Coconut Island in Phuket, Thailand | Fishing, Snorkeling & Pearl Farm Tours

Koh Maphrao, colloquially known as Coconut Island, is a small, tropical island just a few-minute’s boat ride from the coast of Phuket. Though the nearby city has plenty of hustle and bustle to enjoy, Coconut Island feels like it is a million miles away from the fast pace of the real world. Towering with lush coconut trees, which give the island its namesake, it is easy to get lost in the tranquility of Coconut Island. Cozy up on the sand and take in the sound of gentle waves, or watch the wildlife skitter about on the shoreline. Coconut Island is the place to sink into calm relaxation, and here are six ways to spend the days at your own pace.

1. Catch Your Own Dinner

A big part of the beauty of Coconut Island can be found within its pristine, unpolluted waters. In order to protect the local islanders’ ability to work and make a living on the island, it has been separated from urbanization and intentionally preserved. Most villagers make their living by way of fishing or farming, harvesting everything from local produce to coconuts to some of the most delicious fresh fish you’ll ever find. The waters are teeming with tropical delights just waiting to be caught by skilled anglers. Frequent catches by local fishermen include:

• Skipjack
• Dogtooth
• Longtail
• Yellowfin
• Marlin
• Sailfish
• Dorado
• Barracuda
• Longtom
• Cobia
• Rainbow runner
• Queenfish
• Giant trevally
• Wahoo
• King mackerel

There are a number of local services that will take you out on a charter boat to fish to your heart’s content, many of which include all bait and tackle needed to get you going. Or, if you can befriend one of the local fishermen on the island, you may get a special rate and the more immersive, authentic experience of fishing like an islander.

Book a trip with The Sea Gypsies of Rawai

Another option for fishing in Phuket is to book a trip with the Sea Gypsies of Rawai. The Sea Gypsies of Rawai are a local Buddhist tribe that is uniquely skilled at the art of fishing. The Sea Gypsies offer both day and night fishing options, but be wary that a few days’ notice and plenty of flexibility is required in order to book an excursion with them, especially in low season (from May to November), as their availability is dependent on the weather and the changing tides. It is well worth the trouble to have this once-in-a-lifetime experience, though.

• On a daytime fishing trip with the Sea Gypsies, you will be taken out on a long tail boat. Then, you’ll have the excitement of watching them dive to their traps and seeing their haul. You’ll also have a chance to try your hand at line fishing. Don’t forget to bring sunscreen on this expedition, as it involves being out in direct sunlight for long periods, since the long tail boats do not have sun coverage. At day’s end, your adventure will close with a BBQ on the beach, where you will get to cook up and eat your own fresh catches.
• A nighttime fishing trip with the Sea Gypsies is a magical experience, particularly during full moons. Around 4 p.m., you’ll head out on a long tail boat bound for Coral Island. This is the perfect time to catch fresh squid that are out waiting for dusk. Then, you will have the opportunity to fish while watching a magnificent sunset on the water.

Whether you choose to go on an angling adventure with the Sea Gypsies of Rawai or charter a boat with friends, the crystal-clear waters surrounding Phuket and Coconut Island are a picture-perfect place to catch exotic, delicious delicacies.

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2. Floating Restaurants

Speaking of delicious delicacies, if you prefer your seafood meals be caught and cooked up for you, the floating restaurants that occupy the waters between Coconut Island and Phuket are a must. The delightful allure of these restaurants is due in part, of course, to their fresh-caught cuisines — but it is also a unique and exciting dining experience that travelers come from far and wide to try. Imagine yourself seated at a table on a lovely covered raft, enjoying the freshest tropical seafood you’ve ever experienced. Off to one side, you see the shores of Phuket, and on the other, the white sandy beach of Coconut Island. A dinner at one of these wonders-on-the-water will often come with the priceless side benefit of watching the sunset over the Andaman Sea as the raft floats gently along.

Kruvit Seafood Raft-Restaurant

Open every day from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m., the Kruvit Seafood Raft-Restaurant sits atop a bamboo raft just a four-minute boat ride from the nearby pier. The restaurant covers the cost of the boat rides to and from the raft, so there’s no service charge involved. Fans sing the praises of this spot’s incredibly fresh cuisine — in fact, it doesn’t get much fresher than this. Guests have the chance to select from a range of still-live seafoods including crabs, prawns, oysters, shrimp and an array of fish. Then, the chef takes your selections and cooks them up right on the spot. Your selections can be cooked up in a number of different ways, and oftentimes the chef can use a single fish to create to separate dishes.

