This Girl Shows You How To Do Koh Lipe With Just RM720

Main image via Facebook/Suraya Arifin

Koh Lipe is an island paradise in the South Andaman Sea. Famous for its white sandy beaches and turquoise blue waters, there’s no doubt why it’s called the Maldives of Thailand.

Your first thought when hearing the word Koh Lipe might be “island in Thailand”, which it totally is. But did you know that Koh Lipe is technically closer to Malaysia compared to the mainland of Thailand? Koh Lipe is a measly 30km from Langkawi, Malaysia—half its distance from mainland Thailand!

Facebook user Suraya Arifin recently shared her travel tips on how to have a fun and fulfilling trip in Koh Lipe with just a RM720 budget!

It's pretty long, so we've summarised it below!

FROM KL

Day 1

Travel By Bus From TBS To Kuala Perlis (RM55)

• Take the 10pm bus from TBS and arrive in Kuala Perlis at 5am to catch the first ferry out to Kuah at 7am.
• The bus trip will take 7 hours in total. If you’re not up for a 7-hour bus ride, you can also catch a flight to Langkawi from KL.

KUALA PERLIS JETTY

Day 2

Arrive At The Kuala Perlis Bus Terminal

• From the bus terminal, take a 10-minute walk to the jetty.
• Take the ferry from Kuala Perlis to Kuah (RM18).
• There’s a ferry every hour to Kuah. The earliest departs at 7am, and the last departs at 7pm. The ferry ride takes about 1 hour and 15 minutes.
• You can buy the ferry ticket at the jetty or online at www.langkawiferryline.com. It’s better to buy the tickets online during peak seasons to avoid long queues.

LANGKAWI

Take A Ferry From Kuah To Koh Lipe (RM195/Roundtrip)

• The normal price for a ferry ticket is RM236/roundtrip which you can buy online at www.telagaterminal or at the jetty. This ferry boards at Telaga Harbour.
• Alternatively, you can get a cheaper ferry ticket (RM195/roundtrip) from Mr Afendi at: 013-531 3814. This ferry boards at Kuah Jetty.
• There are only two trips out to Kuah on this ferry: 9.30am and 2pm. The trip takes 1 hour and 30 minutes.
• After you pass the Malaysian immigration, your passport will be held by the immigration staff. No need to worry though, they’ll pass it back to you once you arrive in Koh Lipe.

KOH LIPE

Arrive At Koh Lipe (Pattaya Beach)

• The ferry can’t dock on the beach, so you’ll have to move onto a long tail boat that will take you to the shore.
• Collect your passport at the Bundhaya Resort office. When you do so, the immigration will ask you if you have a return ticket back to Langkawi. Show them your ticket. If you didn’t buy a roundtrip ticket, just inform them and they will offer you several travel packages.
• Pay the National Park entrance fee of 200 Baht (about RM25). This is mandatory. Keep this entrance ticket safely as you can reuse it later when you want to visit other islands within the park during your trip. If you don’t have this ticket, you’ll have to pay for another one. It’s valid for 5 days.

WHAT TO DO IN KOH LIPE

Have Lunch At Khonlay Restaurant

• This restaurant is in the Walking Street area.
• The food is halal and they have wifi. Their Seafood Pad Thai is good.
• Slightly pricey but worth it.

Check Into A Plus Hotel (1,950 Baht – that’s RM242/3 nights)

• This hotel is within walking distance to Walking Street. It’s a dorm-style hotel with a shared bathroom, perfect for solo travellers and backpackers. It comes with wifi too!

Watch The Sunset At Sunset Beach

• This is just a 15-minute walk from A Plus Hotel. Get there early at 6pm and look for a good spot.

Have Dinner At Sara Sea Seafood

• Another halal restaurant. Their beef noodles, fried rice and somtam are awesome!

Take A Stroll Down Walking Street

• Take the Plankton Trip travel package at “Happy Lipe Tour” located right in front of Roti Mina.
• The staff here are really nice, very helpful.
• You can request for pictures to be taken when you go snorkelling—there’s no extra charge for it. They’ll take the photos using their underwater camera and email all the photos to you!

Go Hiking In Koh Adang

• The view is extraordinary and you can go kayaking too!

Watch The Sunrise Over The Sea At Adang Sea Lodge

Have Breakfast At Tasneem

• It’s located at the very back of Walking Street. Go down the alley opposite 7-Eleven.
• They offer a variety of Thai dishes including khoumok rice, laksa, rice porridge and cakes.

GOING HOME

Check Out Of The Hotel

• Take the first ferry out to Langkawi at 11am—you need to check in at the Bundhaya Resort office by 9am.
• Go through immigration. The officers will hold your passport again until you arrive in Langkawi.
• After you go through immigration, you can walk around, have some breakfast or look for souvenirs. But remember to be present at the jetty by 10am to board the long tail boat.

Ferry To Kuah Jetty

• The ferries only make two trips: 10.30am and 3.30pm. Each trip takes 1 hour and 30 minutes.

Kuah Jetty To Kuala Perlis (RM18)

• Take the ferry from Kuah to Kuala Perlis.
• Walk 10 minutes to the Kuala Perlis bus terminal.

Bus From Kuala Perlis To KL (RM55)

• Catch the bus from Kuala Perlis to Kuala Lumpur.

Isn't that pretty easy? And Koh Lipe looks gorgeous! Be sure to add Koh Lipe to your travel destinations this year!