7 Days in Koh Lanta

Fly into Krabi Airport (KBV). Transfer to Klong Jilad Pier by taxi (45–60 min) and ferry to Saladan (30 min). Check in, rent a motorbike (THB 200–250/day), and do a quick orientation ride north toward Saladan and south to Relax Bay to get a feel for the island layout.

Spend the afternoon on Hat Khlong Dao — swim, kayak, and acclimatise. Book your diving course and island-hopping tours this afternoon if you haven't done so in advance. Most Hat Khlong Dao dive shops have booking desks at the beach.

Sunset dinner on Hat Khlong Dao — grilled fresh fish and a Thai curry while the sky turns pink and orange over the Andaman. Walk along the beach road after dinner to get familiar with your base.

Start your PADI Open Water course with the theory sessions and confined water (pool) dives. Most Koh Lanta dive centres complete the theory via online eLearning (book before your trip) and focus the course days on water skills. Pool/confined water sessions teach basic skills before the open ocean dives.

Complete the confined water skills session — mask clearing, regulator recovery, buoyancy control. By the end of Day 2, you're prepared for the open ocean dives that begin Day 3. The dive instructors on Koh Lanta are generally multilingual and experienced — instruction is patient and thorough.

Early night — open water dives begin early tomorrow. Ensure your wetsuit, BCD, and regulator fit are confirmed. Hydrate well (diving is dehydrating). A light dinner on Hat Khlong Dao.

Your first open water dives take place at Koh Ha — the ideal site for student divers. The caverns provide calm, sheltered conditions with excellent visibility. Dives 1 and 2 complete your skills assessments in an environment that is genuinely beautiful, making the experience thrilling rather than stressful.

Return to Hat Khlong Dao by 2 pm. Rinse your dive equipment, debrief with your instructor, and rest. The first two open water dives leave most students exhilarated — the afternoon is for processing the experience.

Evening at Ao Phra Ae (Long Beach) — a change from Hat Khlong Dao with a more open beach setting and a quieter restaurant scene. Fresh seafood dinner at a beachside table.

Complete your final two open water dives and earn your PADI Open Water Diver certification. The 3rd and 4th dives are typically more exploratory — your instructor takes you to see the Koh Ha cavern interiors with their stunning light shafts and the reef life. By noon, you're a certified diver.

Afternoon to celebrate your certification. Head to Khlong Khong beach (25 km south) for the afternoon — a laid-back beach bar scene, kayaks available, and a social atmosphere among backpackers and long-stay travellers. This is the social heart of Koh Lanta for independent travellers.

Stay at Khlong Khong for sunset and the evening fire show — most nights during peak season, the beach bars put on fire dancers and poi performances on the sand. Very much a Koh Lanta tradition. Return to Hat Khlong Dao for accommodation (30-min motorbike).

Now a certified diver, you can join a fun dive trip to the four-island area as a diver rather than a snorkeller — or simply take the classic island-hopping snorkelling tour. Depart 8–9 am from Saladan. First stop: Koh Mook's Emerald Cave — the hidden inland beach accessible by swimming through a dark cave.

Koh Kradan's reef is your afternoon stop — excellent shallow snorkelling with soft corals, unicornfish, parrotfish, and occasional reef sharks. Lunch is served on the boat or at Koh Kradan's beach restaurant. The return trip to Saladan takes 45 minutes.

Evening at Saladan night market for cheap Thai food. Walk through the start of Old Town road (10 minutes from Saladan pier) for a preview before tomorrow's full exploration.

Join a morning Thai cooking class — several Koh Lanta guesthouses and cooking schools offer market visits followed by 3–4 hours of cooking instruction. You'll learn to make Thai curry paste from scratch, a southern Thai curry, pad thai, and a dessert. Classes run THB 800–1,500 per person and leave you with a skill to take home.

Ride to Lanta Old Town after the cooking class ends (usually noon). Spend 2–3 hours exploring the historic wooden shophouses, local museum, craft shops, and waterfront cafes. Have a late lunch at one of the Old Town restaurants — the seafood dishes served in traditional buildings over the water are among the most atmospheric meals on the island.

Some operators offer late-afternoon mangrove kayaking (around 4pm departure) that times the paddle return with sunset over the mangrove channels. Check with tour operators in Saladan. Otherwise, return to Hat Khlong Dao for a sunset dinner.

Leave at 8 am and ride the 45 minutes south to Kantiang Bay with stops at Khlong Nin and Nui Beach trail turnoff. Swim at Kantiang Bay in the cool morning light — the bay is at its most beautiful in the early hours before the day-trippers arrive from the north.

Continue south to the Mu Ko Lanta National Park (THB 200 entry). Walk the jungle trail to the lighthouse at the island's southern tip — a 30-minute walk through primary jungle to a panoramic viewpoint over the national park's protected islands. The Lanta lighthouse is one of Thailand's most scenic viewpoints and sees relatively few visitors.

Return to Kantiang Bay for the perfect farewell: a long sunset dinner at one of the bay's restaurants, watching the sky turn crimson and gold over the Andaman. Fresh grilled seafood, a Thai curry, and a cold beer to conclude seven days on one of Thailand's finest islands.