Koh Phayam

Ranong · Ranong Province · Thailand

Koh Phayam is Thailand's overlooked island, sitting off Ranong province in the northern Andaman Sea where the dive industry has never gained the foothold it holds further south. While the Similans, Surin, and Phi Phi attract tens of thousands of divers annually, Koh Phayam's reefs remain virtually unknown, dived by perhaps a few hundred people each year. The island's dive infrastructure reflects this obscurity. A single small operation runs a converted longtail boat to sites around the island and the nearby granite outcrops. My guide, who had been diving these waters for eight years, told me he still finds new sites regularly. We were the only divers in the water for three consecutive days. The reefs around the island's southern tip were the most developed, granite boulders descending from the shoreline to fifteen metres where they gave way to a sand and coral slope. Soft corals in purples and yellows covered the rock surfaces, and sea fans extended from the lee side of the boulders. Visibility was modest at twelve metres, but the intimacy this created made the diving feel personal rather than cinematic. A leopard shark rested on a sandy patch between two boulders at eighteen metres, its spotted body perfectly camouflaged against the speckled sand. My guide signalled calmly and we settled on the sand five metres away. The shark remained for several minutes, unfazed, before lifting off the bottom and gliding away with unhurried grace. A second leopard shark occupied a similar resting spot on the next dive. Green turtles were frequent. One juvenile allowed me to drift alongside for several minutes, matching its gentle pace along the reef edge. Cuttlefish hunted over the rubble patches, their colour changes rippling across their bodies in response to substrate and mood. The mangrove channels on the island's eastern side provided excellent between-dive exploration. Paddling a kayak through the root systems, juvenile fish everywhere, herons stalking the shallows. This is diving for people who have seen enough boats and buffets and want something raw.