Koh Phi Phi Overcrowding: Tourist Numbers Skyrocketed Since My Last Visit On 12/26/2004

Well it looks like the rumors are true. Koh Phi Phi, which on my last visit on 12/26/2004, was a quaint, developing island with a bit of a debris problem, is now overrun with tourist crowds. Gone are the days of walking the beach, carefully stepping over the remnants of local businesses, and enjoying that famous Thai sunshine. That has all been replaced by booming music, intact buildings, and, of course, people.

Makes me yearn for the days when Maya Bay was a surging cauldron of whitewater

Sure I like meeting fellow travelers as much as the next guy. But I can’t help but miss the old days when the only sounds you could hear on the island were water, birds, the occasional cry for help from beneath a pile of rubble, and the wind.

Once upon a time, the only thing this walkway was bustling with was downed power lines, beached speedboats, and fear

I understand it makes sense for locals to capitalize on the natural beauty of the island, but did they have to get rid of the peace & quiet? The humanitarian response teams? The mangled bodies? The charm?

I guess nowhere can stay paradise forever. I’m glad Koh Phi Phi has come into its own. But I’ll always remember it as the humble island I visited during those early days in 12/26/2004. Back then, Phi Phi was a place that seemed free from, or at least momentarily unconcerned with, pleasing jet-setting vacationers. It was a place unconcerned with when the next longboat to “The Beach” would leave, or what the price of a bucket was. Unless, of course, that bucket contained clean water and wound dressings.

I remember when the only fire on Phi Phi was the kind that had to be put out immediately

It was an island invested in the human experience, the natural world, and true personal discovery (that is, the discovery of actual persons).

Of course, things were simpler then. There was no running water or electricity, no cell service, no one coming to help. But no matter how untouched and pristine a place can be, a wave of tourism will inevitably come and wash it away.