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A look at the day
Three snorkel stops around Racha Noi & Racha Yai aboard a large motor yacht — breakfast and lunch buffet included.
Begin your day with hotel pickup, followed by a hot buffet breakfast served on board the motor yacht. Once aboard, your professional guide will brief you on snorkeling techniques, equipment, and safety before the adventure begins.
Racha Noi offers some of Phuket's clearest water and healthiest coral, since very few tour operators travel this far offshore — that distance keeps the sites largely free of crowds. All activities take place directly from the yacht; there's no land excursion. This is a dedicated marine experience for those who are here for the water, not the beach.
If you want the water quality without committing to scuba certification or gear, this sits between our Khai Islands trip (shallower, closer, more casual) and our Racha Diving trip (same islands, but underwater the whole time) — three proper snorkel stops from a large, stable yacht, with real meals rather than snacks in between.
After hotel pickup, all guests gather at Chalong Pier at 8:45 AM for a 9:00 AM departure. Breakfast buffet is served onboard during the roughly 1.5-hour cruise out to Racha Noi.
One of Phuket's most celebrated snorkeling sites, known for resident sea turtles, manta rays, and dramatic coral formations. Your guide enters the water with you at all times. About an hour in the water here.
A short cruise from Manta Bay. A sheltered bay with a completely different underwater landscape — dense schools of colorful tropical fish and resident moray eels gather around living coral. It's the only site in Phuket where whale sharks are occasionally spotted (a rare sighting, not something to expect on any given trip), and an ideal stop for families and photography enthusiasts. Around 80 minutes here, with the lunch buffet served onboard as you head to the next stop.
Multiple artificial reefs here have been carefully cultivated to help rehabilitate natural corals and marine life. Leopard sharks, rays, and thriving coral gardens sit in crystal-clear, shallow water — the perfect finale to the day, with about an hour to snorkel before the return cruise.
Around an hour's cruise back to Chalong Pier, then transfer to your hotel. Drop-off points include Patong and along the way back through the pickup zones. All times are approximate and can shift with sea conditions.
All participants must be capable of swimming with a life vest. This trip isn't suitable for:
Life vests and snorkeling masks are provided for all guests. Children aged 6 to 11 are welcome with basic swimming ability, making this a good fit for families — though it isn't suitable for infants or toddlers. You'll follow a dedicated snorkeling guide at all three sites who points out marine life and keeps the group safe; if you'd like one-on-one attention in the water, book a personal instructor in advance.
Racha Noi and Racha Yai are Phuket's furthest-out day-trip islands — around 12 nautical miles to Racha Yai and closer to 20 to Racha Noi, a distance that keeps both well outside the tour-boat traffic that clouds the water at closer spots like Phi Phi. That's also why this trip runs on a full-size motor yacht rather than a speedboat: the crossing is long enough that a stable, comfortable boat with real meals onboard makes a genuine difference to the day.
The payoff for the distance is what's living just below the surface. Racha Yai's shallow bays sit over healthy coral gardens in calm, protected water — ideal for snorkeling rather than diving, since most of what you'll see (leopard sharks, rays, reef fish) sits within a few meters of the surface. Racha Noi's Manta Bay and Banana Bay are two of Phuket's best-known snorkel sites for exactly that reason: resident sea turtles and a realistic, if never guaranteed, chance of manta rays. Unlike Phi Phi, neither island charges a national park entrance fee, and unlike our Racha Diving trip, nothing here requires certification or gear beyond a mask and a life vest — you're snorkeling the same water our divers pay more to explore from below.
The dry season (roughly November to April) gives the clearest visibility for spotting reef life at all three stops, and calmer seas for the longer crossing out to Racha Noi. The tour still runs in the wet season (May to October); conditions vary day to day rather than being uniformly worse for the whole period. See our month-by-month Racha weather guide. Also read: Racha Yai vs Racha Noi, Racha vs Coral Island and what’s included and how the day works.
We're a locally-run Phuket operator, not a reseller — the yacht, guides and three stops are the same whether you book here or through one of our OTA listings. VGA has been running tours out of Phuket for more than 10 years, with over 1,000 tours a month across our full program lineup. Booking directly means your questions about swimming ability, children's ages, or a personal instructor go straight to our team on WhatsApp or Line before you commit.
All participants must be capable of swimming with a life vest on. Non-swimmers aren't able to join this particular tour — our Khai Islands trip, with its shallow wading depth at all three islands, is the better option if swimming ability is a concern.
Children age 6 and up are welcome with basic swimming ability. It isn't suitable for infants or toddlers.
Manta rays are a realistic sighting at Manta Bay, our first stop, though never guaranteed on any given day — it's wildlife, not a show. Whale sharks are occasionally spotted at Banana Bay but that's a rare event, not something to expect.
There's a 1,500 THB replacement fee if a mask is lost or damaged during the trip.
Yes, but it needs to be arranged in advance — it isn't included in the standard tour price. Mention it when you inquire.
Free cancellation up to 24 hours before the activity.
“I had an incredible day snorkeling, lucky enough to spot both a manta ray and a sea turtle! The food was great, and Ekk and the crew were fantastic.”
Byul · South Korea
“The activity was well organised. We went to 3 different sites to snorkel and saw some interesting fish and the coral was good to see too! Helpful friendly guide called Jasmine who took some lovely pics for us.”
Anonymous · United Kingdom
“Kind and Ekk were great. The tour was amazing, 100% recommended.”
GetYourGuide traveler · Spain