Hi guys, myself and my girlfriend are flying to Phuket on the 18th Jan and we had planned to move on to either Ko Lanta or Ko Phi Phi next. But we are REALLY struggling to find accommodation! Ideally we'd wish to spend under 1000 baht per night!
Where are the best budget(ish) places to stay on Phi Phi, any in particular that you'd reccommend?
As for Koh Lanta, we wanted to stay around the Long Beach area, but still cant find any budget (non dorm) options!
Any help is fantastically appreciated!
Unless you like your scenery with dreaded gap year piss heads, avoid Piss Piss.
Lanta has been going relentlessly upmarket, but down south there may be some budget places.
I'm on Lanta now, you can get a place for 300 - 500 baht a night. Just show up and stop depending on the internet for booking, Many places don't have online booking systems - don't worry you'll find a room - chill
Yeah, Phi Phi is expensive and it's getting hard to find a bungalow under 1000. But it is possible to find cheap digs:
IN TOWN; New to me in March2013- Phi Phi Backpacker on the cross-isthmus path not far in from the eastern most end of Loh Dalum beach. Sign says aircon dorms with hot showers for only 300 - gotta be a bargain in 2013 for Phi Phi in what most accommodation still thinks as high season (although I regard early March as shoulder. Nevertheless Phi Phi was pretty busy). Note lots of noisy nightlife running to 0230 on the eastern end of Loh Dalum which will suit most backpackers real well - not so any noise haters).
... and in the eastern most section where you begin to climb onto the lower slopes of the limestone lump towards the town viewpoint and the dam, quite a lot of small bungalow-type outfits in the backpacker/flash packer range. Some of these are Snow White House, Scenery GH, Garden Inn & Uphill Bungalows+. The area surround the (older) dam up here has a range of pretty okay flashpackers - in April 2012 I stayed at +Phi Phi Ingphu Viewpoint+ (pool) which did the job nicely. You can check it on +Agoda and I bet Lonely Planet's own travel site has many of these.
I have some pix of some of these places here. PHI PHI
Ooops, forgot Lanta.
Long Beach has fewer budget places these days - particularly beachfront. One you could check on Agoda+ etc is +Marina+ in the far south of the beach. One caveat - the adjacent bar was holding the rotating nightly party on Saturday nights when I visited - +extremely loud music etc until 0330.
Lanta Palm Beach towards the north end of the beach had some budget bungalows (I think mainly for their dive students) a few years back. Not sure if their cheaper stuff is now available.
Maybe your best Long Beach bet is a room associated with one of the restaurants along the main road a few hundred meters or less behind the beach. This is a bit hit or miss - the pickup-truck taxi mafia which meets the ferry is a pain in the bum, but I reckon if you tell one of these guys you want something say under 500 he might know a place - I'd also say beachfront under 1000: if anyone knows one, these guys will. And they are keen to help because the joint will give them a kick-back.
Well others who may be able to help are staff members in the ferry ticket/trip booking/accommodation booking office adjacent the arrivals pier.
There are usually touts on the ferries too. Trouble is they are usually associated with one or two joints only, and not necessarily on Long Beach. No harm asking. btw - ask them to show the place on a map: I've heard of people wanting Long Beach ending up at Relax Bay, next south. Nice place and there definitely are a couple of budget joints towards the southern end, but Long Beach is at least 10 minutes around the headland rocks (not all that easy) or by road.
Don't be hesitant at dealing with touts etc - I've had some great deals from these people and often they will throw in free or discounted transport.
If you come in by van from Lanta or Krabi town the drivers usually drop at most non-far south beaches. I'd be asking the driver if he knew a suitable Long Beach joint.
btw Klong Khong further south is the travellers' beach these days. Plenty of less expensive bungalows and a real good travellers' feel to the place. Nothing shabby about the beach either.
Got pix, more stuff: KO LANTA
Edited by: wilberry
Oh yeah, just remembered some more ideas for Phi Phi.
On rather nice Long Beach the old Long Beach Bungalows+ is now +Nomad's+ - they definitely have a dorm and maybe the older budget bungalows fit below 1000. You could also check +Phi Phi Hill's non-aircon bungalows - last pass by they also still had some of their outside bathroom elcheapos in a separate section looking out to Lanta - these don't appear on their website but I'm sure they would be affordable.
You could also check Viking+ one beach back towards town - their most distant from the beach back bungalows +might fit below 1000. Nice place, on Agoda etc but very popular.
My favourite area on PP is the east coast but prices at Toh Koh Resort+ and +Relax Resort+ have been pretty ridiculous for fairly ordinary bungalows these last few years. On Rantee beach maybe old time +Rantee Hut sitll has a few cheapies.
Oh yeah, just remembered some more ideas for Phi Phi.
On rather nice Long Beach the old Long Beach Bungalows+ is now +Nomad's+ - they definitely have a dorm and maybe the old budget bungalows fit below 1000. You could also check +Phi Phi Hill's non-aircon bungalows - last pass by they also still had some of their outside bathroom elcheapos in a separate section looking out to Lanta - these don't appear on their website but I'm sure they would be affordable.
You could also check Viking+ one beach back towards town - their most distant from the beach back bungalows +might+ fit below 1000. Nice place, on +Agoda etc but popular.
My favourite area on PP is the east coast but prices at Toh Koh Resort+ and +Relax Resort+ have been pretty ridiculous for fairly ordinary bungalows these last few years. On Rantee beach maybe old time +Rantee Hut sitll has a few cheapies.
