Ko Phi Phi Lee
Encyclopedia
Koh Phi Phi Leh or Ko Phi Phi Ley is an island
of the Phi Phi archipelago, in the Andaman Sea
. It belongs to the Krabi province
of Thailand
.
, the largest one being Ko Phi Phi Don
. The island consists of a ring of steep limestone
hills surrounding 2 shallow bays, the Maya Bay and Loh Samah. There is also one large shallow fjord like inlet called Pi Ley with a small coral reef at the entrance.
was filmed there.
According to the Lonely Planet's Thailand guidebook, the 2004 tsunami
dramatically improved the look of Maya Bay. This was due to the fact that the high waves had cleaned up the beach and removed all the landscaping the Fox production team had added.
The main dive sites are at Loh Samah, Maya Bay entrance and Palong Bay, and are often combined with diving at Ko Bida Noi, a rocky outcrop some 500 meters south of Loh Samah.
due to 20th Century Fox
bulldozing and rescaping of the natural beach setting of Koh Phi Phi Leh to make it more "paradise
-like". The production altered some sand dunes and cleared some coconut trees and grass to widen the beach. Fox set aside a fund to reconstruct and return the beach to its natural state, however lawsuits were filed as many believed the damage to the ecosystem
is permanent and restoration attempts failed.
The lawsuits dragged on for years. In 2006, Thailand's Supreme Court upheld an appeal court ruling that the filming had harmed the environment and ordered that damage assessments be made. Defendants in the case included 20th Century Fox and some Thai government officials.
Prior to 2004, the island had avoided development. However, it is now a part of Phi Phi National Park and has since begun to see the beginnings of development and some clearing of natural plant life. There are current plans to build bungalows on the island. Since 2007, there has been an entry charge for private visitors of Bt200 per person. There are now permanent basic facilities on the island - toilets, a snack bar and camping sites.
Island
An island or isle is any piece of sub-continental land that is surrounded by water. Very small islands such as emergent land features on atolls can be called islets, cays or keys. An island in a river or lake may be called an eyot , or holm...
of the Phi Phi archipelago, in the Andaman Sea
Andaman Sea
The Andaman Sea or Burma Sea is a body of water to the southeast of the Bay of Bengal, south of Burma, west of Thailand and east of the Andaman Islands, India; it is part of the Indian Ocean....
. It belongs to the Krabi province
Krabi Province
Krabi is one of the southern provinces of Thailand, at the shore of the Andaman Sea. Neighbouring provinces are Phang Nga, Surat Thani, Nakhon Si Thammarat and Trang. The Phuket province to the west is also neighbouring, but without any land boundary...
of Thailand
Thailand
Thailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the...
.
Geography
Koh Phi Phi Ley is the second largest island of the archipelagoArchipelago
An archipelago , sometimes called an island group, is a chain or cluster of islands. The word archipelago is derived from the Greek ἄρχι- – arkhi- and πέλαγος – pélagos through the Italian arcipelago...
, the largest one being Ko Phi Phi Don
Ko Phi Phi Don
Ko Phi Phi Don is the largest of the Phi Phi Islands, in Thailand. It is the only island in the group with permanent inhabitants.Like the other islands in the group, Ko Phi Phi Don is a non-volcanic island largely made of limestone. It is almost separated into two islands, but a strand of flat...
. The island consists of a ring of steep limestone
Limestone
Limestone is a sedimentary rock composed largely of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of calcium carbonate . Many limestones are composed from skeletal fragments of marine organisms such as coral or foraminifera....
hills surrounding 2 shallow bays, the Maya Bay and Loh Samah. There is also one large shallow fjord like inlet called Pi Ley with a small coral reef at the entrance.
Miscellaneous
Maya Bay is popular for diving, and has become even more popular after the 2000 movie The BeachThe Beach (film)
The Beach is a 2000 adventure drama film directed by Danny Boyle and based on the 1996 novel of the same name by Alex Garland, which was adapted for the film by John Hodge. The film stars Leonardo DiCaprio and features Tilda Swinton, Robert Carlyle, Virginie Ledoyen and Guillaume Canet...
was filmed there.
According to the Lonely Planet's Thailand guidebook, the 2004 tsunami
2004 Indian Ocean earthquake
The 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake was an undersea megathrust earthquake that occurred at 00:58:53 UTC on Sunday, December 26, 2004, with an epicentre off the west coast of Sumatra, Indonesia. The quake itself is known by the scientific community as the Sumatra-Andaman earthquake...
dramatically improved the look of Maya Bay. This was due to the fact that the high waves had cleaned up the beach and removed all the landscaping the Fox production team had added.
The main dive sites are at Loh Samah, Maya Bay entrance and Palong Bay, and are often combined with diving at Ko Bida Noi, a rocky outcrop some 500 meters south of Loh Samah.
The Beach
Controversy arose during the making of the film The BeachThe Beach (film)
The Beach is a 2000 adventure drama film directed by Danny Boyle and based on the 1996 novel of the same name by Alex Garland, which was adapted for the film by John Hodge. The film stars Leonardo DiCaprio and features Tilda Swinton, Robert Carlyle, Virginie Ledoyen and Guillaume Canet...
due to 20th Century Fox
20th Century Fox
Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation — also known as 20th Century Fox, or simply 20th or Fox — is one of the six major American film studios...
bulldozing and rescaping of the natural beach setting of Koh Phi Phi Leh to make it more "paradise
Paradise
Paradise is a place in which existence is positive, harmonious and timeless. It is conceptually a counter-image of the miseries of human civilization, and in paradise there is only peace, prosperity, and happiness. Paradise is a place of contentment, but it is not necessarily a land of luxury and...
-like". The production altered some sand dunes and cleared some coconut trees and grass to widen the beach. Fox set aside a fund to reconstruct and return the beach to its natural state, however lawsuits were filed as many believed the damage to the ecosystem
Ecosystem
An ecosystem is a biological environment consisting of all the organisms living in a particular area, as well as all the nonliving , physical components of the environment with which the organisms interact, such as air, soil, water and sunlight....
is permanent and restoration attempts failed.
The lawsuits dragged on for years. In 2006, Thailand's Supreme Court upheld an appeal court ruling that the filming had harmed the environment and ordered that damage assessments be made. Defendants in the case included 20th Century Fox and some Thai government officials.
The island before and after
External links
- Extensive image gallery of Phi Phi Ley
- Location: 7°40′44"N 98°45′54"E
- Phi Phi
- Phi Phi Island Tour
- Moving Postcards of Phi Phi Don and Ley