SeaKayak Phuket Thailand FAQ

Extreme Sports Cafe's partner Phuket Kayaking adventure centre provides you with high quality traditional sea kayaks and equipment, delightful meals, kayak technique instruction, and an overall ecstatic time in paradise. You will learn about the natural world and the efforts to preserve it. They are the only adventure tour company offering the traditional kayak based outdoor adventure in southern Thailand. The tour leaders are enthusiastic, experienced professionals with the ability to provide you with a safe and enjoyable outdoor adventure. Their knowledge of Asia’s rivers, oceans, and wildlife, combined with our attention to details, will make travel to Thailand your most memorable outdoor adventure. Below are Kayaking FAQ and What to Bring list.

Question #1 - I've never paddled a sea kayak before, can I join one of your trips? 

• We tailor our trips to first-time paddlers and beginners. Our friendly and supportive guides and tour leaders will teach you the basis, necessary skills you need in order to enjoy your time on the water. Sea kayaking is very easy. It's a safe activity for all ages. The majority of our guests are middle-aged or older. Experienced paddlers are welcomed too.

Questions #2 - Are your trips strenuous?

• Our pace is based on the group. We keep our itineraries flexible so that every trip participant gets the exact type of sea kayak trip that she/he desires. You do not need to be athletic to enjoy this wonderful activity. If you can trek, you can paddle a kayak. It's that simple.

Question #3 - What happens if I capsize?

• Capsizes are extremely uncommon. All of our traditional sea kayaks are stable. You may be mistaking sea kayaking with white water kayaking where the small river kayak bobs through waves and rapids and occasionally flips. Sea kayaks are designed differently and stability is one of the main characteristics of sea kayaks. 
  
• If by some chance you do capsize, it is not a big deal. You won't be stuck in the kayak if you happen to tip over. In fact, you must brace your thighs under the deck in order to remain in a capsized boat. Emptying the kayak and getting you back in the boat is very quick and easy. All of our guides and tour leaders are experts at assisted rescues.

Question #4 - What do people enjoy about sea kayaking?

• Sea kayaking is a method to explore and enjoy the natural world on a very intimate level. There is both the solitude of solo paddling as well as the joy and camaraderie of a small group sea kayaking adventure. 
  
• Kayaking is physical, so it gives you the feeling of actually accomplishing something on your vacation. Anyone can sit on a beach all day; you can be a sea kayaker. Give it a try... you'll be glad you did.

Question #5 - What sort of accommodations should I expect?

• One of our major goals is to get away from the more popular tourist spots. This means that some of our bungalows are very basic. The quality varies from spot to spot. We require our bungalows to be clean and to have scrumptious food. 
  
• The reason why we stay in bungalows rather than camp is that after a fun day of paddling, we want a proper shower, a great meal and a comfortable bed after that. Camping in the tropics isn't very comfy. As most of our guests are middle-aged or older, this works well.

Question #6 - What is included and what should I bring?

• Kayaking trips include all transfers from nearest local airport, bus station or train station (airfare not included), all equipment, accommodations once on the trip, all meals, all snacks, all non-alcoholic drinks, and insurance. Plus, you'll get a free colourful complimentary T shirt.

Question #7 - Can I bring my camera, video recorder and binoculars?

• By all means. We have dry bags for you. Bring a small towel to wrap your gear before putting it in the bag help keep the moisture out. Binoculars are a very valuable asset, especially in Khao Sok National Park. We do not supply binoculars. We are not responsible for damaged equipment.

Question #8 - Can you tell me more about your sea kayaking equipment?

• We have a large fleet of high quality traditional sea kayaks. We have both single and two-person kayaks in a variety of sizes to suit guests of all sizes. Your comfort is very important to us. Supplying you with a proper fitting boat increases your comfort factor tremendously.
  
• We also have high quality lightweight paddles. This is even more important than the kayak. This is your tool. At the end of the day and when you get up the following day, we want you to be fresh. If you are sore, we've failed... and we don't fail.

