Lo Mo Dee is the closest wild beach to Phi Phi Town. Well, rather, I say wild – it’s simply that this beach isn’t very popular with tourists. At least, few people walk here on foot, except perhaps those living on Long Beach – it’s a 15-minute walk for them, no more. Residents of other parts of Phi Phi Don have to sail here by boat and spend money on it.
The beach overall is very charming and cosy because it represents a secluded corner of an “uninhabited” island in a beautiful bay. Generally, this entire area along the beach is very small and surrounded on all sides by mountains, whilst the entire coastal strip adjacent to the beach is planted with palm trees.
Beach Overview
A beautiful spot not far from Phi Phi Town, an excellent beach for lounging about. 1,310 feet (400 metres) of sand is bounded by rocks on the right and left, whilst on the large flat area behind Lo Mo Dee there’s a man-made palm grove with very tall palm trees. It looks stunning, especially when you arrive here in the morning before the landing of package tourists on excursions.
The sand on the beach is very fine, with coral fragments, almost white, fluffy (when dry) and for some reason doesn’t cloud the water in the surf zone at all. The main emotion at Lo Mo Dee is a deep, satisfied exhale. I think you know that feeling when a person is immersed in beauty: words aren’t needed, and delight is conveyed only by the quantity and frequency of sighs.
Lo Mo Dee is paradise. The main thing is to come here during high season and not during low tide hours.
Swimming
The beach is quite shallow – even at high tide you need to go out about 164 feet (50 metres) for it to be neck-deep. Nevertheless, you can swim at Lo Mo Dee. The seabed is clean for 328 feet (a hundred metres) underwater, until the flat surface drops sharply into the depths – that’s where the half-dead coral reef begins.
Overall, this is a classic Phi Phi beach that looks mind-blowing at high tide but turns into a lunar landscape at low tide. On one hand, it’s brilliant for children who happily splash about in the warm water. On the other hand, those who like to float upside down in the water will need to walk far from shore. Waves at Lo Mo Dee only occur in bad weather.
Sunbeds and Shade
Five to seven years ago, this beach only had palm trees, bushes and a bar knocked together from planks where an eternally sleeping Thai lay. The bar is still in the same place, as is the Thai. Besides drinks, the bar offers deck chair rental for 100 baht. The rental operation is quite substantial – half the beach is filled with deck chairs. But there aren’t many people overall. Not counting the influx of organised groups, during my visit there were, I think, about 20 people in total.
There’s plenty of shade – different kinds, mainly natural, from the palm grove and other deciduous trees whose names I constantly forget. If you know Thai trees by name and appearance, send your comments – it’ll be useful for all readers.
Beach Photos
Amenities
As I’ve already written above, Lo Mo Dee beach has its own bar, and they don’t offer anything except drinks: water, fizzy drinks and beer. Prices are naturally marked up for delivery to the beach and for the Thai’s heavy sleep next to the foam cooler.
Also during my visit, a large group of Chinese tourists arrived by speedboat and noisily began settling in, eating and swimming. I assume they made a lunch stop here during their tour. Generally, the beach infrastructure is, how shall I put it… beachy. Bar, deck chairs, taxi boats that wait here – that’s everything.
Behind the beach in the hills there’s a large reservoir, and deep in the palm grove there are industrial buildings of a coconut plantation.
Accommodation
Throughout Lo Mo Dee there are only a few empty bungalows and commercial buildings. Apparently, all this land belongs to one owner. If you walk here overland, at the entrance to the grove you’ll see a barrier and a sign announcing that this is private territory, though the barrier is open and I had no access problems. The beach is purely for lounging, not for living.
The link below will take you to a general list of hotels on Phi Phi Don, but click on the map icon and there you can decide on accommodation options near Lo Mo Dee.
How to Find the Beach
General advice for all Phi Phi Don beaches – by boat. However, they charge a whopping 600 baht for a trip from Tonsai. If you feel you have the strength and mood for a walk, head along Tonsai’s only waterfront path towards the Viking Hotel, then pass Long Beach and after that you’ll reach Lo Mo Dee.
There’s also a second trekking route – through the mountains, along the same road that leads to Phi Phi Don Viewpoints, only there you don’t need to turn onto the dirt track into the jungle but should persistently follow the concrete road to the end. If you’re lucky, the Thais might give you a lift in their pickup truck – it serves as their lift on that road.
