Koh Tao, Thailand Background

If you've never visited Koh Tao, Thailand, here's a bit of background information about the island.

Koh Tao is situated in the sheltered Gulf of Thailand, a little north of the larger islands of Koh Samui & Koh Phangan. The sheltered position means we're able to dive for all 12 months of the year, making it an excellent location to spend a gap year / scuba diving internship.

The island is located 70 km out from the mainland, and is accessible by ferry from Chumphon to the north-east & Samui to the south.


Koh Tao, Thailand has the perfect balance - the natural beauty of living on a small tropical island, joined with an organised infrastructure.

Tourism only reached Koh Tao over the last 10 -15 years, so Koh Tao still retains a rustic island charm [and is not over-developed unlike other parts of Thailand].

The island infrastructure is good - we have decent transport, accommodation, shops and banking. There are plenty of ATMs & on-island medical services are decent. When it comes to food you're spoilt for choice, from Thai restaurants serving up tasty Thai dishes, to European bakeries, Italian, Mexican, Indian and other international cuisine - whatever you want, you can get it here!

The level of progress is just about right, it's a fantastic place to stay, with all the comforts of home.



Originally Koh Tao's isolated location meant that it was used as a Thai prison many years ago!

After the prison closed, fisherman started to use Koh Tao island as a refuge, and eventually began settling on Koh Tao, claiming tracts of the tropical terrain as their own.

It has only been recently that tourism has been introduced to Koh Tao. A little over twenty years ago the first intrepid travelers made it onto the island, and were met by a stunning scenery of clear blue sees, beautiful beaches lining dense jungle, amazing rock formations and incredible corals reefs. As a result the island's reputation has quickly grown, especially due to the fantastic scuba reefs and great diversity of dive marine life that Koh Tao island offers.

We now have very good ferries serving the island both from Koh Samui to the south, and Chumphon to the north west . As a result we have gradually seen an increase in the numbers of visitors coming to Koh Tao, Thailand.
Koh Tao island still retains a rustic island charm unlike some of Thailand's more developed islands. Building has been restricted so the island is still a very special destination.

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