Ao Po Pier lies 22 kilometers northeast of Phuket Town, a functional concrete wharf where longtail boats share mooring space with jet ski operators targeting the scatter of uninhabited islands across Phang Nga Bay.
The bay holds 42 named islets, most limestone karsts rising vertically from shallow reef platforms, their cave systems and mangrove fringes protected under Thailand's 1981 National Parks Act. Commercial jet ski routes typically visit six to nine islands depending on tide schedules and weather windows, threading through navigation channels marked by bamboo poles.
The Phuket jet ski tour to 7 islands format emerged in the mid-2010s as operators shifted from beach circuits to open-water itineraries, capitalizing on the Yamaha VX Cruiser's 110-horsepower engine and 280-liter fuel capacity. Tour vessels now carry up to 12 riders in paired formations, guided by lead boats equipped with VHF radios and first-aid kits certified under the Phuket Marine Office's 2019 safety protocols. Routes anchor at Koh Rang Yai's northern beach, Koh Naka Noi's sandbar, and the mangrove inlets of Koh Maithon, each stop timed for 20-minute snorkeling intervals in reef zones marked by buoy lines.
The jet ski safari model integrates conservation fees directly into tour pricing, eliminating the separate park entrance system that characterized earlier boat-based island visits. Operators coordinate departure times with tidal charts to avoid the bay's notorious sandbars, which shift by up to 40 meters between monsoon seasons. Morning departures at 09:00 align with slack tide, when visibility reaches 15 meters and sea conditions favor inexperienced riders. The standard six-hour itinerary includes a midpoint stop at Koh Rang Yai's stilted restaurant, where Thai lunch service runs from 11:30 to 13:00.
Phuket's jet ski tour infrastructure now handles approximately 180 riders daily during high season, distributed across five licensed operators working from Ao Po Pier. Each tour provides life jackets rated to ISO 12402-5 standards, waterproof storage pods, and mandatory safety briefings conducted in Thai and English. The marine park's seasonal closure from May 15 to October 31 suspends all motorized tours, redirecting operators to Phuket's eastern bays where calmer conditions persist through the southwest monsoon.
4 hr
