From DiCaprio’s The Beach to Thailand’s Maya Bay is slowly recovering from the devastating effects of mass tourism

It’s rare for me to break a promise. Frustrated by the incessant noise of a diesel-belching speed boat, mist-saturated air, and a ‘floating carpet’ of tourist debris scattered across its muddy waters, I swore by Maya Bay on Phi Phi Le Island. The same super-famous, coral bay-turned-cesspool of ugly mass tourism left like an abandoned emerald along Thailand’s Andaman Coast.

In 2017, when I was last here, this small spot off the coast of Krabi province was nothing more than a noisy parking lot for speed boats. The way collectively harassed 4,000 tourists per day. Throughout the year And in search of all that, paradoxically, the “elusive” stretch of beach. The same promised by the neo-hippie, cult classic 2000 film beach which was filmed here.

It brought not only fame and glory to Maya Bay, but also the hordes of garbage-spewing, coral-stealing tourists in its wake. So much so that I’ve been told that the bay was left with only 8% of its total coral population and very polluted waters, almost spelling doom for this once idyllic life.

Crowds of tourists sunbathing in Maya Bay, 2017. , photo credit: Getty Images

But this time, I find myself back in Maya Bay, looking at it with each other’s stunned eyes.

shark return

I’m here with Nantiphat Sachao, a resident marine biologist at the Marine Discovery Center, which is part of Psi Phi Phi Island Village, an eco-friendly resort 20 minutes from Maya Bay. As we approach the bay, the feeling of things is very different on me and I soon have to face the other side of the place.

Maritime Center at Psi Phi Island Village Resort

Boats are no longer allowed to enter the heavily guarded bay. Instead, all ships have to dock on the other side of Phi Phi Le Island. Visitors are made to walk an elevated wooden walkway to reach the Bay Area, which now boasts some of the bluest waters I’ve seen in a while. With eight new species of 30,000 newly-implanted coral fragments and more than 100 resident blacktip reef sharks that have returned for the first time in three decades.

wake up call

Suthep Chakao, a native of Krabi, the park ranger at Hat Nophrat Thara-Mu Ko Phi Phi National Park, of which Maya Bay is a part, has been involved in a conservation program at Maya Bay since the 90s. He says it was reopened for tourists on New Year’s Day this year after a gap of three years. Although it began as a wake-up call effort by the Thai government in June 2018, when Maya Bay was initially closed for a planned four months, the pandemic proved that time period a blessing in disguise. Gave.

Maya Bay Wharf | photo credit: Getty Images

“We realized that four months was not enough because the newly patterned corals were being swept away by the strong storms for which the region is known,” Chacao says. “The lockdown and absence of tourism gave the island and the bay extra time to recover. I hope Maya Bay will prove to be a good example of how Thailand’s Andaman Coast is balancing tourism while protecting nature.

For this, a new set of rules have been put in place. These include allowing only 375 pre-registered people into Maya Bay per slot – with only 11 such one-hour slots available per day. And even though it’s still a little over 4,000 visitors per day, not all will crowd the beach at the same time.

Swimming in the bay is also out of bounds now. “Not only to protect juvenile coral,” Sachao tells me, “but to prevent harmful chemicals that threaten the newly restored ecosystem from sunscreen products worn by swimmers.”

championing protection

Back at the Marine Discovery Center, Sachao lets me meet his “babies” as he calls his batch of young bamboo sharks and clown fish that are part of a larger marine re-population program. He tells me that a total of 17 bamboo sharks are slated to be released soon from the center’s breeding facility. “So, future divers may be able to see these beautiful creatures in their natural habitat with other endemic species such as leopard sharks, green turtles, hawksbill turtles and even whale sharks further offshore.”

Locally built thatched roof and walled guest bungalows at Psi Phi Phi Island Village resort near Maya Bay. , Photo Credit: Psi Phi Phi Island Village

During my two days here, I have also learned that the resort is a champion of conservation in its own right, with locally built thatched roofs and walled guest bungalows. It produces its RO drinking water and recycles 100% of its wastewater in addition to glass bottles, which is treated and used to nourish gardens and trees.

As part of the Thai Hotels Association’s Plastic Free Project, it pledged to eliminate single-use plastics, carefully segregate recyclable waste, reduce the use of paper and printer ink, and turn organic waste into compost Is.

For example, other properties in the area, such as the Zivola Resort on Phi Phi Don Island, also have their own drinking water bottling plant, and #refillmybottle stations are scattered throughout the complex – this puts the number of single-use plastic bottles at 120,000 per is reduced. year, says the resort.

Hopefully small steps will go a long way in hitting that ‘reset’ button for Thailand’s stunning Andaman coast.

The Mumbai-based writer and restaurant critic has a passion for food, travel and luxury, not necessarily in that order.