Turtle Rock

Turtle Rock is a limestone reef and rock formation in open water off the west side of Koh Phi Phi Leh, marking the approach to Maya Bay — not a place you walk up to, but one you reach by boat. Local dive operators also know the site as Malong Bay. It’s one of the more consistent spots in the Phi Phi Islands for encountering wild sea turtles, with hawksbills seen on roughly nine in ten dives.

The site’s cliffs plunge from the surface to about 4 metres before opening onto a terraced reef that slopes to 18-22 metres — a range that works for both open-water divers and confident snorkelers, since the shallow shelf near the top is exactly where hawksbill turtles surface to feed and breathe. Conditions are usually calm, without the strong currents that complicate some other Phi Phi sites, which is why dive schools rate it as suitable for divers of most experience levels. Beyond the turtles, expect reef fish along the wall, occasional blacktip reef sharks in deeper water, and — at the site’s north end — swim-throughs and coral bommies where schools of glassfish and lionfish gather.

Access is entirely through organised trips: a snorkeling day tour out of Ton Sai on Phi Phi Don, a dive boat from Phuket or Krabi, or a longtail charter that stops here on the way into Maya Bay itself. Because the rock sits within Hat Noppharat Thara-Mu Ko Phi Phi National Park waters, boats entering the protected zone around Maya Bay, Pileh Lagoon, and Bamboo Island pay the standard 400 THB national park fee (40 THB for Thai nationals) — dive trips add a supplement on top. Almost every operator folds this into the advertised trip price, so there’s rarely a separate charge to budget for on the day.

Watch out: Turtles here are wild and protected — Thailand’s marine park rules ban touching, chasing, or riding them, and dive guides will call off an encounter if a group crowds one. Keep a few metres’ distance and let the turtle set the pace; it’s also better for the photos.

If you’re building a Phi Phi day out around this stretch of water, most boats combine Turtle Rock with a stop at Maya Bay on Koh Phi Phi Le itself, and land-based travellers based on Phi Phi Don often pair the trip with a morning at Phi Phi Viewpoint before heading out on the water. For planning the rest of your stay, Koh Phi Phi has the fuller rundown of boat operators and where to base yourself.