Once you’ve decided to book a Private Boat Charter with 5 Star Marine your mind naturally wonders what should you bring to the boat to ensure you have a wonderful day?
Private Charter FAQs
Our boats are all 2 engine speedboats. You can view a video walkthrough in the video below. Before you do, here are a few quick FAQs about our boat:
Do we have a toilet on the boat?
- Yes, our boats are all equipped with onboard marine toilets.
Do we have a Bluetooth Speaker on the boat?
- Yes, our boats are all equipped with onboard Bluetooth sound systems.
Do we have an icebox/cooler or esky onboard?
- Yes, we do fill it with water, soft drinks, and ice. You can add to it as you like.
You can watch a walkthrough of our boats and their facilities here:
- Please take a photo of your data page of your passport and save it on your phone, please bring this with you on the day, it is required for your tour insurance.
- Towels (we provide cool face towels, to cool off with, but these are not Beach Towels or used for Drying Off. All hotels on the island provide Beach Towels Or Tour Towels, please request from your hotel.)
- Sunscreen
- Cash – National Park Fees need to be paid in cash. Also some restaurants and outlets on the island require cash. Please bring in Thai Baht. There is no currency exchange available on our pier and the rate on the island is very low.
- Drinks (we provide soft drinks and water, but you are welcome to bring your own alcohol onboard at no additional charge)
- Snacks (fresh fruits will be served)
Lunch – If you wish to stop for lunch then our experienced team can help you decide where would suit your requirements and desired itinerary. Our guides know a number of great restaurants on each tour program and can recommend for you. Alternatively we can organize a beach picnic for your tour; we have a selection of western and Thai sharing dishes to select from. See our menu here.
National Park Fees – Most of our tours do not include National Park Fees. You will need to bring Thai Baht to pay this fee to the Park Rangers on the day. They do not accept card or international currency.
The national park fee is not included in your quoted price. Payment for the national park fee can be made at our office before departure.
Here is a good blog post that outlines the different national parks and there associated costs: National Park Fees – How Much Are They?
You can watch the video here:
The tour timing is flexible. Your guide onboard will help to adjust the timing to suit you on the day. The maximum time onboard is 8 hours. As a guide most of our guests are onboard between 5hrs and 8hrs.
The return time to the pier is flexible, your guide onboard will help to set this with you on the day. As a guide, most of our tours return to the pier between 3pm and Sunset.
We recommend coming to the pier minimum 30 minutes before departure. This will give you time to discuss your day luxury tour requirements with your guide to ensure you get the most out of your day.
Yes, we include private minibus transfers from your hotel / villa / residence to the pier for your private speedboat (unless specifically requested otherwise).
As your boat hire with us is private, timing on your tour is flexible. If you are an early riser and wish to get out early, we can accommodate that. If you prefer a leisurely breakfast and to get out later we can do that as well.
Our Guide Team recommend to avoid the crowds a pick up from your hotel at either 06:30 AM or 09:30 AM. This allows us to design your tour program to miss the group tours.
Please note that some of our tours will have specific timing recommended.
For example our Bioluminescence and Phi Phi and James Bond combined tour have different recommended times.
This will be detailed in your confirmation email.
Our pier is in Boat Lagoon, you can find our location on Google Maps here.
73, 20, Tambon Ko Kaeo, Amphoe Mueang Phuket, Chang Wat Phuket 83000, Thailand
If you are transferring to the pier on your own, please show this to your driver:
73,20, ตําบลเกาะแก้ว, อําเภอเมืองภูเก็ต, วัดภูเก็ต 83000, ประเทศไทย
You will get only a ‘suggested’ itinerary, and this is why; when you arrive at the pier we will talk through the day plan, and make suggestions (because there are variables outside of our control like the sea, wind condition, and tide, etc.) Our concept is a joint idea between you and your guide on the day, for the best experience.
