Given how disappointing my Four Islands tour was, I really had no choice but to figure out a real snorkeling trip. Thus did I set out, but a week later, for Yawasam and Talu Islands. The common wisdom here is that the prime snorkeling is at Phi Phi Island, but there were so many Phi Phi tours I was worried it would be as crowded as the Four Islands tour. Who knew you could have a beaten path on the water?

Verdict: 100% improvement over Four Islands. No crowds and the focus was squarely on snorkeling, a full hour at each of the islands, followed by lunch in a secluded cove with a delightful beach. Was it the most spectacular snorkeling we’ve ever done? Not even close. That would be Ambergris Cay in Belize back in the day, and Jemeluk Bay in Bali, where you could walk into the water from the beach and swim five minutes to a colorful coral reef full of amazing fish. Just for accessibility, Jemeluk takes the prize.

There was both coral and fish in abundance, but not the kind of eye-popping colors you get at the prime swimming-in-an-aquarium spots. There was something I hadn’t seen before, though: huge schools of small and medium fish you could swim with and through. Add in enough warm water, and you have the ingredients for an outstanding day.

I’m sure you’ll be grateful to know that there aren’t very many things to say about snorkeling, so I’ll flip my typical words:pictures ratio, and give you mostly pictures.

You’re welcome.

Taking Off

I booked a teak long tail boat, like I did for the Four Islands tour, rather than a speedboat. It’s entertaining to watch them maneuver with the super powerful engines and the propeller at the end of a two meter long tail.

The Andaman Sea’s topography seems a little similar to Vietnam’s Lan Ha and Hạ Long Bays in the Gulf of Tonkin, rocky outcroppings of limestone karst. It’s a pretty, atavistic landscape. You would be unsurprised to see pterodactyls circling their peaks. OK, you have more sense than I do. I would be unsurprised.

Our guide mentioned that we were coming up on Chicken Island, which concerned me, as that had been the sole snorkeling spot on the Four Islands tour, and it had been bleak. Thankfully, it was a drive-by photo op.

Yawasam Island

Here we are pulling into Yawasam. Hard to believe it has a formal name. Yawasam is probably Thai for Rock In Water.

The setting was stunning.

Truthfully, all the action underwater was the schools. Individually, meh, fish. The kind you’d see in a tin, and even then, the “Oooh” is for the sauce. But collectively, wow!

Talu Island

And here’s the second pile of rocks masquerading as an island.

Schools of fish. It was the whole story.

Talu was where I figured out I could swim with them, and not just hold still and watch.

Buya Beach

Buya Beach is a cove on Koh Poda. It featured white sand, warm, turquoise waters, and only two other boats when we pulled in. Plenty of space, even in this small cove, for lunch and swimming, without feeling like you’re in a scrum. There was an extra lunch, so our guide threw in balls of rice, and the little yellow-with-black-stripes guys churned the water like piranha.

And back to the dock to be picked up and delivered to my hotel. It’s good to be king.