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A friend of mine gave me the tip to head to the south of Koh Tao where its not that crowded and busy as on the main beach Sairee. Following his advice I ended up in Chalok Baan Kao, the main beach in the south, walking around to check and find accommodation I met the guys from Alvaro Diving who helped me to find a place to stay without even asking if I want to dive. After I settled in at Taraporn resort I went around to checked different dive shops in Chalok bay only to find out that the place where I started suited me the most.
I did my Open Water course with Jesse one of Alvaro Divings Instructors. It was great fun, we were only 4 people in the group and he really took time with us. Thanx again I didnt think that it would be that easy : )
After the course I went for 4 great fun dives with Jacque.
By the end of my stay i felt like i had become part of the family atmosphere, i will miss the dive team at Alvaro. Thanx Andraes, Jesse, Jacque and Jeff.
Equipment: No need to bring any equipment its all included in the price.
All the rental equipment they gave me looked in a good condition
Written Sep 29, 2011
Address: Chalok Baan Kao Bay, Koh Tao
Phone: 077456457
Website: http://www.divingcourseskohtao.com/
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I happened on this place by chance basically with no intention of scuba diving at all. Without wishing to bore you, I ended up training as an Open Water diver here and completed eight fantastic dives. I know that the island of Koh Tao qualifies more new divers annually than any other place in the world and the diving here really is great. With over 40 dive schools on an island about 22 km square, the competition keeps prices very uniform, and I am told the standard is uniformly good. I can only report on this one centre who I stayed with after qualifying for a few fun dives. The reason is that I found them to be an excellent outfit. There was no hard sell initially and my instructor, an American called Greg, displayed the patience of a saint teaching a not particularly academic middle aged man both the theory and practice of diving. All the staff here are friendly, and even when not diving I used to visit just for a chat.
My Open Water course and certification cost 9000 baht, and the deal was sweetened with four nights free lodging at the associated Lotus Resort (see seperate tip). Fun dives start at 700 baht, including use of equipment, tank, instructor (if you are alone) refreshments on the boat etc.
Having seen other dive boats / groups, I would suggest that Siam tends towards smaller groups. If you are with a large group another place might suit you better but I was very happy to have one on one instruction. I can thoroughly recommend this place and I hope to return later in my trip for some more diving here. If you don't want to go the whole hog of scuba, they will organise snorkelling trips as well.
By the way, don't let the tip title put you off, I don't deliberately startle the marine life but the sight of me must be a little offputting!
Equipment: All you need is a swimsuit, everything else is provided. Obviously, if you prefer to use your own gear, that is not a problem.
Written Jan 28, 2010
Address: Lotus Resort, Sairee Beach, Koh Tao
Phone: +00 66 77456628
Website: www.siamscubakohtao.com
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Our full day snorkeling trip, booked in the lobby of our hotel, started at Mae Haad Bay main pier were we boarded the speed boat that would carry us around Koh Tao Island.
The 4 planned stops were Ao Leuk Bay, Hin Wong Bay, Mango Bay, and the Japanese Garden.
During our stop at Hin Wong Bay we had a very nice lunch onboard the boat.
Equipment: The basic snorkeling gear, Mask, Fins, and Snorkel provided by the hotel (Montra Resort).
Written Aug 30, 2009
Website: http://kohtao.sawadee.com/
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Our full day snorkeling trip, booked in the lobby of our hotel, started at Mae Haad Bay main pier were we boarded the speed boat that would carry us around Koh Tao Island.
The 4 planned stops were Ao Leuk Bay, Hin Wong Bay, Mango Bay, and the Japanese Garden.
During our stop at Hin Wong Bay we had a very nice lunch onboard the boat.
Equipment: The basic snorkeling gear, Mask, Fins, and Snorkel provided by the hotel (Montra Resort).
Written Aug 30, 2009
Website: http://kohtao.sawadee.com/
Helpfulness
Our full day snorkeling trip, booked in the lobby of our hotel, started at Mae Haad Bay main pier were we boarded the speed boat that would carry us around Koh Tao Island.
