Maya Bay, the tropical island cove of Hollywood acclaim in Krabi province, lastly reopened for tourism on January 1, after 3-and-a-half years of closure in a bid to revive its damaged white-sand beach and decimated marine ecosystem.
Officials briefly closed the bay in June 2018 to clean the beach and restore the area’s coral reefs. Originally deliberate as a 4 month closure, officials closed the bay indefinitely in October of that year to allow extra time for the environment to recuperate from the consequences of over-tourism.
Located within the famed Phi Phi Islands of Krabi province, the bay is part of Phi Phi Lei Island in Hat Noppharat Thara-Mu Ko Phi Phi National Park. It was made famous in the 2000 darkish romance movie, The Beach, starring a young Leonardo DiCaprio. Since then, tens of millions of tourists have flocked to the bay to capture a slice of cinematic paradise.
Prior to its closure, the 250 metre long, 15 metre extensive seaside was receiving up to 200 boats a day, or about 5,000 tourists, The Guardian reported. Such a high volume of visitors proved unsustainable for the Andaman Sea gemstone with an estimated 80% of its coral reefs damaged by boats, trash and chemicals such as sunscreen.
During its extended shutdown, boats had been nonetheless allowed to anchor outside the bay to allow tourists to take pictures of it. The bay additionally underwent a rehabilitation program, throughout which the seaside was cleaned, vegetation and trees have been planted, and more than a thousand healthy corals were transplanted to revive the damaged areas.
Officials briefly thought-about reopening the bay for limited tourism in early 2021 to assist boost tourism in the area after a yr of pandemic, but the seaside remained closed until January this year.
The bay is now open from 10am to 4pm and visitors can guide a ship in certainly one of eight shifts per day, restricted to 300 individuals every, for a most of 3,000 day by day, in accordance with LonleyPlanet. In an effort toward sustainable tourism, boats are no longer allowed to anchor in the bay, however most now dock at a brand new floating peer located behind the cliffs, and guests are allowed to swim solely in a chosen space. But many tourism pundits are betting that the tourist visits will exceed that in busy times and enforcement could also be ‘lax’.
Although No questions asked has reopened, it’s restoration is still removed from full. Because coral grows at a gradual price of about .5 centimeters a 12 months, it’ll take many extra years for the aquatic ecosystem to fully recuperate. Visitors are advised to cherish the picturesque bay by working towards Leave No Trace rules, together with packing their trash and sporting chemical-free sunscreen..