Shark Bay, also called Haad Tien or Ao Thian Og, is a small cove on the south-east cape of Koh Tao, east of Chalok Baan Kao and about fifteen to twenty minutes from the pier. Next to it lie Taa Toh, the neighbouring cove, and Haad Sai Daeng, a longer stretch of sand on the tip of the cape facing Shark Island; together they form the most exclusive corner of the island, with a handful of resorts and pool villas on the rocks and slopes, clear water in both monsoons, and the blacktip reef sharks and green turtles that give the bay its name. There is no village, no shop and no ATM: the nearest 7-Eleven is in Chalok, ten minutes away, and Mae Haad is twenty.
Who should stay in Shark Bay and Sai Daeng?
This is the zone for couples, honeymooners and families who want a quiet resort with a pool, a beach a few steps away and sea life without a boat. Snorkellers see the sharks in knee-deep water almost every morning, best before nine, and turtles graze the seagrass off Sai Daeng through the year. It suits people who intend to spend most days at the resort and go to the villages for dinner or diving rather than the other way round, and who are happy to arrive by taxi and rent a scooter for the rest. It does not suit budget travellers, people without a vehicle who want to move around a lot, or anyone who wants nightlife within walking distance: the evening here is the restaurant of your own resort, or of the one next door.
The beaches are small and good. Shark Bay is turquoise, white-sand and calm through both the north-east and the south-west monsoon, which is rare on Koh Tao; access to the sand is through the beach resort, and some visitors are asked for a small fee. Taa Toh is a pocket-sized cove beside it. Sai Daeng is longer, with the reef starting a few metres out, swimmable at all tides in calm seasons, sun loungers and kayaks for hire and views across the strait to Koh Phangan and Koh Samui.
Resorts and villas in Shark Bay and Sai Daeng
The 9 properties listed here are the smallest group on the island and the most upscale: five resorts and four villa properties, mostly four and five stars, with the highest average guest score of any zone. The beach resorts on Shark Bay and Sai Daeng have sea-view rooms, pool villas and restaurants on the sand at roughly 3,000 to 9,000 THB a night, higher from mid-December to February. The villas on the rocks above the bay, two- to four-bedroom houses with private infinity pools, start around 6,000 THB and reach 15,000 THB or more; several are sold with a chef or a daily housekeeper. A dive resort and spa on the headland also runs its own boats. Every listing states whether the property is on the beach, on the cliff or on the slope behind, and how far the nearest road access is, because on this cape the last hundred metres are often stairs.
How do you get to Shark Bay and Sai Daeng?
From Mae Haad pier a pick-up truck taxi costs about 440 THB per vehicle to Shark Bay and 550 THB to Sai Daeng, fifteen to twenty minutes on paved but hilly roads through Chalok Baan Kao; the resorts here almost all offer a pier transfer, and it is worth taking it, since taxis are scarce on the cape after dark. By scooter it is ten minutes from Chalok and fifteen from Sairee; the road to Sai Daeng runs through palm groves and ends at a small temple, from where the resorts allow access to the beach. A long-tail from Chalok is the alternative when the road feels too steep, and kayaks rented on Sai Daeng reach Shark Island in ten to twenty minutes. Scooters rent from about 150 THB a day in Chalok; there is no rental on the cape itself.
What is there to do in Shark Bay and Sai Daeng?
Snorkelling is the reason to be here. The sharks are juvenile blacktips, harmless and habituated, and the turtles are the same individuals seen week after week; go early, keep your fins off the coral, and do not chase them. Sai Daeng has one of the best reefs reachable from a beach on Koh Tao, and a sunset paddle to Shark Island is a standard evening. The John Suwan viewpoint, with the finest panorama on the island over the two southern bays, is ten minutes away above Freedom Beach (50 to 100 THB), and the Sun Suwan viewpoint sits above the cape road. Chalok Baan Kao supplies the restaurants, the dive schools, the 7-Eleven and the clinic; Sairee's beach bars and fire shows are fifteen to twenty minutes by taxi or scooter. Dive boats from Chalok reach Shark Island, Southwest Pinnacle and the Sattakut wreck in minutes.
When to stay in Shark Bay and Sai Daeng
Shark Bay is one of the few beaches on Koh Tao that guides list as calm in both seasons, sheltered from the north-east wind from November to March and from the south-west from April to October, so this cape works almost year-round; only the rough weeks of November and December, when boats to the island are cancelled, are best avoided. Turtles and sharks are seen throughout the year, most reliably in the calm mornings of February to April. Resort rates peak from mid-December to February and in July and August and fall in late May to June and November to early December, when a villa here can cost a third less than in high season.
