Local activities
Learn more about the island Koh Yao Noi.
Local Island Tour
You will be taken around the island by tuk tuk or motorbike. You will visit the local market and a rubber plantation and experience how rubber is harvested, see the rice fields and watch the water buffaloes and birds and stop to have lunch at a local homestay house or restaurant. You might also see how the local ladies do batik painting.
Activities with the Homestay Club of Koh Yao
In a world full of stress and conflict, it is no wonder that leisure time and peace of mind have become the two most valued lifestyle elements. At a small, award-winning home stay project on an idyllic island in southern Thailand, visitors from all around the world are finding both in plentiful supply. Seeking refuge from the enormous intensity of a highly competitive and hectic life in the city, dozens of annual visitors, mostly from Germany, Scandinavia, Italy, UK, France and USA, are flocking to the Koh Yao Noi community-based tourism village, specifically its home stay program, to spend a few days living a simple lifestyle amidst simple people with ordinary habits.
Home stay guests come to learn about and get involved in local lifestyle activities. They learn how to fish, make fishing equipment or batik cloth. Some of them work in the rice fields, or visit the housewife working group and learn how to make the local traditional dress. Home stay guests stay with local fishing families in traditional homes, providing opportunities for discussions and cultural exchange using translators of English and Thai. Sightseeing trips around Koh Yao Noi island can also be organized. Other activities available on the island include demonstrations of rubber tapping and fishing, kayaking, hiking, snorkeling and swimming.
The Koh Yao Noi Eco-tourism Club was awarded winner by the Tourist Authority of Thailand (TAT) at the 4th Tourism Industry Contest in the category of “Tourism Industry Contest in the category of “Tourism Promotion and Development”. In January 2003 the Koh Yao Noi tourism program under the partnership with the Bangkok based NGO, Responsible Ecological Social Tours Project (REST), won the “Destination Stewardship Award”, from the World Legacy Awards which is jointly sponsored by Conservation International and the National Geographic Traveler magazine.
More information: www.koh-yao-noi-eco-tourism-club.com / www.kohyao-cbt.com
For information and bookings in English and Thai please contact: Mr. Sumreong Rakhet bangmee1@hotmail.com or 081968-0877 (local number)
Activities with the Koyao Children's Community Centre
The Koyao Children’s Community Center promotes a life-long learning strategy for the children and adults of Koh Yao Noi. It aims to prepare the children for the future and give them the technological skills they need in the 21st century. It also looks to the past to ensure that local knowledge from village elders gets passed on to Koh Yao's newest generation. The Center is open during weekdays from 16.00 to 18.30 and on Saturdays and Sundays from 10.00 to 16.00. Courses taught at the Center include English, Computer, Handicraft, Art, Environmental Awarness, Music.
The best way for the children to learn English is to interact with people who speak English. The Center therefore offers visitors the opportunity to join the children for handicraft Courses on Wednesdays from 16.30 to 18.30 and on Sundays for Environemtal Awarness Courses between 10.00 and 16.00. The Courses on Sunday sometimes take place outdoors, please ask for the schedule of the day.
The Foundation of the Koyao Children’s Community Center would be glad for a donation of THB 500 baht per person for joining the activities.
Littering has become a problem here on the island. 25 years ago, people had no electricity, no running water, no television, no mobile phones and no internet on the island. In the last 10 years Koh Yao has developed very fast and along with the „modernisation“ came the plastic and the problem of rubish disposal.
At the moment Koh Yao is only able to recycle drinking cans and plastic bottles. The rest of the rubbish gets burned or dumped in the ground by the house owners and the government.
At the local schools and at the children center the children are taught to preserve the island and its environment. They children regularly go for beach clean-ups since a lot of the rubbish comes in with the tide.
More information: www.koyao-ccc.com
If you would like to visit the center, join the children or make a donation please contact Kathrina Norrie: kittynorrie@hotmail.com / 0879294320 (local number)
Batik Painting in Takhao
At the pier in Takhao the local women’s club of Takhao paints batiks for sarongs, t-shirts, greetings cards and else. The ladies will teach you how to paint your own batik. Below a report by a tourist from Switzerland, Elsbeth Maeder, about her experiences.
“I have come to Takhao for painting already several times and already get greeted by my name when I arrive. The ladies fix my chosen piece of light cotton fabric to a wooden frame, provide me with pencil and rubber and leave me to sketch my own design. I usually have some basic idea, but sort of go with the flow. Any unwanted lines can easily be erased from the cloth. When I’m ready, one of the painters applies the gouache and then instructs me how to use the paint. After a couple of hours, the painting is done; I leave it to dry and to get the finishing touches. To round it all off, I enjoy a tasty meal and purchase some gifts. About two days later I can get my very personal souvenir.
For me painting in Takao means combining some very focused activity with fresh air, occasional mini-breaks to take in the beautiful view of the sea and the scattered islands or watch the to-and-fro on the pier or admire the amazing skills of the professional batik painters.”
Bird Watching
Koh Yao is one of the best places for bird watching, There are many mangrove forests around Koh Yao Noi and Ko Yao Yai which attract many birds such as the Mangrove Whistler, White-bellied Sea-eagles, Mangrove Pittas, Flyeater, Ruddy Kingfishers, and Brown-winged Kingfishers. Oriental Pied Hornbills are also easy to spot on Koh Yao.
For those who would like a specialized ornithology day, Tony the owner of Nature Lodge and a renowned guide is often on hand to lead trips. Expect to see 30 different species on a half day tour, 50+ on a full day.