If you have done it before, you are already addicted. If you haven‘t, then it is remarkably easy. Whatever: Koh Samui is your gateway to the best diving sites in the Gulf of Thailand.
Imagine being weightless, suspended in a world of color and light. As in a dream you can fly anywhere, exploring a rainbow-hued garden. The ocean here is a fantasy land, and the wonderful thing is, that anyone can enter it.
Not a strong swimmer? You don‘t have to be. Scared of sharks and other sea monsters? They will be more afraid of you. Don‘t want to be shown up as a land lubber? We‘re all like that.
Professional diving instructors have to go through rigorous training before they can qualify, and part of that includes putting people at their ease.
So, ready to take the plunge?
Most of the diving schools on Samui will offer an introductory course which involves a swimming pool dive. This usually has an amazing effect on anyone who has any doubts, because the very act of strapping on the equipment and disappearing under the surface of even a hotel pool gives that essential little spurt of confidence.
After that you are ready to begin exploring , and the sheer diveability of Samui is what brings so many people here. The calm waters with their gradual depths just off the beaches are almost designed for beginners. Further out, at other island and rocky outcrops, there are other dive sites perfect for the novice and the experienced diver.
Apart from Samui, Koh Pha-Ngan and the Ang Thong National Marine Park Archipelago offer great snorkeling sights. Many are easily accessible on a day-trip: the overnighters will include land accommodation, as few boats from Samui have sleeper facilities.
Koh Pha-Ngan is developing as a tourist resort and now offers some attractive beachfront accommodation. It takes just 45 minutes to reach the island by boat from Samui, and once you are there the easiest way to travel from beach to beach is by water taxi: the rocky interior of the island is hard on walkers.
Off the beaches you will fine Coral reefs, but the nearby smaller islands do have clearer waters with better reefs. Koh Mah is generally rated the best, and it‘s about 45 minutes from Pha-Ngan : a nicely sloping reef here, with caves and crevices forming homes for snappers and sweetlips makes this a very pretty dive. Koh Tae Nok and Koh Tae Nai are also recommended.
[R-p6]These are two islets just off Pha-Ngan,and the site is good for beginners as the maximum depth is around 16 meters. There are some attractive coral mounts here, with sponges and sea cucumbers, and the sandy seabed in between the islets is home to lizard and goby fish.
Hin Bai, or Sail Rock, is a dramatic rocky outcropping about 2 1/2 hours from Samui‘s Chaweng Beach. You can dive here to depths of more than 30 metres, and one of the most distinctive features is the 12 underwater pinnacles with their rocky gorges. There is plenty of brilliantly colored soft coral at this site, and it is also a mating and spawning ground for groupers and snappers. You may see the occasional whale shark which feeds on the plankton close to the surface.
[R-p7]Some two hours from Samui is Koh Wao, which with its shallow water of a maximum 19 meters has particularly colorful coral growing in the warm sunlight. There is a particularly dense population of coral fish here, plus butterfly and angel fish and snappers. Antler corals are host to sea anemone, and brain corals to starfish and big oysters.