For example, if the tide is high on your Phi Phi private luxury tour date, we suggest you go to Phi Phi Ley first (explore Maya Bay, Pileh Lagoon, go snorkeling near Viking cave), and then in the afternoon head over to Phi Phi Don. However, for a low-tide morning and high-tide afternoon; the itinerary would need to reverse to see Maya Bay at its most beautiful.
This is why the itinerary is suggested, not set in stone. We allow you to add in more snorkeling stops if you please, and take your time; there are no set schedules of rushing for the next stop as you might experience on group tours.
The answer is simple, it is however long you want it to be. As it is a private boat, essentially the boat is yours, and your captain, guide, and crew on the day are there to give you the ultimate day out so they will take into account your requirements and help guide you.
The cost of lunch will vary depending on what you order. You can expect the cost to be similar to a Phuket Restaurant. A good guide is to budget between 100 THB And 700 THB per dish.
We hope to have great weather for your tour. As a private speedboat operator we spend a lot of time studying weather patterns. In the event we predict poor weather for your tour, we would inform you on the morning of your tour. You can then choose to cancel or re-schedule your tour (if available).
Your booking confirmation will include an option to pay a 30% deposit. The deposit is not compulsory. If you prefer you can make payment in full on the day of the tour. Please see our Payment Methods here.
We accept various payment methods for your convenience, including Mastercard, AMEX, Visa, Paypal, bank transfer, or cash. PLEASE NOTE:
- If you choose to pay via Mastercard or Visa please note we charge a processing fee of 5%.
- If you choose to pay via Paypal please note we charge a processing fee of 5%.
- If you choose to pay via American Express Card there is a 5% processing fee.
- If you choose to pay via International Bank Transfer please transfer 7 days before your tour to ensure the funds are received in time.
- If you plan to pay by foreign currency please note that our in-office rate will not be as good as a licensed money exchange. It is best to convert your currency into Thai Baht before paying us.
At 5 Star Marine, we ensure that our customers remain our top priority. Therefore, we offer a flexible cancellation policy; so, if you need to cancel your tour, we will honour all cancellations made 24 hours prior to departure with honest, 100% refunds.
While tipping is not compulsary our team would love a tip if you believe the service was worthy of a tip. When asked what we recommended we would suggest 1,000 THB as a good tip.
The Australian Consulate-General in Phuket (also covering Krabi, Phang Nga and Surat Thani) may be able to assist you if you face issues while travelling.
Visit their website for information about the types of services available to you. The latest travel advice for Thailand can be found on the Smartraveller website.
‘Captain’s Choice’ – A Maximum Flexibility Private Tour
Captain’s Choice is 5 Star Marine’s unique luxury boat tour experience, offering you the perfect combination of maximum convenience plus flexibility. It brings together a new collection of inspired day sea tours tailored to your personal expectations; with an element of surprise thrown in to ensure your day is exactly what you would have wished for.
So, all you have to do is book your VIP boat experience then, simply turn up on the day for your adventure. That’s literally all you need to do! No worrying about where to stop for lunch, what to do first, which order to sightsee or snorkel, where is best for the sea conditions that day – you can leave the hard decisions to our expert Captains and concentrate on enjoying your trip to the deserted paradise islands around Phuket.
Our experienced team of Tour Managers and Captains will ensure you have the perfect day out on the water, and fulfill your expectations to leave you with special lasting memories of your VIP tour with us. We are also TAT SHA Plus approved, so you know that you and your booking are in safe hands.
For the ultimate travel experience, you can trust 5 Star Marine’s ‘Captain’s Choice’ to bring you itineraries that are only available to small and private booking groups and not offered with any other boat tour company.
We have already taken a number of international bookings, so don’t delay and book your ‘Captain’s Choice’ luxury day out now, to enjoy the bespoke selection of untouched paradise locations on offer.
Contact 5 Star Marine on Facebook to book.
What a Year!
We know that uncertainty remains at unprecedented levels globally, but we wanted to take a moment to look back on all the positive experiences from the last year, to realize how far we have come – and wow what a year it has been for us.
