Phang Nga Bay and James Bond Island

North-east of Phuket, Phang Nga Bay is scattered with sheer limestone islands draped in jungle. Its most famous spot is Khao Phing Kan, known as James Bond Island since it appeared in The Man with the Golden Gun in 1974, where the slender rock of Ko Tapu rises straight out of the water just offshore.

Day trips by long-tail boat or larger cruiser usually include sea canoeing, with a guide paddling you through low caves into hidden lagoons inside the islands, and lunch at Ko Panyi, a Muslim fishing village built on stilts beneath a towering cliff.

The bay is sheltered, so this is a calmer outing than the open-sea islands and suits families and senior travellers. Wear clothes that can get wet and keep a hat handy; the guides time the cave visits to the tide.