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View all Krabi toursHong Island and Ko Pak Bia with Sunset Barbecue Dinner in Krabi
Swim and snorkel around Hong Island and the sandbars of Ko Pak Bia, then stay out for a barbecue dinner at sunset and a night swim with glowing plankton.
Highlights
- Hong Island lagoon after the day boats have gone
- Snorkelling in the island's sheltered bays
- Ko Pak Bia sandbar, reshaped by every tide
- Barbecue dinner cooked as the sun sets
- Plankton swim, best on dark nights near a new moon
Hong Island and Ko Pak Bia with Sunset Barbecue Dinner: Key Facts
| Price | From $66 per person |
|---|---|
| Duration | 6-7 hours |
| Languages | English |
| Tour type | Guided Tour |
| Booking | Direct with the local operator — no OTA markup |
Choose from 3 available options
Hong Island Sunset + Bioluminescent Longtail Boat
From Krabi: Hong Island & Ko Pak Bia Tour with Sunset Dinner
Hong By Catamaran
Full description
Hong Island in the late afternoon, when the day boats have left and the lagoon is quiet.
Koh Hong's centrepiece is its lagoon, a near-enclosed pool of shallow green water ringed by limestone walls and reached through a gap boats can only enter at certain tides. By late afternoon the mooring lines that crowd it at midday are gone. The sheltered bays around the island are where the snorkelling happens; the water here stays calmer than the open crossings because the island group blocks the swell.
Ko Pak Bia is the other stop, and it is barely an island at all. It is a sandbar with a fringe of trees whose shape changes with every tide, so the strip you walk on is not the one in the photograph you saw. That is the appeal rather than a disappointment.
The barbecue is cooked and served as the sun goes down. Limestone holds colour for a long time after sunset, so the good light lasts well past the point you would expect it to end.
The trip closes with a plankton swim. Bioluminescent dinoflagellates flash when the water around them moves, so the light appears around your hands and feet rather than across the surface. It is genuinely variable: dark nights near a new moon show it best, a full moon washes it out, and choppy water scatters it. Worth asking about the moon phase before fixing a date.
Your place is held with the operator before your booking is final. The price covers hotel pickup and drop-off, the boat with crew and guide, snorkelling equipment, barbecue dinner, drinking water, soft drinks and fruit, life jackets and insurance.
Six to seven hours. National park fees are collected at the pier unless confirmed otherwise, so carry cash. Minimum one day's notice.
Tour Itinerary
The schedule below is a suggested plan and can be adjusted to suit your preferences.
Hotel pickup
Midday transfer to the pier, briefing and boarding.
Hong Lagoon
Enter the enclosed lagoon through the cliff passage and swim in calm, shallow water.
Ko Pak Bia sandbars
Time ashore on the tidal sandbars with snorkelling from the beach.
Sunset barbecue dinner
Barbecue dinner served on board or on the beach as the light fades.
Plankton night swim
Final swim in a sheltered bay to look for bioluminescent plankton.
Return to hotel
Boat back to the pier and drop-off at your accommodation.
Detailed Itinerary
Pickups run from around 12:30 and the boat leaves the pier early in the afternoon, heading north towards the Hong archipelago. The first stop is the lagoon, reached through a narrow gap in the cliffs, where the water is shallow and unusually still.
By mid-afternoon you are at Ko Pak Bia, a low island fringed with sandbars that appear and disappear with the tide. There is snorkelling straight off the beach and enough time to explore on foot.
Around 17:30 the crew set up dinner, timed so the barbecue is served as the sun goes down behind the limestone. Once it is fully dark the boat moves to a sheltered bay for the plankton swim, then starts back to the pier at about 20:30 with transfers waiting.
Includes
- Hotel pickup and drop-off
- Boat trip with crew and guide
- Snorkelling equipment
- Barbecue dinner
- Drinking water, soft drinks and fruit
- Life jackets
- Insurance
Excludes
- National park entrance fee
- Alcoholic drinks
- Towels
- Tips
- Personal expenses
Important information
Meeting point
Hotel pickup in Ao Nang, Krabi Town and Nopparat Thara
Know before you go
- Free cancellation available up to 24 hours before the activity starts
About this activity
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Traveler Reviews
I loved it. I met so many great people, got to do everything I wanted (snorkel, swim, chill on the beach, explore some nature), and the catamaran was so fun! Dinner was fire and tour guide Josh was awesome. recommend bringing waterproof stuff so you don’t worry on the boat. There wasn’t great snorkeling at every spot in the trip but I suggest bringing the goggles every time when u swim cuz I saw some awesome fish.
We loved this tour so much! Plenty of water, fruit, photo ops, and sites! It was actually such a relaxing beautiful day (with the option of the climb of course if you wanted to be adventurous which I do recommend). Dinner was very yummy, we didn’t get lucky enough to see a full blown sunset but still a good location to see it if you get lucky! The tour guide (Nicky) was so sweet, he gave us a lovely display of bioluminescent plankton at the end of the tour which was very fun, you do have the option to swim and see them or have your guide demonstrate. To note, there are some points where you do have to take everything with you so don’t bring anything you don’t absolutely need, pack light (they provided MORE than enough water and things so leave that behind). Also just shout out to the whole crew there was a family with a new baby and an elderly woman on our cruise that they all helped more than adequately each time on and off the boat so you’re never short a helping hand either.
One or the best boat trips we have done. Picked up from the hotel on time, check in for the trip was easy, even had coffee and juice laid on. Vee our guide for the day was brilliant, really helpful, very polite, spoke good English. The sights on this tour were fantastic, the stops were long enough to do the nature trail, observation point and snorkel and swimming in the plankton just rounded the day off. Plenty of water, fruit and dinner was great. Really well organised day, would absolutely recommend this trip.
Hong Island in the afternoon, then the sandbars at Ko Pak Bia which are the prettiest thing we saw in Krabi, pale sand curving out into turquoise. Barbecue dinner was grilled fish, chicken skewers and rice cooked on the boat as the sun set. Then a night swim with plankton to finish.
Ko Pak Bia is a proper sandbar you can walk along and it was almost empty when we arrived at around four. Snorkelling around Hong was fine, plenty of fish though the coral is patchy. The barbecue was cooked fresh and there was plenty of it.
The plankton were visible but not dramatic on our night and the crew said clearly beforehand that it depends on the moon phase and cloud. Even faint, swimming in the dark with sparks around your hands is worth it. Warm shower on the boat afterwards.
Eight hours but it builds well, snorkelling first, then beaches, then dinner, then the swim. The barbecue was served on the upper deck with the limestone silhouettes all around. Best sunset we had in Thailand.
Lovely trip with a good crew. The night swim is optional and a few in our group found the dark water unnerving, which is fair enough. Hong Island and Ko Pak Bia in the late afternoon light were the real draw.
Fewer boats everywhere because you go out after the morning fleet returns. Vegetarian option at the barbecue was grilled vegetables and tofu and it was properly done. Life jackets and glow lights for the night swim.
The sandbar at Ko Pak Bia changes shape with the tide and our guide explained exactly when it appears. Water was bath warm at seven in the evening. Well worth the extra over a standard day trip.
Boat was comfortable with a shaded deck and mats for lying out. Fruit and drinks were topped up all afternoon. Getting back to Ao Nang around nine after a barbecue and a night swim was a perfect end to the trip.