We took time to regroup and focus on reprioritizing our efforts in the last 12 months, and this meant rolling up our sleeves and getting busy. We re-evaluated in order to understand where new opportunities could open up for us and where they made sense. We continued supporting the vulnerable communities and the people around us via our charity efforts. We focused on the upside wherever we could see or create one. We wanted to look at where we could add value to our community and what we should be doing during this time.
All in all, we are feeling positive about the future and wanted to share our top positive moments from the last year with you:
1. Adding To Our Fleet
Let’s start with our speedboat fleet, which has doubled in size; we now have a total of 12 Private VIP Speedboats which offer day and multi-night tours out of Phuket and Krabi. We introduced our first VIP Luxury Cruiser, which is a proud extension to our current speedboat fleet and offers a truly unique experience on the water.
2. New Premises
To accommodate our growing fleet size, the domestic market support, and prepare for the return of international tourists, we moved piers and into a new office at Boat Lagoon, Phuket. Our new glass-fronted office is a more welcoming environment for all our loyal VIP customers and future private tours.
3. Once In A Lifetime Experiences
We are humbled and know how lucky our crew, staff, and guests have been in the last year. We had the opportunity to experience Phuket and the Islands like NEVER before. Deserted beaches, empty turquoise lagoons and even being some of the first people to climb the new 3600 Krabi Viewpoint. We made unforgettable memories and feel blessed to have these with us forever.
4. New Tour Options
We introduced overnight and multi-day tours to our Phuket and Krabi markets. This included supplying private guests with island hotel return transfers, and adding new day trip locations such as Koh Ngai, Koh Mook, and Koh Kradan. We also had some exciting and memorable multi-night tours to paradise locations such as Koh Lipe, where our guests experienced manta rays and turtles amongst other stunning marine life.
5. Our Charity Efforts Kept Going
We financed, packed, and delivered over 190,000 Life Bags to support the local, vulnerable communities; not only in Phuket but in the hard-to-reach surrounding islands where help was so greatly needed. Our teams of staff and volunteers have worked tirelessly ordering, packing, managing logistics, and delivering these food-based Life Bags for over 15 months now. Often exhausted from the sheer scale of efforts, our teams have stood strong and kept these efforts going each and every week – We want to say a big THANK YOU to everyone who has been involved in this critical effort.
Here’s to more positive times ahead in 2021 and beyond.
46800 Meals Distributed In The Last 14 Days
As Covid continues to restrict the local Phuket economy our team here at 5 Star Marine, lead by Shaun Stenning continues to dig deep and help the community. The third wave of Covid created more devastation than any other wave has.
This means that our team has had to step up and deliver more life bags and meals than ever before. Take a quick look at the last 14 days in review:
Paradise in Phi Phi
Phi Phi is infamous in the Phuket region, with one of its iconic islands featuring in the 2000 movie, “The Beach” with Leonardo DiCaprio.
A Phi Phi private tour with 5 Star Marine offers crystal clear tropical waters with stunning coral reefs to produce fantastic snorkeling, abound with marine life. Plus, the spectacular and well-known Maya Bay is a must-stop spot for some snaps. Move onto a quiet picnic spot on the white sand of Monkey Beach, and experience the stunning Pileh Lagoon for a truly memorable day out. Pileh Lagoon is the perfect spot to cool down and take a dip in the turquoise waters whilst admiring the cove-like canyon which literally cuts into Phi Phi Leh.
Star Marine ensures that you discover the area in the best possible conditions, with the least number of tourists, and also get to discover hidden coves and caves that you will not experience on group tours.
Your day in the paradise that we refer to as Phi Phi could look something like this:
- Photos at Maya Bay
- Swimming at Pileh Lagoon
- Stopping at Monkey Beach
- Picnic lunch at Loh Lana Bay Beach
- Snorkelling at Nui Beach
New Offices, Same 5 Star Service
We are excited to announce that we have been keeping ourselves busy in the last few days by taking a giant (out of water) leap and moving into our brand-new office space. This has been a natural progression for us, as we continue to expand our business to meet new domestic and international market demands.
