Hong Island
A Krabi island tour from Phuket can mean a lot of things, but one island turns up in more of these listings than any other: Koh Hong, a wall of limestone with a pool of sea water held inside it. Seven boats on this site reach it, from $46 to $140, and the cheapest of them is also the highest rated day trip we sell. This page explains what the lagoon is, which bookings get inside it, and what the park fee has to do with your choice.
Quick answer
The short answer. Book $46. It is the best value Krabi island tour from Phuket on this site: eight hours, 4.7 across 377 reviews, hotel transfers, lunch on board and canoeing through the caves and lagoons of both Panak and Hong Island. Book $64 if you want the biggest review count and two meals, $65 if you want the park fee settled inside the booking, and $104 if you would rather spend the whole day on the Krabi side than in the bay on the way.
What the island is
Koh Hong is not a beach island with a hill behind it. It is a limestone tower with a hollow middle: the sea has worn a chamber into the rock and broken one wall of it, so that a pool of clear water sits inside a ring of cliff with a single opening. Hong means room, and the name is literal.
That geometry is why the island appears on so many bookings. It photographs well, it is shallow and sheltered, and it can be entered in a small craft, which means a big speedboat can anchor outside and send people in by canoe. Six listings on this site name Koh Hong or its lagoon; a seventh canoes there as part of a longer bay day.
The island lies on the Krabi side of the water, north of Ao Nang, inside national park boundaries. That is the second thing that shapes a Krabi island tour from Phuket: the park charges its own entry fee, separate from the fare you pay the operator. Some listings state that the fee is already inside the price. Others leave it to be handed over on the day. Neither is wrong, but the two are not comparable until you know which is which.
The third thing to know is that Hong Island comes in two packagings. One is the bay day, which takes in Phang Nga Bay on the way and treats the lagoon as one stop among several. The other is the Krabi-side day, which crosses first and spends its hours on the islands around Koh Hong: Lao Lading, the Laem Haad sandbank, Koh Yao. Both are a Krabi island tour from Phuket. They fill the middle of the day very differently.
Every trip, current fare
Six listings, eight or nine hours each. The cost-per-hour column is the fair way to read them, because the cheapest fare here also happens to be one of the longest days.
| Trip | Length | Price | What is included | Cost per hour | Rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| James Bond, Phang Nga Bay and Hong Island Tour from PhuketJames Bond, Phang Nga Bay and Hong Island Tour from Phuket | 8 h | $46 | $5.75 | 4.7 · 377 | |
| James Bond Island Sea Canoeing by Speedboat + 2 MealsJames Bond Island Sea Canoeing by Speedboat + 2 Meals | 8 h | $64 | $8.00 | 4.8 · 950 | |
| Krabi Hong Island, Koh Yao Yai & Lunch by SpeedboatKrabi Hong Island, Koh Yao Yai & Lunch by Speedboat | 8 h | $99 | $12.38 | 3.0 · 1 | |
| 4 Islands Krabi Adventure & Snorkeling Day Tour4 Islands Krabi Adventure & Snorkeling Day Tour | 8 h | $104 | $13.00 | 4.4 · 52 | |
| Hong Island Lagoon and Lao Lading Island Speed BoatHong Island Lagoon and Lao Lading Island Speed Boat | 8 h | $104 | $13.00 | 3.8 · 21 | |
| Koh Hong, Koh Yao & Lao Lading TourKoh Hong, Koh Yao & Lao Lading Tour | 9 h | $140 | $15.56 | New |
Hour by hour
Whichever booking you choose, the shape below is the one the listings describe.
Pick-up and pier. Hotel transfers are part of the price on most of these listings. The morning starts with the road, not the water, and that hour is inside the eight you are buying.
The crossing. East across open water. On the bay listings you slow down among the limestone towers of Phang Nga Bay; on the Krabi-side listings you run straight through to the islands. Either way this is the leg a speedboat exists for.
Caves and canoes. The canoeing listings put a paddler with you and take you into sea caves under the cliffs, at Panak on the way and at Hong Island itself. You do not paddle yourself unless the listing says so; on most of them a guide does the work while you sit and look up.
The lagoon. The stop the day is built around. The water inside is shallow, sheltered and green, and the walls take the wind out of it. Some bookings give you swimming time here, others take you through and out.
Lunch. Buffet on most of them, with halal and vegetarian options named on two listings. On the bay days it is served at the stilt village of Koh Panyee; on the Krabi-side days it is a beach or the boat.
The afternoon island. Naka Island, Kaya Island, Palm Beach Club on Yao Yai or the Laem Haad sandbank, depending on the booking. This is swimming and sand rather than sightseeing, and it is the part of a Krabi island tour from Phuket that people remember as the rest.
Home. Back across the water in the late afternoon and a transfer to the hotel, which lands most of these days at eight hours door to door and the park-fee listing at ten.
