Phang Nga Bay
Phang Nga Bay and James Bond Island sit between Phuket and Krabi, which means the most famous limestone in Thailand is directly on your way. Nine listings on this site spend the day there, from $46 to the private charter at $933, and one of them carries 2,129 reviews. This page explains what is in the bay, what the listings actually stop at, and which boat suits which kind of day.
Quick answer
The short answer. Book $46. For the lowest day-trip fare on this site it covers Phang Nga Bay and James Bond Island, canoes through the caves at Panak and the lagoon at Hong Island, includes hotel transfers and lunch, and holds 4.7 across 377 reviews. Book $57 if you want the listing with 2,129 reviews behind it, $64 if you want the canoeing and two meals, and $933 if you want the boat to yourself.
What is out there
The bay is a shallow sea studded with limestone towers. They rise straight out of the water, hundreds of them, hollowed underneath into caves and roofless chambers that a small boat can slip into at the right state of the tide. It is the reason the crossing between Phuket and Krabi is worth turning into a day.
James Bond Island is the one everybody has seen. Its real name is Khao Phing Kan, and the famous shape is the thin stack standing offshore from a small beach. It became known through a film made there in the 1970s, and the listings on this site name that connection openly. It is a photograph stop rather than a swimming stop.
Koh Panyee is the other fixed point of the day. It is a village built on stilts over the water against a cliff, with a floating football pitch that several listings mention by name, and it is where most of these boats serve lunch.
Around those two, the operators arrange the rest: the sea caves of Koh Panak, the mangroves, the lagoon at Koh Hong, and a swimming stop at Naka Island, Khai Island or Yao Yai on the way home. That is the standard shape of a day at Phang Nga Bay and James Bond Island, and the differences between nine listings are mostly about which of those extras are in, and how long the boat is out.
Every trip, current fare
Eight shared listings, seven to ten hours each, plus a private charter compared separately below. The cost-per-hour column is the fair way to read them.
| 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 Canoe by SpeedboatJames Bond Island Sea Canoe by Speedboat | 9 h | $47 | $5.22 | 4.6 · 95 | |
| James Bond Island Speedboat Tour with CanoeingJames Bond Island Speedboat Tour with Canoeing | 9 h | $56 | $6.22 | 4.8 · 286 | |
| James Bond Island Day Trip by Speed Boat with LunchJames Bond Island Day Trip by Speed Boat with Lunch | 7 h | $57 | $8.14 | 4.4 · 2,129 | |
| James Bond and Phang Nga Bay Tour by SpeedboatJames Bond and Phang Nga Bay Tour by Speedboat | 7 h | $59 | $8.43 | 4.7 · 982 | |
| 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 | |
| James Bond and Khai Day Trip by Speedboat/CatamaranJames Bond and Khai Day Trip by Speedboat/Catamaran | 8 h | $64 | $8.00 | 4.6 · 32 | |
| James Bond Island by Speedboat + Park FeeJames Bond Island by Speedboat + Park Fee | 10 h | $65 | $6.50 | 4.8 · 24 |
Hour by hour
Seven hours on the shortest listing, ten on the longest. The order below is the one the descriptions give, and it holds across every boat that runs to Phang Nga Bay and James Bond Island from the Phuket piers.
Pick-up and pier. Hotel transfers are named on most of these bookings. The boats leave from the Phuket side and run north-east into the bay.
The sea caves at Panak. The first stop on most listings: canoes launched off the speedboat and paddled into chambers under the rock. One operator calls the route the ice cream cave, another the mangrove cave. A guide does the paddling.
James Bond Island. The stack, the beach and the shops behind it. This is the shortest stop of the day on most bookings and the one people photograph most.
Lunch at Koh Panyee. A buffet in the stilt village, Thai and international, with halal and vegetarian options named on several listings. It is the only stop where you are inside a settlement rather than on rock or sand.
Hong Island and the lagoon. Included on the listings that name it: canoes again, this time into the ring of rock with water inside. Not every bay day goes there, and it is the single biggest difference between two otherwise similar bookings.
The swimming stop. Naka Island on most listings, Khai Island on one, Palm Beach Club on Yao Yai on another. This is the hour of sand and shallow water that balances a day of sightseeing.
Home. Back across the water in the late afternoon and a hotel transfer, which lands these days between seven and ten hours door to door.
