With an abundance of 11 islands, marine life, 3 wrecks, great weather,
great visibility and a huge amount of coral reef in Thailand, the
Similan islands are the Top destination in Thailand’s dive travel
niche market.

There are an estimated 10 million active divers in the world. The
Similan Marine National Park, Thailand’s most popular dive destination
attracted about 150’000 to 200’000 divers & skin divers per season.
There are currently about 100 dive & snorkel operators with a license
to operate within the Similan Marine National Park. 70% of the dive
tourism to the Similan Marine National Park is focused in Khao Lak,
Phang Nga.

According to Rodale’s Scuba Diving Magazine the most important
considerations for dive tourists choosing a dive destination is the
quality of diving and the cost. A similar survey conducted by the same
Magazine found that the most important factor for choosing a dive
operator was the operator’s reputation.

The most common reason given by divers and skin divers to the Similan
Marin National Park for their visit is to enjoy the beauty of marine
life and the islands.

The following dive facilities are available in Khao Lak: Day trip
boats, live-aboard, snorkel day trip boats, snorkel live-aboard, and
dive training.

The Similan Marine National Park is an attractive dive destination,
because it provides healthy marine environment, variety of different
dive sites (about 40 different wreck, coral reef and rocky sites),
good visibility, marine life and good facilities (dive operators,
guesthouses, hotels, restaurants, transportation).

One potential barrier to dive tourism in Thailand is the threat of
coral bleaching, coral mortality and rising water temperatures. There
should be some diving limitations in place to protect the under water
world. Tourist and Operators are required to pay an Entrance Fee which
is then used to install mooring lines and maintain the Parks buildings
and infrastructure.

With its already well-established tourism market, Thailand has much of
the infrastructure required for dive tourism in place to take
advantage of this niche market.