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Scuba Diving at Koh Yawabon Ao Nang
Despite being one of the least visited islands near Krabi, divers who make the trip should see large schools of fish families swimming in the blue.
This guide contains important information about the Koh Yawabon dive site, with further details about the marine life that lives near the islands.
When is the Best Season to Dive Ao Nang?
Generally speaking, you can go snorkeling and scuba diving near Krabi and the offshore islands all year round.
Even so, you'll experience some of the best scuba diving in Thailand in the calm and flat seas from the end of November through to May.
Furthermore, you should still expect to have sea temperatures around 29° Celsius (85° Fahrenheit) even during the winter months.
More than 100 islands offer divers an exciting variety of gentle sloping reefs, shallow swim-throughs, and underwater caverns.
You'll also have an opportunity to see several hundred different species of fish around seven distinct island destinations. The archipelago is only a short boat trip from Aonang, and always popular for scuba diving courses and snorkeling adventures.
Here's the thing:
Advanced or experienced divers are more likely to appreciate the deeper spots at the Phi Phi Island dive sites. This is an ideal location to see big fish, aquatic invertebrates, and colourful coral formations.
The optimum season for scuba diving in Krabi and Ao Nang peaks between the months of December and April. The dry sunny high season offers tranquil warm water diving and underwater visibility in excess of twenty (20) metres (65 feet).
Dive shops operate for most of the year. Nonetheless, the sea conditions will deteriorate from June and often result in heavy rainfall around the Andaman Sea and Phuket dive sites towards the end of October.
Pro Tip: The south-west monsoons, and general bad weather during the rainy season, both affect the underwater clarity and often produce choppy boat crossings. Hence, novice scuba divers should find better conditions in Koh Samui dive spots or Koh Tao diving sites in the Gulf of Thailand from May to September during the Andaman low season.
Aquatic Life at Ao Nang Krabi
The distinct lack of pelagic predators at Yawabon Island encourages lobsters, bluespotted ribbontail rays, and large groupers to settle in the area.
Another top attraction for adventurous divers (with the required certification and experience) is a famous 60-metre long tunnel running through the island.
This dive site near Krabi and Ao Nang is a good place to see large fish families. Scuba divers should also expect to catch sightings of some stunning macro marine around the reef, especially:
- Batfishes
Blacktip reef shark (Carcharhinus melanopterus)- Finger leather corals
- Fusilier fishes (Caesionidae)
- Grouper fish
- Moray eels
- Nudibranch (sea slugs)
- Porites (stony corals)
- Pickhandle barracuda (Sphyraena jello)
- Seahorses (genus Hippocampus)
- Spotted garden eels (Heteroconger hassi)
- Stingrays (Myliobatiformes)
Pro Tip: This opening is prone to strong currents and there is a dark zone which creates its own hazards. Do not attempt penetration or swimming through enclosed environments without the appropriate equipment and specialised "cavern diving" training.