Koh Lipe on a budget 2024

Koh Lipe

Koh Lipe is called the Maldives of Thailand for good reason. It is staggeringly beautiful and still remains our most favourite little island in the world so far.

Times have moved on though since our first trip there. Back in 2014 when we first visited this little beauty it was a relatively quiet little place. 

You can easily see though that the island has developed a lot over the years and must be incredibly busy in the high season. Sunrise beach has always had it’s fair share of places to stay with a few dive centres and restaurants mixed in between.

Back in 2014 those places stopped at the small bend heading West at the North end leaving the rest of that beach and the sand outcrop with a sunset view pretty much unspoilt. Nowadays that North end is home to super luxury hotels and beach clubs. Don’t get me wrong they look incredibly nice. The very last ones are villas with individual pools right on the beach with a glorious sunset view from your own fancy pool, but those combined with sun loungers that now occupy that final stretch of beach seem a bit overkill and the place was so much nicer when it was pristine white sand.

Don’t let that put you off though, it’s still an incredible place and I still recommend visiting now. The beaches are perfect. The locals here are pretty switched on when it comes to their livelihood. You don’t see a lot of litter at all on Lipe and when you do you can guarantee it’s going to get disposed of quick sharp. Many shops, bars and restaurants have signs outside saying they will gladly take you rubbish from you if your passing so that they can help keep the island clean. Likewise the waters around Lipe are equally impressive when it comes to cleanliness. Let’s face it those two things are what make the island what it is. Well along with good Thai food, friendly people and a chilled island atmosphere.

The island is within the National park and as such you have to pay a park entrance fee of 200 Baht when you arrive here.

The sea here is nothing short of stunning. It’s your typical picture postcard of a tropical island. The turquoise and green water is so clear you have amazing visibility metres down. There’s a reason it’s part of the Tarutao Marine National Park and why so many people come here for the diving and snorkelling.

We spent 5 nights here and our days were pretty much spent repeating the same routine over and over. We would start off at the South of Sunrise beach around 10am and work our way slowly up to the North and then round the top to the sand outcrop for sunset at 6:30pm. That journey was spent mainly in the sea with a wee bit of sitting on the sand in between. That’s right, 8 1/2 hours of sunning ourselves and cooling off in the sea is what we did for 5 days straight. I would do it again tomorrow if I could and I make no apologies for being a lazy beach bum. That is exactly what Koh Lipe is to us, a beach paradise and somewhere to truly switch off and relax.

So what about the cost then and how can you still do Lipe on a budget in 2024?

Accommodation

Accommodation is the biggest expense you will have here. There are some seriously up market places on Lipe now, you can spend £600 a night if that’s your thing, but there are also some cheaper bargains to be had if you shop around a little.

In 2014 we paid £10 a night for a good clean room with aircon. The last time we were in Lipe before this trip was in 2020 and we paid £20 for the same level of accommodation. This time we still paid just £20 a night for a good clean room with aircon. We stayed at Harmony Bed and Bakery close to sunset beach and the start of walking street. The island is tiny really but this is still a great location to be.

We booked it through Agoda as it was cheaper than booking direct through the hotel or any other online booking site that we checked. You sometimes find that certain hotels or even countries have much better rates on one website compared to the others. This is a prime example. We extended our stay an extra night (who wouldn’t want to stay) and it was £20 on Agoda but £56 on Booking.com! That’s quite the difference and it most definitely pays to shop around a little when it comes to digs.

This is Harmony Bed and Bakery take a look but book it via Agoda for a better price.

Food

Food and drink is a similar story to accommodation. Yes you can live it up and have amazing seafood or international dishes on the beachfront at a swanky place but you can also get amazing quality Thai food at a much more reasonable price if you look around. Some of it is just about as cheap as food on the mainland, which is pretty damn good considering it costs a bit more to ship ingredients over to the island. There were two places that stood out for us on this trip.

Tonkow

The first one is a little place called Tonkow right at the Eastern end of Walking street, just past the crossroads. Now this place isn’t at the cheap, cheap end of the spectrum but there is a reason we want to mention it. It has THE best Massaman curry we’ve ever had. We first ate here back in 2014 and it hasn’t changed other than the price. It is consistently excellent, like Michelin Star Massaman excellent. Trust us we’ve had our fair share of Massaman’s over the years and every single one is compared to this without fail. It’s packed with flavour. Rich, spicy, creamy, complex, earthy and the huge piece of chicken you get is tender and falls apart.

Just look at it and how happy Dani’s face is!