Fan-favorite dishes at Kruvit Seafood Raft-Restaurant

• BBQ mantis shrimp
• Steamed mantis shrimp with butter
• Shrimp with tamarind
• BBQ lobster with butter and garlic
• Sashimi lobster
• BBQ tiger prawns with butter
• Baked shrimp and vermicelli
• Shrimp pancake
• Deep-fried sea bass with fish sauce
• Squid with lemon
• Fried crab with curry powder
• Steamed crab
• Fried vegetables with prawns
• Fresh mango crab

The Black Crab Floating Restaurant

Known for its welcoming atmosphere and friendly staff members, The Black Crab Floating Restaurant (also open every day from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m.) is more than just a spot to grab a fresh and delicious meal — it’s a place to immerse yourself in the local culture and make new friends.

The proprietors and staff of The Black Crab Floating Restaurant turn a trip to this raft into a fascinating learning experience. You can count on them to walk you through the ins and the outs of the menu, explaining all the available seafood options. If you’re lucky, they may even give you a miniature lesson in the art of fishing. In fact, the two owners have been known to loan guests a fishing rod or two, so you can try your hand at angling while you await your meal.

You can also rest assured you’ll have extremely fresh fish here, as they keep their seafood live in nets suspended below and beside the raft until an order is received. The portion sizes are generous here, so bring your appetite. Previous guests recommend the prawns, sea bass, cobia fish and crab.

Bang Mud Floating Restaurant

The Bang Mud Floating Restaurant is another great option for fresh seafood in the waters just between the shores of Coconut Island and Phuket. Also open from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m., one unique aspect of this spot is that it is a particularly Muslim-friendly raft. The floating structure was built with a specified prayer room, and all the cuisine is halal, which literally translates to “permissible.” This means the meals offered here are in line with the requirements for consumption by those who adhere to Islamic law. It’s of note, though, that this also means there is no alcohol allowed here.

Fans of Bang Mud Floating Restaurant speak very highly of the crab, fried shrimp and prawns served at this sea-bound spot.

Laem Hin Seafood

Laem Hin Seafood is a little different from the other restaurants on this list, as it is located at the end of a pier just off the coast of Phuket. The restaurant itself is still afloat on the sea, but you do not need to take a long tail boat ride to reach this one, which makes it a little more convenient to reach, but maybe not quite as immersive an experience. It is also open every day from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m., and the views out across the water are still gorgeous from this location, as well. A favorite of locals and tourists alike, Laem Hin Seafood is highly praised for its delicious, fresh seafood.

Recommended Thai food dishes at Laem Hin Seafood

• Deep-fried fish with lemongrass
• BBQ crab with egg
• Salt-encrusted sea bass
• Fresh oysters
• Crispy shrimp salad
• Pad Thai

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3. Bicycle Around Coconut Island

If you’re a nature lover, the call of the wild is sure to draw you to Coconut Island, if only to explore the beautiful, untouched-by-man corners of this oasis. A quick stop at The Village Coconut Island Beach Resort will allow you and your traveling companions to rent a few bicycles. Then, you can follow the main road across the island to take in the sights and sounds of this pristine place. Should you venture out into the jungle region of the island, ensure you bring plenty of mosquito repellent, as Thailand and its surrounding islands are known to be hot spots for these little pests.

On your ride, you may come across a number of local islanders, as about 300-400 of them reside on Coconut Island. You’ll likely also encounter some interesting wildlife, if you wander far enough from the developed resorts in the area. Keep an eye out for snakes, as they are plentiful throughout Phuket. You may also encounter colorful tropical birds, like hornbills and kingfishers, along with the occasional gecko or other lizards basking in the hot afternoon sun.

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4. Kayak Around the Island

Another option for nature lovers and the more adventurous visitors is to rent kayaks from The Village Coconut Island Beach Resort to take a trip around the island and explore its beaches. Coconut Island has three beaches. One beach is located on the western side of the island, where you’ll find the island’s primary pier. The second beach can be found just in front of the local village. These two beaches have sizable mangroves along them, making them less enjoyable for sunbathing, but perfect for exploration and nature spotting.

As you kayak along, take a quick detour into the mangrove areas and you may be lucky enough to see a group of long-tailed macaques (also known as crab-eating macaques), a type of monkey known to often make its home in lush mangroves. You may even witness a few foraging for crabs along the beach. In fact, in Thailand specifically, they are often actually referred to colloquially as “mangrove monkeys.” These matriarchal creatures are recognizable by their gray-beige fur, mustached faces, tails that are longer than their bodies, small, pointed ears and bright, orange-yellow eyes.

