Dive· Koh Ma· Thailand
Koh Ma Reef Dive (northwest Phangan)
9° 48.1′ N · 99° 58.8′ E
A steeply shelving islet off Phangan's northwest corner, linked to Mae Haad by a sandbar, and the best local dive on the island, with schooling fish, big groupers and soft and whip corals at depth.
Practical
Islet position from OpenStreetMap (Koh Ma, way 50891270). Chaloklum Diving: maximum depth about 24 m; hard coral, plus soft and whip corals deeper; schooling fish, bannerfish and big grouper, with barracuda and queenfish hunting when there is some current. They dive around it by longtail boat. Koh Ma is part of a national marine park (Wikivoyage), so no fishing, coral collecting or anchoring on coral: anchor in Ao Mae Haad on sand (SE Asia Pilot: 8–12 m, or 6–7 m nearer the western side for shelter from westerly swell, avoiding the charted rock on the east side of the bay) and dinghy over. Local dive centres on the west and north coasts (Haad Yao Divers, Lotus Dive Resort, Chaloklum Diving) run trips here; see the Koh Ma Sandbar entry for snorkelling from the beach.
Best for
The best scuba dive on Phangan itself
Season
Best in calm conditions; visibility and swell vary with the monsoon
Nearby
- Koh Ma Sandbar (Mae Haad)Right here
- Ao Mae Haad Anchorage0.4 NM away
- Ao Thong Lang and Koh Tae Nok Reefs0.5 NM away
- Mae Haad, Haad Salad and Haad Yao Reefs1 NM away
- Haad Salad Anchorage1.1 NM away
- Ao Chaloklum Anchorage1.6 NM away
- Chaloklum Fishing Village1.7 NM away
- Chaloklum Fuel and Water (jerry can)1.7 NM away