The restaurant is small with just 9 tables and is busy every night. It’s ran by a British guy and his Thai wife and they churn out some of the best dishes on the island. I also recommend the crispy pork Pad Kra Pao which combines great spice and flavours with a contrast of textures provided by the crackling of the crispy pork. The Massaman is a bit pricier at £XXX but is worth every penny. If your on a budget they also have cheaper dishes such as Pad Thai at £1.75. Beer isn’t too bad either for a restaurant at £2.16 for a big 620ml bottle.

Tonkow is HERE

Jaekun boat rental and restaurant

The second place that stood out was a new one for us, Jaekun boat rental and restaurant. I actually feel a little sad writing about this one as we only tried it on our last full day and had we known just how incredible this place was we would have been having lunch here most days. Firstly and I guess most importantly for a restaurant is the food. We ordered a Pad Thai and a Pad Kra Pao for just £1.75 each. The Pad Thai is up there with the best we’ve had, probably top 5, which in Thailand is no mean feat. A big portion, moist and glossy but not sticky like some and packed with flavour. The Pad Kra Paow also ticked all the boxes. Great heat from the chili and the right amount of holy basil balanced with the sourness of the fish sauce.

So that’s great food at a great price, however Jaekun offers a lot more that just that thanks to it’s location. It’s up at the top end of sunrise beach where it get’s even quieter with less long tail boats sat in the water and it is right on the beach, literally. We sat at our table under an umbrella with our feet in the sand. The stunning Andaman sea for our backdrop, this is a restaurant with a million dollar view for the price of a Greggs back home, what a bargain. When we finished our meal we grabbed a beer. They aren’t the cheapest there at about £3 a pop but hey with a location like this we couldn’t pass it by. A few sips of icy cold Singha then a dip in the sea, back for a few more sips…..rinse and repeat. It’s a stunning place for a spot of lunch and a cold beer.

Jaekun is at the North end of Sunrise beach HERE

Drinks

Speaking of beer there are still a few places where it’s not too bad. You are never going to get mainland prices on the island but some places are much more reasonable than others. If you want to sit with the cool cats in the fancy chill out bars it’s going to cost you, and that’s fine, they are lovely places but if your on a budget like us you need to find some wallet friendly options.

เดอะเบส supermarket just along from the 7-11 at the crossroads is the cheapest place we found on the island to grab an icy beer. (Can only find the name in Thai so this is the Location ). A big Leo or Chang sets you back 70 Baht which is cheaper than 7-11 or the other supermarkets and they even have a small bar area for you to sit at and enjoy it. It’s a bit away from the bustle and excitement of walking street but if you want a few cold ones for the beach or a couple of late night ones when everywhere else is shutting up then it’s your best bet.

Madam Yoo Hoo’s (if you know you know) main restaurant on walking street is the cheapest restaurant to sit down and have a beer. We used to grab a pancake for a nibble and have a few beers people watching on walking street and it’s a good price at 40 Baht a big bottle.

Patt Market is a good spot to sit and watch the Lipe world go by with a drink. It’s a supermarket with good range of reasonably priced drinks and they have put a bench and some seats outside for you to chill at and enjoy your drink.

Last up is up the steps outside and opposite the main 7-11 on walking street. Yeah I know that sounds a bit weird but anyone who has visited Thailand will know all about sitting outside 7-11 and having a drink. If you pop in to 7-11 and grab a big cup with just ice, a bottle of Sangsom and a bottle of mixer then your all set. This is primetime people watching especially now that Thailand has legalized marijuana. This is people watching at its very best.

Speaking of weed where is decent to grab a smoke if that’s your kind of thing?

Marijuana

Like most tourist areas in Thailand grabbing a smoke can be pretty pricey if you don’t shop around. Some places on the island are selling a gram in the 400-800 baht range which to me is just not worth it. But hey some tourists do pay that as they’re only there a short while and don’t bother looking around for a better deal.

After a fair bit of hiking around I found the cheapest place for a gram of very nice quality Sativa to be Namaste Koh Lipe 420. You can easily miss this place if you don’t look carefully. Many of the other weed shops stand out easily but Namaste just looks like a souvenir shop. Most of the shop sells the usual Knick knacks to take home as gifts but at the front of the shop, on the street, at the left hand side is the smallest wooden counter you will ever see.

They have a choice of just 5 or 6 different strains but at 200baht a gram it’s much more reasonable than anywhere else. They’ll provide you with papers to sit there and roll up and an ashtray so that you can sit at the tiny bar, toke away and watch the world go by.

You can find Namaste HERE

You can read about our first trip to Koh lipe here:

Sweaty jungle and a chilled sunset

Porn Huts to Kok Guesthouse and beyond