After visiting Thailand for so many times, I start to look for something more unique to do during my trip; as this is my third trip to Phuket, I have already marked my point on most of the famous islands, so what's left to do in Phuket? Island-hopping is a must-do activity when you travel to Phuket, and I am a beach and sea-lover, that is why I chose a different way to experience island-hopping this time.
I thought about finding some day tours to some smaller islands, mainly want to suntan, snorkel and experience the famous longtail boat on the island, but most of the tours I found stay only a short amount of time on the island, and rush you through all the activities, which I found it pretty annoying. I have joined some similar day tours before, I would say it is pretty worth the price, given that it provides lunch and transportation, as well as bringing you to explore the famous islands and different watersports. However, Phuket has been heavily overcrowded these years, most of these day tours are packed with people, particularly people from Mainland China. All the day tours start at 8am and end at 3pm; as a result, the beach is packed with all these people which totally ruin the aesthetic as well as my aim of trying to relax on a vacation.
These are the reasons that trigger me to choose a yacht tour to experience island-hopping. A yacht tour seems pretty luxurious, right? Well, you bet it is! These yacht tours have been thriving in Phuket to compete with the regular day tours for island-hopping, the main difference would be the quality and the price. I came across this company called The Hype Luxury Boat Club, which caters mainly to yacht parties and island-hopping tours, I found it pretty amusing as you could experience a yacht party while relaxing on different islands at the same time. You might have heard of this boat club as it is the boat club Revolve used to do their tours in France, other than France, Phuket is the only other destination they provide service. As I have never been on a yacht before (only been on a charter) and I am in the mood for some parties, this is exactly what I have been looking for!
This is how the rundown of the tour looks like:
9 AM - Pickup at hotel
11 AM - Boarding and welcome drinks
12 PM - Lunchtime and chill on the yacht
1 PM - Coral Island
2 PM - Boat party or relax on the boat
3 PM - Racha Island
4 PM - Boat party and relax
6 PM - Pickup at the pier to hotel
As the tour combines both yacht party and island-hopping, most of the people on board are quite young, hence it is very easy to have fun with each other, this is one thing I love about their tour. But of course, it totally depends on your luck whether the people on board are party animals or whether they are approachable after all the tour is open to the public so anyone can join.
The yacht is pretty broad and spacious, the basement will be the toilet, the main level contains daybeds and suntanning net at the front, the second level contains some beanbags for you to relax. I love the net very much, as I could suntan and enjoy the sea view at the same time, it is also a perfect Instagrammable spot for me to create content. For the daybed, it is quite cozy as they have covered it with towels, there also is a removable table and storage for you to put your food and drinks, which is extremely thoughtful.
The food on board is AMAZING (of course, consider the amount you paid for the tour), at least it is way better than the food you could get in a day tour, it has sushi, salad, rice, and dessert. Drinks are free to refill so you could order any drinks (except alcohol) at any time, they also give you free cocktails as well. After lunchtime, the table is removed so you could lay flat completely on the bed to take a nap or relax.
The first stop is Coral Island, it is just a pretty basic island where you could go suntanning or take a dip in the sea, there are no watersports or anything you could do on the island, it is a very small island. The weather wasn't that great that day, so the view is not as beautiful. I would say this is not the best island you could visit in Phuket, especially if this is your first time to Phuket. During that time, there are a lot of people on the island, mainly from the other day tours. The sand isn't exactly soft or clean, there are garbages on the beach which is the only thing I hate about. Though I managed to get a few great shots on this island and get a nice suntan (the sun isn't very strong but I still got very tan).
After an hour and a half, we are on the boat again heading to Racha Island. During the sail, the DJ plays some party music for people to dance, if you are lucky enough to be in a young crowd, it should have a pretty good vibe.
The next island will be Racha Island, compared to Coral Island, this island is so much better. When we arrived on Racha Island, it was about 3-4 pm, most of the people were leaving because it is the time which the day tour usually ends. This is one of the reasons I love about this yacht tour is because it lasts very long and finishes later than most of the tours, this is also one of the reasons why I did not have much time to relax and take photos in the hotel I was staying in, as mentioned in the previous post. Racha Island is absolutely stunning, with not many people left on the island, I was finally able to enjoy the view and the calmness of the sea. There are many beautiful rocks on Racha Island so we decided to go rock climbing, I suggest you could do the same as the view up there is captivating. The water around Racha Island is very clean with different shades of blue, which is perfect for snorkeling. You could even spot the fishes swimming just by looking at the water, it is that crystal clear!
This is my first yacht tour for island hopping, but I would definitely do it all over again if I ever visit Phuket again. The price for the yacht tour is around 90 USD (VIP package that includes day bed and transfers), the price is not the cheapest for day tour in Thailand especially its living cost is pretty low, but I would say it is still worth the price, given the quality and the experience is 100% better than the regular day tours you could get. I purchase the package on the app KLOOK, it is way cheaper than the official website which includes free transfer as well. If you are interested in booking a yacht tour like this in Phuket, feel free to comment or reach out to me if you have any inquiries.
Have you been to a yacht like this or any yacht tours for island hopping? What other islands have you been to that have blown your mind? Tell me all about it!
(This post is not affiliated or sponsored in any ways)
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