The third beach on Coconut Island can be found on the eastern side of the island. This is the beach you’ll want to stop at to rest after your kayaking adventure is done. Its white sands make it an ideal spot to sprawl out with a good book and take in the sunshine or watch hermit crabs wander about on the shoreline. This is also a great spot to take in a majestic sunset over the Andaman Sea.

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5. Snorkel in the Andaman Sea

The sparkling blue waters of the Andaman Sea are said to be one of the best places to see the beauty of wildlife under the sea. Snorkeling is a great way to take in the majesty of the underwater kingdom without getting scuba certified or breaking the bank renting scuba gear. There are a number of options for snorkeling off the coast of Coconut Island or greater Phuket, from renting some snorkeling gear yourself and taking a poke around the shorelines, to days-long cruise expeditions.

Snorkeling in the Andaman Sea

While snorkeling in the waters of the Andaman Sea you’ll likely encounter tropical wonders you’d be hard-pressed to find anywhere else. Due to the remote nature of the shorelines and reefs near Phuket, there is a level of preservation to these waters, keeping them somewhat protected from outside influence, including pollutants. This allows marine life to thrive here in ways it cannot in many parts of the world, making snorkeling in the Andaman Sea a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

Cruises

Should you choose to head out for a longer cruise with multiple snorkeling destinations, you can expect to see many of the incredible giants of the marine kingdom, including whitetip and blacktip sharks, manta rays and the gargantuan whale shark. These awe-inspiring beasts of the deep make many of our land-based large animals look little by comparison. With whale sharks reaching lengths of up to 33 ft. and manta rays having wingspans of up to 30 ft., these wonders are truly something to behold.

Snorkeling along the Phuket shoreline

Should you opt for a shorter snorkeling trip just along the shorelines, you’ll still get to see beautiful sights unique to this part of the world. You’ll encounter brightly hued tropical fish, like blue tangs and parrotfish, flitting about in the reefs. If you keep your eyes peeled, you may even see a clownfish or two poking their heads out between the flowing tendrils of their anemone homes. Lucky shoreline snorkelers may even witness some larger marine life, like turtles, eels and leopard sharks.

Whether you choose to cruise your way to rare havens of marine life, or just grab some gear and swim around the shoreline on a self-guided tour, witnessing the majesty of life under the sea is a can’t-miss experience in Phuket.

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6. Visit a Pearl Farm off Phuket’s Coast

Another great wonder of the Andaman Sea is the pearl farming industry. Pearls discovered and naturally harvested in the wild are incredibly rare, and can reach prices as high as $1,500 apiece. It’s unlikely that you’ll have the chance to encounter naturally derived pearls in your lifetime, but off the shores of Phuket, you can experience the next-best thing by touring a pearl farm in the waters surrounding Coconut Island.

What is pearl farming exactly?

Pearl farming is the practice of harvesting pearls from oysters that are bred and kept in an underwater farm. These pearls are referred to as “cultured pearls” in the Western jewelry market, and due to their slightly less rare nature, they don’t reach the same high price points as natural pearls. A pearl farm might not look like much more than a raft made of catwalk-like boarded walkways, but just below the surface of the water, fascinating science is taking place to develop these lustrous jewels.

Pearl farmers get their oysters to create pearls through an intricate process that requires surgical precision. First, they will gently open a live oyster and implant inside it a tiny shell bead along with a piece of mantle tissue. This shell bead acts as a nucleus, around which the oyster will secrete layers of nacre, which is the strong, iridescent material which makes up a pearl.

How long does it take to make a pearl?

It may take multiple years for the oysters to complete this process and develop pearls that are ready to be harvested. Farmers take great care in harvesting pearls, as they don’t want to do any damage to the oysters, in the hopes that the same oyster may produce another pearl for them. Harvested pearls are then cleansed in fluorescent light and gently polished by being bathed in finely crushed walnut shells. It is a painstaking process, but as you’ve likely seen, the results can become gorgeous, glistening pieces of jewelry.

To learn more about the pearl farming industry, book yourself a tour of one of these exciting facilities during your stay in Phuket. Tours can be booked for around 1500 baht (approximately $48) per person and take up to three hours. It is worth noting that some pearl farms do not hold tours on Sundays, so we recommend you fit this into your itinerary a different day of the week.

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