Explore tropical forests, hiking through valleys and up hills, walk along kilometres of beach with only footprints behind you, kayak through enchanted mangroves, swim, snorkel, scuba dive, and go fishing: you’ve got it all. The Mergui Archipelago is teeming with wildlife.

Due to government neglect and the region’s long isolation, its 800 plus islands have remained virtually untouched. They are composed of limestone and granite and vary in size from tiny to islands larger than Singapore. Most of them (we have yet to find one that isn’t) are covered in thick jungle growth, which drops into azure waters, interrupted only by beaches, rocky headlands, tidal rivers, and mangrove forests. Lampi, one the largest islands, is part national park and home to some of the planet’s oldest mangrove forests.

Animals on the islands include gibbons, pythons, civet cats, huge monitor lizards and the rabbit-sized mouse deer. Hornbills are a common sight, while kites and white-bellied sea eagles circle above every island and kingfishers dart around eerily quiet mangrove forests. Frigate birds, pacific reef egrets, green imperial pigeons, and emerald doves are just some of the birds native to this diverse archipelago.

Further out west, where the continental shelf drops off into the deep sea, a range of underwater mountains called the Burma Banks are a thrilling diving area for the experienced. We provide you with snorkelling equipment at no extra cost.

Boost our food supplies with the best produce possible: fresh fish directly from the sea! Cast for tuna, barracuda, mahi mahi, giant trevally, Spanish mackerel or snapper while sailing or when close to shore. Or go for the truly big guys and try your luck catching marlin and sailfish. Either bring your own rods or just use ours. Most of the local fishing boats in the area catch squid and cuttlefish and, if you want, we can always buy directly from them.

The UNESCO examined the Mergui Archipelago as a potential World Heritage Site for its biodiversity, and the organisation’s report concludes: “While the biodiversity is largely unknown, the intact vegetation on such an array of islands, with associated marine habitats and spectacular geomorphology, is likely to be of high global biodiversity significance. The biodiversity values of this set of forested continental islands, and the limited protection afforded such coastal islands elsewhere in the region, indicates that they are likely to be of global priority and form a potentially important trans-boundary World Heritage inscription.”