is where we stepped on the first night. Upon arrival we were met with kind locals on their kayaks directing us to moorings. The view was precious, cliff walls, green calm water and cave entries into open water spaces. In the morning we got on the ISUPS and paddled into the open water space surrounded by cliff walls before moving to the next location.

On our way from Kohong island to ko phakbia we were floating on beauty. Clear blue water giving the most beautiful view of the entire trip. As we were slowly travelling, we disconnected the dinghy and left the catamaran to surf and foil before reconnecting to the cat for lunch. For lunch we cooked up a Thai beef noodle salad, and I recommended! The ingredients were so fresh! This was one of the best days of the trip.

Ko Phakbia

This place is magical, it shows how much the tide changes. On low tide two islands connect, on high tide they remain as seperate. We parked up, and used the large open space for surfing and foiling, followed by a few wines at sunset and a hot pot cook up.

Railay

Railay Beach is a great spot to stop for a meal although it is crowded by long tail boats and tourism, I recommend it as a massage and lunch pit stop but not somewhere to stay on land.

Ko Pu

This spot was a windy find through cliff faces. It is an open space surrounded by mangroves. It is highly recommended as a spot to escape all noise, or a spot to hide from the wind. We jumped on the dingy and drove down the mangrove path, watching monkeys walk on the small mud and sandy spots.

Phi Phi

Phi Phi was the next stop it was similar to Railay in terms of its bustling nature, full of tourism. We found a getaway by jumping onto the other side, walking down the beach to have dinner. Before we got a mooring we went snorkelling with the sups to protect ourselves from any longtales passing through. At the end of the night we grabbed some amazing local coconut ice cream, before jumping onto the boat to play a few rounds of cards. This night was bumpy, the wind really came through although we were safe docked onto a mooring.

Maya Bay

We left early to check out the well known spot Maya Bay as we have been told it is a very crowded site to see. We beat the traffic of long tail boats, although getting back to the catamaran was a bit sketchy in the windy conditions. Quickly after checking out this spot we headed to Maya Beach, not the busy side but around the other side to escape the wind. We parked up to see a family boat enter, it was being rented out! Bella Vita! What a coincidence. After having breakfast, we headed to find a protected area to spend the rest of our trip foiling and surfing. We headed for around a 4 hour sail to Chalong Bay.

Chalong bay

This was by far my favourite destination, purely because it gave us protection from the windy waters, allowing us to spend our time foiling and surfing on clear blue water. As we drove in, the water was pristine. Large cliffs with beautiful houses built overlooking the beauty. We foiled and surfed until the sun set, and then we just danced. What a night to remember. We stepped briefly on land here at night, a full dingy in the dark following the fairy lights to find the shore. We sat under the lights on the beach to have a beautiful last dinner.