Question #9 - Do you rent kayaks?

• Yes, we rent our kayaks and equipment to qualified paddlers. Let us know about your experience level to see if you qualify.
  
• In addition to renting our kayaks, we will set you up with an itinerary, bungalow reservations, a nautical chart and anything else that you may need. 

All of our Sea Kayaking Adventure Experiences on Phuket, Thailand can be booked online

WHAT TO BRING SEA KAYAKING PHUKET SOUTHERN THAILAND

• Personal medication - Note: If you are allergic to bee stings, you are likely allergic to jellyfish stings also. Bring your own EpiPen ® (A self-injectable dose of Epinephrine). 
  
• Personal hygiene items such as soap, shampoo, insect repellant, etc.
  
• Sunscreen or sunblock (SPF15 or greater).  Zinc sunblock is recommended for sensitive skin.
  
• Lip balm (protector/moisturiser/sunblock)
  
• Rainwear and/or 'warm-when-wet' types of clothing such as some of the new synthetic cloths. December through March is usually very dry. El Nino can change that, but not much.
  
• Light weight, light coloured hat. Throw an extra hat in too.
  
• Sunglasses and safety strap. An extra pair of sunglasses is a good idea.
  
• A small waterproof flashlight.
  
• Water shoes (wetsuit booties are a bit too hot)
  
• An extra pair of sandals (Dave learned this the hard way when he had to wear a pair of undersized light purple flowery shoes for a whole week in Laos on one trip... they were the only pair in Vientiane close to his required size 13)
  
• If you're coming on one of our hiking or mountain climbing trips, you'll need a pair of sturdy hiking boots with lugged soles. 
  
• Lightweight gloves with non-slip gripping surface if you have tender hands. This is also a good idea of you have sun-sensitive skin. A sunburn on the back of your hands is not pleasant.
  
• Lightweight, light-coloured, long-sleeve shirt if you are sensitive to the sun. Wearing protection against the sun during the midday hours is a good idea for anyone coming to an Asian country.
  
• If you bring a non-waterproof camera, you may wish to bring your own pre-tested watertight container. We provide a quality dry bag for each person, but in a humid climate, moisture can sometimes be sealed in along with the camera. Bring a hand towel or small towel to wrap your camera while in the dry bag.  It's good padding and it's helpful in case you've got sweaty or wet hands.
  
• Extra memory cards and batteries.
  
• Binoculars (a 'must' for a Khao Sok trip). We have dry bags for your camera and binoculars. 

Some of the other bungalow operations have synthetic towels that just seem to smear the water around. The bungalows at Khao Sok DO NOT have towels. Bring your own. The bungalows in Phang Nga Bay have nice cotton towels, so don't bring one for your Phang Nga Bay adventure.

• You only need a small amount of money for incidentals, personal items, tips, etc.  
  
• If you are a light sleeper, you might want to bring some ear plugs. Frogs and other night sounds can get pretty loud.
  
• Your personal paddle if you wish.
  
• Tarutao, Khao Sok, Trang - bring about 10 feet of light string to make a clothes line.  Bring a few clothes pins too.
  
• Jewellery and make-up are not necessary. If you don't bring it, you can't loose it.
  
• A small battery-operated fan will increase your comfort level immensely in Khao Sok. The bungalows have fans, but they are often on generator power.  They sometimes shut them off either in the middle of the night or early in the morning. The bungalows in Phang Nga Bay have electricity all the time and fans all the time.

Naturally we respect Thai cultural values. This means the local people can be easily offended by scantily dressed Westerners. 

• It is particularly important that women realise in Muslim areas, it is very important not to appear in bikinis or other clothing that people of more traditional cultures would consider provocative or offensive. 
• In other words, you won't be able to wear your bikini around the fishing villages. A pair of shorts and a shirt will do. 
• Once on the water, you can do as you please.

All of our Sea Kayaking Adventure Experiences Phuket, Thailand can be booked online

Pack lightly - Leave the kitchen sink behind! You should pack lightly for our trips.  You don't need to bring huge suitcases or massive backpacks.  

