BANGKOK: Krabi’s famous Maya Bay will be closed to tourists during the rainy season from Aug 1 to Sept 30 to allow natural resources and ecosystems to recover.
This annual closure, announced on Friday (July 26), is also intended to ensure tourist safety during the rainy season when sea conditions are rough, especially at the Loh Samah Bay pier, which is crucial for boat access to Maya Bay.
Yutthapong Damsrisuk, chief of the Hat Noppharat Thara-Mu Ko Phi Phi National Park, said the closure will also cover Loh Samah Bay and Lo Kor Bay on the Phi Phi Islands.
Maya Bay, a top tourist destination in Krabi made famous by the Hollywood blockbuster “The Beach”, saw more than 1.6 million visitors and generated 549.87 million baht in entrance fees between Oct 1, 2023 and July 22, 2024.
In July alone this year, the park collected 34.75 million baht from 96,236 tourists, compared to 23 million baht from 110,436 tourists during the same period last year.
Though the number of tourists has dropped, the revenue has risen due to stricter measures implemented by the park like proper fee collection and prevention of leakage of funds like before. - The Nation/ANN