The seven bookings
Everything below is taken from the listing text itself. The right-hand column is the one that decides which you book.
| Listing | Length | Price | What it does at the island |
|---|---|---|---|
| James Bond, Phang Nga Bay and Hong Islandour top pick | 8 hours | $46 | Canoes through the caves and lagoons of Panak and Hong Island, with hotel transfers, lunch on board and a swim at Naka or Kaya Island |
| Sea canoeing with two mealsthe most reviewed | 8 hours | $64 | Kayak or canoe among the limestone formations and caves of Hong Island, then Palm Beach Club on Yao Yai, with breakfast and a buffet lunch |
| Speedboat with the park feefee stated as included | 10 hours | $65 | Canoeing at Hong Island inside a full bay day, lunch at the Koh Panyee village and a swim at Naka Island |
| Four islands and snorkellingthe Krabi-side day | 8 hours | $104 | The Hong Island lagoon with its long white beach, Lao Lading, the Bird’s Nest Cave and snorkelling at Ao Kar |
| Hong Island and Koh Yao Yaithe lowest fare to the lagoon | 8 hours | $99 | Relaxing on Hong Island with an optional viewpoint walk, emerald lagoons and the Laem Haad sandbank |
| Hong Lagoon and Lao Ladingtwo islands only | 8 hours | $104 | Swimming at Koh Hong and Lao Lading, with the rock formations and lagoons between them and a coffee stop before the pier |
| Koh Hong, Koh Yao and Lao Ladingthe ninth hour | 9 hours | $140 | The Koh Hong lagoon and the reefs at Lao Lading, plus Koh Yao Noi with a batik workshop and a lunch amid rice fields |
Book direct
The seven listings that reach the lagoon on a Krabi island tour from Phuket, with the current fare, the rating and the number of reviews behind each one.
★ 4.7 · 377 reviews
★ 4.8 · 950 reviews
★ 3.0 · 1 review
★ 4.4 · 52 reviews
★ 3.8 · 21 reviews
★ 4.8 · 24 reviews
What to expect
Every point below comes from the listings on this page, in their own words.
On the canoeing listings a guide paddles you through the gap in the rock. That is the difference between seeing Koh Hong and being inside it.
Entry to the national park is charged separately in this niche. One listing on this page states the fee is already in the booking; on the others, read the inclusions.
Most of these listings name a meal: two of them halal and vegetarian options, one breakfast as well, and the bay days serve it at the stilt village of Koh Panyee. Two say nothing about lunch, so check before you pack.
Named on most of these bookings. It is worth checking, because it is the difference between an eight-hour day and an eight-hour day plus your own taxi.
One listing offers a choice between a speedboat and a slower big boat through the bay. Same water, different day.
It applies to every listing on this site, which matters when you are booking weeks ahead of a forecast you cannot see yet.
When to go
The island does not change. The water clarity, the sea state on the crossing and how many hulls are anchored outside the gap all do, and together they decide how a Krabi island tour from Phuket feels in the hour that counts.
Nov–Feb
Flat mornings and the clearest water of the year inside the ring. This is the stretch when $46 books out furthest ahead, so reserve before you travel.
Mar–Apr
Hot, bright and calm. The lagoon walls hold the heat, so the early departures are worth more here than at any other time of year.
May–Jun
Fewer boats outside the gap and softer fares across the fleet. The crossing is livelier, which is an argument for $64 and its larger boat.
Jul–Oct
Bright spells between showers and the emptiest anchorages of the year. Boats still run, the morning is the most reliable part of the day, and free cancellation covers a change of plan.
The verdict
If you want one booking to cover it, book $46. Eight hours, 4.7 across 377 reviews, and the lowest fare of any day trip on this site. It canoes through the caves and lagoons of Panak and Hong Island, takes in James Bond Island and the bay on the way, includes hotel transfers and lunch on board, and lets you choose between a speedboat and a slower cruise. That combination is why it is our top pick.
If you want the strongest record, book $64. Eight hours, 4.8 across 950 reviews, sea canoeing among the limestone at Hong Island, a beach club on Yao Yai and two meals in the price. It is the most reviewed canoeing day we sell, and it spends its afternoon on sand rather than moving between stops.
If you want the fee settled in advance, book $65. Ten hours, 4.8 across 24 reviews, with the national park fee stated as part of the booking. It is the longest of these days and the one with the least left to pay on the pier.
If you would rather skip the bay, book $104 or $99. Both cross first and spend the day on the Krabi side: the lagoon with its long white beach, Lao Lading, snorkelling, and the sandbank at Laem Haad. This is the version of a Krabi island tour from Phuket for people who want beaches rather than sightseeing.
One thing to plan for. Koh Hong is popular, and the gap in the rock is narrow. The boats that leave earliest are inside it while the water is still still, which is worth more than any single item in the inclusions list.
Eight hours and $46, 4.7 across 377 reviews: the caves and lagoons of Panak and Hong Island by canoe, transfers and lunch included, with free cancellation.
See the full bay day→Common questions
In Krabi. Koh Hong lies east of Phuket across the bay, north of Ao Nang, which is why every boat here is a crossing as well as a tour. A Krabi island tour from Phuket spends the first and last part of its day on open water.
On most of these listings a guide paddles and you sit. The operators describe canoeing through caves and lagoons at Panak and at Hong Island, which is done in small craft launched from the speedboat rather than from the shore.
On $65 the listing states that it is. On the others the fee is a separate charge, so read the inclusions on the booking page before you compare two fares that look close.
Go deeper
The direct run across the bay — who sails it, from which pier, and what it costs.
How long it takesTime on the water, pickup windows and why the day is longer than the crossing.
PricesShared bench, private boat and the extras that are not in the headline price.
Phuket & Krabi toursThe days that take in both provinces, and what each one actually reaches.
Krabi day tripsDay trips east from Phuket to the Krabi-side islands and back.
Krabi 4 IslandsChicken Island, Tup, Poda and Phra Nang in one day, starting in Phuket.
James Bond, Phang Nga Bay and Hong Island Tour from Phuket
★ 4.7 · 377 reviews · Free cancellation 24 h