• For example, on a two or three day Phang Nga trip, you should only bring a small pack or small bag.  Besides the items listed above, you should only bring your swimming attire and a couple of shirts and trousers or shorts. 
  
• If you are on an extended tour and you can't leave your baggage at your hotel while you're with us, we offer storage at various locations.  We cannot be responsible for the security of your luggage however. 
  
• Please let us know your situation ahead of time, so we can make arrangements for your excess luggage.

Health matters - In our experience, Thailand is a safe, healthy country for normal activities. 

• Thailand does not necessarily require any particular immunisation for your visit. Cholera, yellow fever, Tetanus & Diphtheria, Typhoid and Gamma Globulin are some of the vaccinations that you should consider.  
  
• We still recommend that you consult your physician for recommended inoculations before departure to Asian destinations. 

For medical advice, you can check out the following sites:

• Center for Disease Control 
  
• Traveler's section 
  
• SE Asia section 

Note: Malaria and Dengue Fever are present in Thailand in areas where it used to be uncommon. During the rainy season, April through November, it is advised that you take all precautions to avoid contact with the mosquitoes. 

• For our trips, malaria prophylactic medication is highly recommended, as is a lightweight mosquito net (available from outdoor equipment suppliers). 
  
• Mosquito netting is provided in Khao Sok and the bungalows in Phang Nga Bay have screened windows.

Additional Insurance - Acquiring travel insurance policy that covers theft, loss and medical treatment is recommended. Make sure the insurance also covers the activities that you will be undertaking during your stay... such as kayaking. 

• If you are participating is a strenuous/extreme activity, it makes sense to buy evacuation insurance too. Cancellation insurance is a nice option too.

Personal medical kit - Note: We have a first aid kit on all of our trips. For legal reasons however, tour operator first aid kits do not normally contain lotions and potions. A First Aid is just that, the first medical care you receive for accidents and injuries. This is initial wound management only. If you would like to bring your own or if you will be traveling to other destinations before or after your Kayaking adventure, here is our suggested list of contents:

• One very useful addition to any first aid kit is New Skin. This is a liquid bandage, which is both an antiseptic and waterproof. It creates a plastic shield over the wound. This is very appropriate for the tropics.
  
• Aspirin or Panadol - for pain or fever. 
  
• Antihistamine - useful as a decongestant for colds, allergies, to ease the itch from insect bites and stings or to help prevent motion sickness. 
  
• Antibiotics - useful if you are traveling well off the beaten track but they must be prescribed. You can however, get antibiotics over the counter in Thailand.
  
• Kaolin preparation (Pepto-Bismol), Imodium or Lomotil - for upset stomach or diarrhoea. 
  
• Rehydration mixture - for rehydration as well as treatment of severe diarrhoea. 
  
• Topical antiseptic - mercurochrome, antibiotic powder, or similar 'dry' spray - for cuts and abrasions. 
  
• Calamine lotion - to ease irritation from bites or stings. 
  
• Bandages and Band-Aids (plasters) - for minor injuries. 
  
• Scissors.
  
• Tweezers.
  
• Thermometer.
  
• Insect repellent.
  
• Sun block and/or suntan lotion.
  
• Chapstick lip protection.
  
• Water-purification tablets if you plan on camping... not needed on our guided tours.
  
• Throat lozenges.
  
• Moleskin - for blisters.
  
• Sulamyd 10% eye drops.
  
• Acetaminophen. (Paracetamol) 
  
• Antacid tablets. 

A simple medical kit can be very useful and won't take too much space in your baggage. Prevention, of course, is the best form of medicine.

Travel Tips

• Use caution in what you eat and drink. Stomach upsets are the most likely travel health problem but the majority of these upsets will be relatively minor.
  
• Drink bottled water only. Don't drink water with ice unless the ice has a "hole" in it, although sometimes they crush this type of ice too.  In Thailand, the ice with a hole is from proper drinking water. Basically, no one in Thailand drinks tap water nor uses tap water for ice.
  