Unfortunately, due to the Covid-19 situation, we are not able to do our grand opening just yet and invite you all to see our new space; however, with our tours now resuming, and international bookings coming in, plus our valued customers coming into our offices it is important you all know where we are now located.
Don’t worry, we are still based in Boat Lagoon, Phuket; and to make things easy we have remained on the same side of the pier, just a little further down (about 150 meters) in our new two-story glass office.
We are just settling into our new space, and as we all know things take a little time to get just right, but we hope to welcome you for the grand opening as soon as we are able to.
Please follow the Google Maps link below to meet us for your tour, or feel free to drop by if you fancy saying hello and seeing the team!
A Snapshot Of Our Life Bag Program In May 2021
If you didn’t know, for the last 14 months our business has been helping our local community survive through one of the most economically trying times ever seen.
As a tourist island, Phuket was devastated by Covid leaving so many without work, businesses closed and the local community needed help.
Seeing this need we stepped up and financed the purchasing, packing, and delivery of life bags all over Phuket.
Here’s a quick look at what we did in May:
No Quarantine in Phuket For Vaccinated Tourists
ANNOUNCEMENT – Thailand Pass Rules Update Frequently, The Information In The Below Post Is Now Out Of Date For Latest News Please Visit: https://5starmarinephuket.com/phuket-sandbox-rules-and-updates/
International Travellers – What You Need to Know
Phuket will be the first destination in Thailand to reopen to overseas tourists, from July 2021. This comes after over 15 months of the island being closed off to tourists; and now the local businesses, restaurants, hotels, and shops are looking forward to welcoming travelers back. Thailand has a full Covid-19 plan to reopen the whole country, and this starts in July where fully vaccinated tourists can fly to Phuket without the requirement to quarantine.
Under the ‘Phuket Sandbox’ program, Phuket will be the first destination to lift quarantine requirements for vaccinated foreign tourists, starting from 1 July 2021. Tourists will be required to spend the first seven days on the island, before being allowed to travel to other Thai destinations. (source TATNEWS.org)
Phase 1: Phuket
From the 1st July 2021, fully vaccinated travelers can visit Phuket without the need to quarantine on arrival.
The main requirements for overseas tourists are set out below*
- Proof of Covid-19 vaccination is required (full vaccination)
- Obtain a Certificate of Entry (CoE) before departure
- Travel insurance with Covid-19 cover
- Download the Thailand Plus tracking application before departure and upload the required information
- Must fly directly to Phuket International Airport*
- Present a negative PCR test result (issued a maximum of 72 hours before departure)
- Covid-19 test on arrival
- Stay in Phuket for a minimum of 7 days
*Please enquire at the Royal Thai Embassy or Consulate in your own country for up-to-date travel requirements and to ensure you are eligible for quarantine-free arrival into Phuket.
5 Star Marine Private Boat Tours
From July 1st, we are looking forward to welcoming back our international market VIP guests with a range of private boat trips. We are excited to give our staff the opportunity to work with international guests again and we also want to give you the chance to explore some exciting destinations whilst the islands are still blissfully quiet and beautiful.
From 1st July 2021 we are able to offer private tours to the following destinations:
- Raya Islands
- Khai Islands
- Mai Ton Island
- Coral Island
- Phi Phi Island
- Phang Nga Bay (James Bond Island)
Please contact us to book your bespoke VIP boat tour experience.
Limited VIP Trips Re-Starting on 1st June 2021
During the last few weeks, our private boat tours have been put on hold to help keep Phuket safe. During this time, we have been able to concentrate on our charity efforts as well as finding safe and responsible ways to get our VIP guests back out on the water. Our piers, boats, and office have all been thoroughly cleaned by Government provincial teams, plus staff members have been PCR Covid-19 tested – and we are happy to report that all of our fantastic team are officially Covid-19 free.
