Whale sharks are the biggest fish in the world, growing up to a staggering 15 metres in length. yet they are completely harmless to humans and one of the most amazing underwater sights for scuba divers in Thailand
Whale Shark at Hin Daeng, Thailand, 13 April 2021 © chris@divehappy.com
Whales sharks are by no means only found in Thailand – there’s Cenderawasih Bay, Saleh Bay and Triton Bay in Indonesia, the Maldives’ tiny Hanifaru Bay, Sogod Bay in the Philippines and West Australia’s Ningaloo Reef are other big whale shark havens – but for many divers, Thailand is where they see their first whale shark.
It’s hard to express the sense of awe seeing one of these creatures for the first time – it’s like watching a spaceship come out of the blue, serenely gliding towards you with a squadron of cleaner fish flanking it on all sides. It’s only as it gets nearer, unphased by your presence, that you start to realise the speed it’s moving at and the sheer power within its immense body. Most whale sharks are around 4 to 6 metres – at minimum, twice the size of a human. They’ve been known to grow up to a staggering 18 metres long. It’s one of those moments when you realise that you are very much a privileged guest in another realm when you’re scuba diving.
In Thailand, there are four key dive sites for seeing whale sharks
- Chumphon Pinnacle, accessible from Koh Tao
- Hin Daeng, accessible from Koh Lanta and by liveaboard from Phuket
- Koh Haa, accessible from Koh Lanta and by liveaboard from Phuket
- Richelieu Rock, which is north of the Similan Islands and accessible as part of a Similan Islands liveaboard or by one day speedboat trip,
It should be stressed that while these are whale shark hotspots, it’s still rare to see them – they are spotted perhaps 10 times maximum in a six month season. So if you go diving expecting to see a whale shark, you’re probably going to be very disappointed. If you go diving with the idea that if you get very, very lucky one might turn up when you least expect it… it probably will.
Hin Daeng and Koh Haa are open to visitors all year round except for the months of August and September when the sites are closed.
Richelieu Rock is part of the Surin Islands National Park and this is only open for half the year – from mid October to mid May.
The Gulf Of Thailand on the east coast of Thailand is diveable pretty much all year round – they get some pretty crappy weather from September to November but it’s very variable.
This map of Thailand and neighbouring Myanmar’s dive sites show the location of each of Thailand’s whale shark hot spots and the nearest airports too.
How To Get To Whale Shark Hot Spots In Thailand
To get to Hin Daeng and Koh Haa:
Make your way to the island of Koh Lanta. From there you can get daytrips that go out to Hin Daeng. Koh Lanta is a little more effort to reach – you need to fly to Krabi Airport and then get a minivan transfer to your hotel on Koh Lanta which takes a couple of hours. You can also get a ferry over from Phuket if you’re already planning on visiting Phuket first. Koh Lanta is a very laidback island with a lot of dive shops – it’s one of the main reasons people go there.
You can go on liveaboards from Phuket to Hin Daeng. These boats typically do trips to Hin Daeng as part of a Best Of Thailand Diving trip which will spend a couple of days at Hin Daeng and Koh Haa and then sail to the Similan Islands. They also offer short liveaboards just to Hin Daeng and Koh Haa, typically at the beginning and end of the Similan season in October and May. Check the dates for availability.
Besides the occasional whale shark, manta rays also visit Hin Daeng – more frequently than whale sharks, but still not often enough for there to be any guarantee you’ll see them. Historically they like to appear at very beginning and end of the season, in October and May, with sightings each month in between. Sometimes it’s just a fly-by, and sometimes they come in and circle the rock continously.
The journey to Hin Daeng is quite long on the traditional dive boats – around three and half hours each way. Some boats will do a three dive day, with a dive at Hin Daeng, a second and neighbouring Hin Muang, and then on the way back a dive at Koh Haa, the group of five islands with its own lagoon.
Koh Haa has several dive sites as it’s so large, and it’s easy to go on a daytrip that just explores Koh Haa rather than having to go all the way out to Hin Daeng.
As of 2023, there are now several dive shops offering speedboat and catamaran trips to both Hin Daeng and Koh Haa, cutting the travel time down to about 90 minutes and 45 minutes respectively. Be aware that speedboats can make for a bumpy ride if you’re prone to seasickness or have a bad back.
To get to Richelieu Rock:
The main way to see Richelieu Rock is on a Similans liveaboard boat. There are plenty of choices for all budgets – see our pages on Budget Similan Liveaboards and Mid-Range Similan Liveaboards a for info on prices and schedules of specific boats. A liveaboard typically lasts four days and is ideal for doing a lot of diving without costing a fortune. You’ll need to get a liveaboard to the Similans either from Phuket, or from Khao Lak, which is about an hour up the coast from Phuket and geographically the nearest place on the mainland to the Similan Islands.
Richelieu is the most northern dive site on the Similan liveaboard itineraries, and it is an amazing dive site, whether or not you see whale sharks. It’s a horseshoe shaped rock in the middle of the ocean that acts a shelter and hunting ground for hundreds of different species of marine life. Read my trip report of a Similan Islands liveaboard to Richelieu Rock for a sense of what it’s like at Richelieu. You can also check Diving The Similan Islands: A Quick Guide for a run-down of what a typical Similan liveaboard itinerary looks like and the other dive sites you’ll see besides Richelieu.
As well as liveaboards, it’s also possible to get speedboat daytrips from Khao Lak to Richelieu Rock. It takes around 90 minutes to get to Richelieu, do two dives with a 1 hour surface interval, so three hours in total at the dive site, and then back to Khao Lak.
To get to Chumphon Pinnacle:
Chumphon Pinnacle can be reached from Koh Tao in about half an hour or from Koh Samui in a couple of hours – a lot less if you’re on a speedboat. If you’re serious about diving, don’t bother staying on Samui – go straight to Koh Tao, because it’s much nearer the better dive sites. Koh Tao is also a lot more relaxed and less crowded than Samui, mainly thanks to its remoteness. It takes four hours to get to the island from the mainland at Surat Thani by ferry.
Widely regarded as the best dive site in the Gulf of Thailand, Chumphon Pinnacle also sees whale sharks appear three or four times a year. Like the other sites mentioned here, it is a great dive site in its own right, particularly if you can see the huge school of scads that hangs around the southern tip.