• To play it extra safe, tea or coffee is recommend since the water would have been boiled.
  
• Be cautious when drinking fruit juice, particularly if water was added. Canned fruit juices are OK.
  
• Salads and fruit should be washed with purified water or peeled whenever possible. 
  
• Thoroughly cooked food is the safest but not if it has been left to cool. Many restaurants cook their food in the morning and leave it out all day. It's usually OK, but if you are very sensitive, you might get a bit of an upset stomach.
  
• Wash your hands regularly. It's quite easy to contaminate your own food. 
  
• You should brush your teeth with purified water rather than tap water. 
  
• Wear shoes. You can get worm infections through bare feet. It is important to wear shoes at all time in Khao Sok as the bungalow walkways and all flooring is made up of bamboo. You don't want bamboo splinters. 
  
• Try to avoid insect bites by using insect repellents or by covering bare skin.

Passport protection

• Losing your passport is a big deal. You can get a new one at your country's embassy in Bangkok. To make this nightmare easier to handle, carry a copy of your passport and birth certificate in a different place from where you carry your passport.
  
• A passport, especially a US passport, is worth a lot of money on the black market. Be cautious. Keep your passport with you at all times.

Extreme Sports Cafe's partner Phuket Kayaking adventure centre provides you with high quality traditional sea kayaks and equipment, delightful meals, kayak technique instruction, and an overall ecstatic time in paradise. You will learn about the natural world and the efforts to preserve it. They are the only adventure tour company offering the traditional kayak based outdoor adventure in southern Thailand. The tour leaders are enthusiastic, experienced professionals with the ability to provide you with a safe and enjoyable outdoor adventure. Their knowledge of Asia’s rivers, oceans, and wildlife, combined with our attention to details, will make travel to Thailand your most memorable outdoor adventure.

The pleasure of exploring the rocky coast or headland of a lovely island is best experienced not in a noisy longtail boat, nor a fast powerboat, not even in a yacht.  To be near the rocks, watching sea birds and crabs, looking down at coral and fish; this celebration of tropical ocean touring is best done under one's own power, in a fast, manoeuvrable, stable, traditional sea kayak.  

Sea Kayaking Adventure Experiences Phuket, Thailand with Extreme Sports Cafe

All of our Sea Kayaking Adventure Experiences Phuket, Thailand can be booked online

Who runs our Sea Kayaking Adventure tours?

Extreme Sports Cafe and it's partner run Sea Kayaking Adventure Tours on Phuket, Thailand. We offer a range of exciting, challenging and fun experiences for you to enjoy whilst on holiday and will have more kayaking (kayaking centers) elsewhere soon...

Extreme Sports Cafe's partner Phuket Kayaking Adventure Centre are a nature-based paddling adventure travel company. They specialise in small group sea kayaking, river kayaking and outdoor adventure travel tours to remote and unspoiled destinations in Southern Thailand. With over 30 years of paddling experience, they are the most experienced kayaking tour operator in Southern Thailand. Every aspect of their lives (personally and as tour leaders), is geared toward the enjoyment of the environments and fragile eco systems without unduly changing them. Their primary means of experiencing an area is on water. All trip guides are certified in CPR, First Aid and basic life guard training through the Phuket Lifeguard Club. Our partner Phuket Kayaking adventure centre also offer Educational Programs for International Schools and they are certified to run Duke of Edinburgh trips through the International Award for Young People organisation.

Where do I take it from here?

You can go on to improve your kayaking with more practice and enjoy more advanced trips, become an instructor and teach others, join a club and buy your own kayaking equipment and go kayaking safely whenever you want. Let us know how we can help...

If you have any questions, then please don’t hesitate to get back to us – we’ll be only too pleased to help. After all, the team at ESC are passionate about our various sporting disciplines – we want you to be, as well!

GET IN TOUCH WITH US NOW TO START YOUR SEA KAYAKING ADVENTURE…