Therefore, from 1st June 2021, we are looking forward to welcoming back our existing VIP guests as we will be re-opening with a range of limited private trips. Please note that all guests will be required to complete a short Declaration Form prior to being accepted on board, and also must comply with all Provincial announcements. These precautions and regulations will enable us to re-open our operations on a smaller scale to keep staff and guests safe.
Re-opening at this point is important to give our staff the opportunity to work again and keep motivated during these difficult times. We also want to give you the chance to explore some exciting destinations whilst the seas are still calm, and the islands are blissfully quiet and beautiful.
From 1st June 2021 we are able to offer private small group tours to the following destinations:
- Raya Islands
- Khai Islands
- Mai Ton Island
- Coral Island
If you would like to book a trip to the aforementioned areas, please get in contact to book and fill in our Declaration Form.
Community Efforts and Preparing for the Road Ahead
Here at 5 Star Marine, we passed a huge milestone this April (2021) – of over 14 months of continuous efforts supporting vulnerable communities in need situated in and around the Phuket and Phang Nga areas.
Over 60-weeks of donations have produced an incredible amount of these Life Bags; more than 160,000 have been paid for, packed, and delivered to date. Each one containing staple items such as eggs, oil, noodles, sauces, and rice, among other essentials.
So, what do these numbers actually mean? Well, each Life Bag can feed a family of 4 for 5 days, which means that over the last 14 months we have already helped over 640,000 people, (and counting), get access to basic food supplies. Our teams put themselves out there in the local communities, going out at least twice per week to make these deliveries, so this number is rising every day.
Through this initiative, we are happy to report that we have already made a huge difference and been able to target some of the remote, hardest to reach, and most at-risk areas and islands utilizing our fleet of 5 Star Marine speedboats.
Even the current and previous waves of Covid-19 here did not halt our charity drives. After seeing first-hand how much devastation was caused to the local economy, our 5 Star Marine team now continues to work even harder to find solutions to continue these indispensable efforts.
We have worked long and hard to build trusted relationships with a network of local OrBorTors, and these connections have enabled us to get insights into the real needs of these communities. So, we are able to identify the highest priority villagers, and where to focus efforts several times a week. The necessity for these Life Bags is now, sadly, greater than ever.
Packing had previously been at Sutai Muay Thai on Saturday mornings by teams of volunteers and schools; in a Covid-19 safe and TAT SHA compliant way. However, as the number of active cases in Phuket has increased, the decision was made to keep everyone safe by reducing the number of packers and revert back to the original core group of 5 Star Marine and Sutai Muay staff (April 2021). With an ever-increasing need for Life Bags as the months go on, it means that our small-scale team will work around the clock to ensure no one is left out.
Our scaled-back team recently managed to finish 1,000 Life Bags in a long 6-hour packing window. To put this into perspective, this would normally have taken just 1 hour with the usual volunteer numbers. However, our team didn’t stop there and after finishing the mammoth packing task, they then went on delivering them without a break.
During the past few months, we have received increasingly frequent and anguished requests for help. Community visits have clearly highlighted that some villagers are desperate, they simply don’t know where to turn, and they are truly struggling.
However, in order to prepare for the road ahead, we at 5 Star Marine have increased our own funds available for donation; meaning we can help more people in need. We will continue to help the communities during this pandemic, and beyond too.
With an understanding that plastic usage during food donations is not ideal, we have teamed up with UWC Thailand to come up with solutions and ways to reduce this.
So, please rest assured that throughout this pandemic, we have and will continue with the buying, packing, and distribution of Life Bags to the communities who rely on us, and often have no other means of getting food.
Please follow @5StarMarinePhuket on FB to see our donation activities. Also, when packing efforts resume, (please note these are currently paused for the safety of volunteers and staff), then why not volunteer some of your time to help out – this really will make a difference.
Stay safe and be kind.
From the 5 Star Marine team.
