Big Blue Dive Site Guide
Aow Pakkad
Day Trip Diving
Our Similan diving day trips will resume in November 2025
Location
Southern tip of Koh Surin Tai
Skill Level
Beginner to Intermediate
Depth
5 – 25m
Currents
Generally mild
Topography
A beautifully gentle sloping reef beginning just beneath the surface and descending gradually to sandy patches and vibrant coral gardens at approximately 20 metres. This protected site offers calm, sheltered conditions making it ideal for check dives or leisurely exploration. The reef features pristine hard coral formations punctuated by scattered bommies and coral heads throughout its expanse.
Highlights
A superb destination for novice divers and macro photography enthusiasts alike. Schools of fusiliers, parrotfish, butterflyfish, and wrasse create constant movement across the reef, whilst moray eels peer from coral crevices and blue-spotted stingrays glide over sandy areas. Clownfish inhabit numerous anemones throughout the site, and observant divers may discover nudibranchs, pipefish, and juvenile reef species amongst the coral formations. The site is also home to several resident turtles, affectionately named by team member Sam Hunt in 2024.
Tips
Patience is rewarded at this site—stay shallow and move slowly to maximise your wildlife encounters. Perfect for practising buoyancy control or familiarising yourself with equipment in forgiving conditions. Carefully scan sandy areas for camouflaged creatures and take time to thoroughly explore coral bommies where marine life congregates.
Photography
Exceptionally suited for macro photography and wide-angle reef scenes. The calm, protected waters provide stable conditions for capturing sharp images of anemonefish, cleaner shrimp, and small reef inhabitants. An excellent location for building confidence in underwater photography techniques.
Briefing
Aow Pakad offers straightforward diving with minimal to no current, allowing for simple dive briefings. When current is present, we position the tender upcurrent from the boat and enter the water near the reef’s upper reaches.
We begin our descent to approximately 20 metres where the reef transitions to sandy bottom. Here we explore open sandy areas, searching for stingrays and other bottom-dwelling species. Isolated bommies located a short distance from the main reef structure offer additional exploration opportunities and often harbour diverse marine life.
Returning to the main reef, we commence an easy drift or gentle swim along the reef structure. This represents a textbook multi-level profile, gradually ascending whilst exploring different reef zones. The 5-12 metre depth range at Aow Pakad is particularly spectacular, featuring dense concentrations of diverse hard coral structures and serving as home to numerous reef fish species.
We reserve time towards the dive’s conclusion to explore the shallower reef areas, where turtle encounters are frequent and black-tip reef sharks occasionally make appearances.
The simplicity is the beauty—Aow Pakad ranks among the most accessible dives on our Similan liveaboard itinerary, with hour-long dives being commonplace. For beginning divers, it provides the perfect environment to consolidate newly acquired skills, whilst experienced divers can enjoy a relaxing morning dive before the excitement of Richelieu Rock, our next destination.
Fish and Other Species Found at Aow Pakkad
Hawksbill Turtle
Hawksbill Turtle
Hawksbill Turtle
Hawksbill Turtle