Island days · Trang archipelago
Koh Rok
Twin islands, one channel of the clearest water in Thailand.
The far one, worth every mile
Visibility that feels like flying.
Koh Rok is two islands — Rok Nai and Rok Nok — facing each other across a shallow channel of water so clear that from the boat you can count the fish twenty metres down. Protected inside Mu Ko Lanta National Park, uninhabited apart from a ranger station and a campsite, it has the region’s healthiest reefs, regular turtle sightings and long white beaches that stay empty because there is nowhere to stay. It is the island we send guests to when they ask for the best snorkelling in the Andaman.
The day, from The Sunny Hill
An early start, a private speedboat and a flat-calm morning are the recipe. You cross the open water south-west of Koh Lanta and arrive with the sun still low, when visibility is at its best and the beaches are yours. The captain moves between three or four snorkel sites over the day — the channel between the islands, the reef off Rok Nok’s northern beach, the coral gardens on the western side — with a long lunch on the sand in between.
What you will see
Hawksbill and green turtles grazing on the reef, big schools of snapper and fusilier, parrotfish, clownfish in their anemones, and coral in far better condition than anywhere nearer the mainland. Blacktip reef sharks cruise the shallows at dawn. Bring a mask you trust; this is the day you will want to remember clearly.
Add Koh Haa
Guests who dive — or who want to — often pair Koh Rok with Koh Haa, a cluster of five limestone islets to the north-west with a famous lagoon, caverns and dramatic walls. The concierge arranges dive guides and equipment through licensed operators.
Koh Rok — quick answers
When is Koh Rok open?
Koh Rok lies inside Mu Ko Lanta National Park, which closes the outer islands during the monsoon — roughly mid-May to mid-October each year. From November to April it is open, and the seas are at their calmest.
Longtail or speedboat to Koh Rok?
Speedboat. At about 24 nautical miles it is the furthest of our regular island days, and a private speedboat turns a two-hour longtail crossing into around an hour, leaving more of the day in the water.
Can you dive at Koh Rok?
Yes — the concierge can arrange guided dives or a discover-scuba session with a licensed operator, and there is excellent snorkelling for everyone else in the same channel.
Keep exploring
Stay where the islands begin.
Every island day, chef dinner and spa ritual is concierge-arranged for guests of The Sunny Hill. Book direct for our lowest rate, a complimentary sunset dinner, private airport transfer and welcome massage.
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