Can I Join a Phuket Boat Tour While Pregnant?

Which trips say 'not recommended'?

Four cards state it directly. Phi Phi at sunrise: not recommended during pregnancy or with back problems, the speedboat ride is bumpy. Racha Yai and Coral at sunrise: not recommended during pregnancy. Sea fishing from sunrise: not recommended during pregnancy or with back problems. The classic Similan day: not suitable during pregnancy or with back or knee problems. The other quiet hour at Maya Bay, the catamaran after four, is compared with the sunrise trip on Maya Bay at sunrise or after 4 pm. If an empty beach on Racha Yai sounds worth an early alarm, read whether the Racha and Coral sunrise tour is worth it. Who the fishing day does suit is on is the sunrise fishing trip worth it.

We follow the cards. If the operator says no, we will not talk you into it.

Why is a speedboat the problem?

Because on open sea the hull slams down on each wave, and you feel it through the seat. That is fine for most people for an hour; it is exactly what the cards warn about. Long days make it worse — the Similans and the eleven-islands run are twelve to fourteen hours. How the early and classic Similan days differ is on is the early bird Similan tour worth the extra cost.

Sheltered water is different. In Phang Nga Bay the longtail moves between islands in calm water, and a guide paddles the kayak.

Which boat days are calmer?

Phang Nga Bay is the sheltered one. On the James Bond island day you drive to a pier in Phang Nga, then move by longtail between limestone islands in water that stays calm, and a guide paddles the kayak into the caves. Lunch is on stilts over the water in Koh Panyi. There is no pre-dawn start. More on what the day involves is on is the James Bond island tour worth it. The other Phang Nga day uses a single longtail in the mangroves; Samet Nangshe or James Bond island compares the two.

Short crossings are the other kind of calm: Coral island from Rawai is about thirty minutes each way, back by 14:00. Whether either suits you is a question for your doctor; we can only tell you how the day runs.

What do the other speedboat trips say?

Some cards do not mention pregnancy at all, which does not mean the ride is gentle. The Racha and Coral speedboat card says the boat can be bumpy and advises a seasickness tablet; the eleven-islands card calls itself the longest day trip we sell, about fourteen hours door to door, and also advises something for seasickness. The Phi Phi Khai island day and the Bamboo fishing day are open-sea speedboat days too.

So read the whole card, not just the pregnancy line — and ask us in the chat before you book. For Racha Yai there is also a catamaran, and Racha and Coral islands: speedboat or catamaran compares it with the two speedboats.

What about land days?

Land days avoid the boat entirely. The Phuket sightseeing tour is about six hours by air-conditioned minibus: viewpoints over Kata and Karon, Promthep cape, the Big Buddha, Wat Chalong, the Sino-Portuguese old town and Rang Hill. Temples require covered shoulders and knees. Every stop with its time is on Phuket sightseeing in half a day. Days that travel by road rather than by speedboat are collected on land tours from Phuket.

Rafting, quad bikes and the long jungle days are active and bumpy in their own way — ask before booking those.

What should I plan for on any trip?

Heat and sun more than anything: shade, water, a hat, and a seat out of the sun on the boat. Long pickups mean long days; the sunrise trips start between 03:45 and 04:30 and the Similans run about twelve hours. Keep the day short and the start civilised.

Tell us in the chat when you book. We suggest the calmest options, and the conversation stays between us.

On any day, the ride from the pier and the minivan transfer add their own time — on most full days that is an hour or more each way on top of the programme.

Is travel insurance something to check?

Yes. Our cards list insurance as included on the tour, but your own travel policy is the one that covers you as a person. Check what it says about pregnancy and water activities before the trip, and keep the policy number on your phone.

What could work instead?

Talk to your doctor first — we are a tour desk, not a clinic. Then ask us about the gentler days: the James Bond island longtail day, or land days such as the Phuket sightseeing tour, which is about six hours of viewpoints, temples and Phuket's old town by minibus.

Tell us in the chat that you are pregnant when you write. It changes which trips we suggest, and it is kept between us. Tell the manager when you write; how booking works shows what else to put in that first message.

Questions people ask