The 4 planned stops were Ao Leuk Bay, Hin Wong Bay, Mango Bay, and the Japanese Garden.
During our stop at Hin Wong Bay we had a very nice lunch onboard the boat.
Equipment: The basic snorkeling gear, Mask, Fins, and Snorkel provided by the hotel (Montra Resort).
Updated Aug 30, 2009
Website: http://kohtao.sawadee.com/
Helpfulness
Our full day snorkeling trip, booked in the lobby of our hotel, started at Mae Haad Bay main pier were we boarded the speed boat that would carry us around Koh Tao Island.
The 4 planned stops were Ao Leuk Bay, Hin Wong Bay, Mango Bay, and the Japanese Garden.
During our stop at Hin Wong Bay we had a very nice lunch onboard the boat.
Equipment: The basic snorkeling gear, Mask, Fins, and Snorkel provided by the hotel (Montra Resort).
Updated Aug 30, 2009
Website: http://kohtao.sawadee.com/
Helpfulness
Even though the island is just a few square kilometers this little place graduate 3% of the worlds recreational divers licenses each year. An it is competing with Egypt Red Sea and Great Barrier Reef for the best place for diving in the world. So I'm guessing that you understand it is a great place for diving? ;)
Equipment: Warm water diving gear, you can rent or even buy everything there :)
Written Jul 10, 2007
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At the Coral Grand Resort, for example, you can rent kayaks for one or two people. The price for one hour was 100-200 Baht, for half a day 300-400 Baht, but if you are as unfit as we are, you might better start with one hour! ;-) As there might be currents, it can be hard to move on fast, but the view on the beach is lovely and you can see corals and fish through the clear water.
Equipment: The only things to bring along are drinking water and a hat against the strong sun. If you want to take a camera as well, bring a waterproof plastic bag.
Written Jul 7, 2005
Address: Sairee Beach, Coral Grand Resort
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Marine life-wise... not too much at Nang Yuan Pinnacle, saw a six-footed star which was all i logged..
but the Japanese Garden was lovely! Great swim-throughs.. and pretty coral reefs.. clams, juvenile yellow-tailed barras, jacks and your other typical reef fish...
Written Feb 20, 2005
Address: Nang Yuan Pinnacle & Japanese Garden
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It's a wonder how anyone manages to dive in Koh Tao unless you stay for weeks!! In 3 days, we only managed 2 dives on this trip... (as compared to, say, 5-7 dives a day on Sipadan or the Maldives etc)... it's hard to pull oneself away from the hammock on this island.
Admittedly, there are much better dive sites in Malaysia.. even in other parts of Thailand... but it's just so FUN to dive in Koh Tao because everyone is in such a relaxed party mood... it's somewhere you are apt to want to sit on a rock and watch the fish swim by instead of you swimming by the fish!!
Equipment: Didn't bring my dive gear and got a faulty mask which was no fun 'cos I had to keep pulling at the strap the whole time.. yukh! Mask clearing is a pain in the a** for me 'cos of my contact lenses, and the salt water kills my eyes... so you may want to bring your own basic gear at least, e.g. snorkel, mask and maybe fins too.
Also, a word on weights.. if you haven't been diving for some time, you may want to add on an extra weight or two and just play around with your BCG to help you get your buoyancy right... I remember the troubles I had trying to DESCEND at the beginning (this was my first dive after a couple of months)... it was hilarious... I miscalculated my weights, so after floating around at the surface even after deflating ALL the air out of my BCG, it was only when the diveguide literally pulled me down before i could finally join the others hahaha... too much smoke and air from the night before i guess! All that stuff you learn in PADI courses about how alcohol and smoking etc. can affect how you dive... it's TRUE okay, so account for all that accordingly!
Updated Feb 20, 2005
Address: Nang Yuan Pinnacle & Japanese Garden
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