Family Trip Idea: Snorkeling Thailand’s Similan Islands

Arriving in the Similan Islands

“Jump, Riley!”

I closed my eyes and heaved myself off the boat, plunging into the Similan Island’s crystal clear water below. I bobbed up to the surface and swam around the edge of the boat. Delaney came around a few seconds after me.

Just minutes earlier I was complaining about the rough 75 minute boat ride. “Ugh, I feel seasick,” I moaned. Then one of the crew members called out, “Land, ho!” I stood up and saw four rocky islands in the distance. I pushed away the feeling of seasickness and asked which island we were going to.

“We will start at the one on your left.”

In twenty or so minutes, we were docked at one of the nine Similan Islands off the coast of Thailand, but we couldn’t go snorkeling yet. First the people who wanted to get off the boat to swim on the beach got off. Then we got to ride a little farther to island number four.

The closer we got, the clearer the water was. It was the prettiest water I’d ever seen, and you could see straight down to he bottom of the ocean.

“Okay, you will all have thirty-five minutes to snorkel, so get going!”

The snorkeling begins

Being one of the few people on the front of the boat (there are fewer people because the waves are rougher up front) we could jump from the front. My dad jumped first, and I followed to the tip of the boat. I sat on the edge and put on my fins and my mask. I looked down and saw my reflection in the waves. The water was only eight or so feet below me.

“Riley, you’re holding up the line. Just go!” my loving sister told me. I counted down from three in my head, “Three, two, one.” I shut my eyes and into the water I went.

It felt amazing after the roasting hot and bumpy boat ride here. I swam towards my dad and waited for Delaney and Mom. They caught up, and my family started to swim away from the big crowd of people, as we weren’t the only boat snorkeling today.

I looked down through my goggles and saw a parrot fish. It was green, blue, and purple. It’s eyes had what looked like lime green, sparkly eyelashes and purple eyeshadow. For a second, I thought it looked right at me.

Throughout the snorkel, I saw lots of coral and different types of fish. There were striped fish, and neon fish. Before we knew it, it was time to go back to the boat.

Throughout the day, we ate lunch, and snorkeled once more. Our tour boat also went to another island to swim and play on the beach. My dad and I climbed a path up to some boulders with a panoramic view of the ocean.

Similan Islands Summary

The Similan Islands were really fun, and I loved snorkeling. The only way that the day could’ve been better was if our boat had fewer people on it, and my mom wasn’t sick . If you are looking for an unusual beach destination, try Khao Lak, Thailand and visit the Similans! It is the perfect combination of flour soft sand, water so blue you can’t believe it’s real, and beautiful, colorful fish.

I promise that you’ll enjoy it! Just be sure to take a little Dramamine if you tend to get seasick. Now I’m even more excited about scuba diving on the Great Barrier Reef next month!

For more amazing snorkeling experiences, be sure to visit the Galapagos Islands.