The nine bookings
Everything below is taken from the listing text itself. The right-hand column is what separates one day from another.
| Listing | Length | Price | What the description adds |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bay, island and Hong Islandour top pick | 8 hours | $46 | Canoes at Panak and Hong Island, hotel transfers, halal lunch on board with vegetarian options, and a swim at Naka or Kaya Island |
| Day trip with lunch2,129 reviews | 7 hours | $57 | Kayaking into the lagoons and caves of Panak and Koh Hong, lunch at the stilt village of Panyee, on a comfortable speedboat |
| Bay tour by speedboatthe gourmet buffet | 7 hours | $59 | A buffet at the floating village, mangrove forests, a hidden cave, canoeing at Panak and a swim around Naka Island |
| Sea canoeing with two meals4.8 across 950 reviews | 8 hours | $64 | Kayak or canoe at Hong Island, the beach at Palm Beach Club on Yao Yai, breakfast and a buffet lunch with Thai, halal and western options |
| Speedboat tour with canoeingthe ninth hour | 9 hours | $56 | A light breakfast with coffee and dessert service, the ice cream or mangrove cave at Panak, a swim at Naka Island and a buffet at Panyee |
| Sea canoe by speedboatthe floating pitch | 9 hours | $47 | Caverns and mangrove ecosystems, lunch at Koh Panyee beside its floating football pitch, and a beach stop at Naka Yai |
| Island and Khai by speedboat or catamaranthe sand stop | 8 hours | $64 | Canoeing at Koh Hong, snorkelling at Khai Island, a buffet at Panyee and round-trip hotel transfers |
| Speedboat with the park feethe longest day | 10 hours | $65 | Hidden caves and lagoons by canoe, lunch at the Panyee village, canoeing at Hong Island, a swim at Naka Island and the park fee inside the price |
| Private luxury charterno other guests | 8 hours | $933 | The boat to yourselves with private pick-up and drop-off, 5.0 from its first five reviews |
Book direct
Seven of the nine listings, with the current fare, the rating and the number of reviews behind each one.
★ 4.7 · 377 reviews
★ 4.4 · 2,129 reviews
★ 4.7 · 982 reviews
★ 4.8 · 950 reviews
★ 4.8 · 286 reviews
★ 4.8 · 24 reviews
★ 5.0 · 5 reviews
What the day buys
Every point below comes from the listings on this page, in their own words.
Khao Phing Kan, its leaning stack and the beach behind it. Every listing on this page names it, and it is the stop the day is sold on.
Panak on the way in, Hong Island later. The chambers are reached in small craft launched from the speedboat, with a guide paddling.
Koh Panyee, built out over the water against a cliff, with a floating football pitch that two listings mention by name.
Naka Island on most bookings, Khai Island on one, Yao Yai on another — sand and shallow water in the middle of a sightseeing day.
Buffet lunch on all eight shared listings here, breakfast as well on two of them, with halal and vegetarian options named on several.
It applies to every listing on this site, which is worth having on a day booked weeks before you see the weather.
When to go
The towers do not move. The sea state, the light on the limestone and the number of hulls at each stop all change through the year, and they are what makes one month at Phang Nga Bay and James Bond Island different from another.
Nov–Feb
Calm water, clean light and the most comfortable runs of the year. This is when $57 books out furthest ahead, so reserve before you travel rather than on the morning.
Mar–Apr
The hottest months, with glassy mornings in the bay and strong light by nine. The earlier departures are worth most here.
May–Jun
Fewer boats at the island and softer fares across the fleet. The crossing is livelier, which is an argument for the longer listings such as $65 that spend more of the day inside sheltered water.
Jul–Oct
Short bright spells between showers and the emptiest anchorages of the year. Boats still run, 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 day-trip fare on this site. It is the only listing here that puts Phang Nga Bay and James Bond Island, the caves at Panak and the lagoon at Hong Island in one price, with hotel transfers and lunch on board, and it lets you choose a speedboat or a slower cruise through the bay.
If you want the longest record, book $57. Seven hours, 2,129 reviews at 4.4, kayaking into the lagoons and caves of Panak and Koh Hong and lunch in the stilt village. No other listing in this niche has that much feedback behind it.
If the food and the canoes decide it, book $64 or $59. The first is eight hours at 4.8 across 950 reviews with breakfast, a buffet and a beach club on Yao Yai; the second is seven hours at 4.7 across 982 reviews with the buffet served at the floating village.
If you want the day settled in full, book $65. Ten hours, 4.8 across 24 reviews, with the national park fee stated as part of the booking and the longest time on the water of any shared listing here.
If you want the boat to yourselves, book $933. A private charter with no other guests, private pick-up and drop-off, eight hours, and a 5.0 rating from its first five reviews. You choose when you leave and how long you stay at each stop, which on a day like this is the thing worth paying for.
Eight hours and $46: Phang Nga Bay and James Bond Island, the caves at Panak and the lagoon at Hong Island, transfers and lunch included, with free cancellation.
Compare all eighteen boats→Common questions
In Phang Nga Bay, between Phuket and the Krabi coast. Its real name is Khao Phing Kan, and the stack offshore from its beach is the shape the films made famous. It is on the way east, which is why so many crossings turn into a day there.
Seven hours on the shortest listings, eight on most, nine or ten on the longest, measured from hotel pick-up to drop-off. Phang Nga Bay and James Bond Island are a full day out of Phuket, not a morning.
Lunch on all eight shared listings, canoes and a guide on the ones that name them, hotel transfers on most, and the national park fee on the ten-hour booking. The rest of the time the park fee is charged separately.
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