Sunrise Gondola: Watch the sunrise from a boat in the mangrove swamps of Koh Lanta – Travel Friday

Do you want to do a boat excursion on Koh Lanta that certainly distinguishes itself from the ‘normal’ longtail tours to nearby islands? In that case, you should book yourself for a Sunrise Gondola in the mangrove swamp of Koh Lanta. Our family did it a few weeks ago and can later say that it was one of the best excursions we did on Koh Lanta.

The classic boat trips on Koh Lanta usually involve the use of a longtail boat or speedboat whose engine noise thumps in time with the high waves – which, incidentally, have a tendency to cause motion sickness. Add to that a bit of scorching sun and the classic whining about both children and applying sunscreen to yourself respectively. These boat trips certainly also offer turquoise water, snorkeling and paradisiacal white beaches – which you rarely have to yourself. However, our experience with a Sunrise Gondola ride in the mangrove swamp is something rather Other…

…with peace and quiet as key words. Here we slowly glide forward into the mangrove swamp to the sound of oars meeting water, but also various chirps, beeps and cackles from all the inhabitants of the mangrove swamp as they slowly awaken to life after the night’s toil.

Sunrise Gondola: Watch the sunrise from a boat in the mangrove swamps of Koh Lanta

A car picks us up at 5 a.m. from our accommodation in Klong Dao and takes us to the small traditional village of Tung Yee Peng, located on the east coast of Koh Lanta Yai.

It is still completely dark outside and we can barely see where we are putting our feet. Once on site we receive a small overview of the upcoming adventures and an invitation to spray on enough mosquito spray. Our guide tells us that the tour was created to allow visitors to get close to nature while supporting sustainable tourism that benefits local people. The number of boats that can go out in the morning is limited to a maximum of ten – no longtail boats are allowed to go out at the same time as the gondola boats.

After the briefing it’s time to trudge onto the harbor using the light of flashlights and mobile phones. We are a group of four on site who get on each boat in the company of a guide and a rower who stands at the back and rows.

Each boat has a small roof with white curtains, a small table and a few benches covered with cushions.

There is a lot to pay attention to! The nicest things for us to see are the monkeys, the kingfishers and all those strange ‘mudskippers’, ie strange little jumping fish that can live both in the water and on land.

It is a truly relaxing feeling to glide past the mangrove swamps towards Lanta Bay.

While you wait for the sun to show up, a local breakfast is served and included in the tour. One of the packages contains rice and fish (nice to try, but not something I will incorporate into my daily breakfast routine). I prefer the dessert version Khao Tom Mat These are small steamed bundles wrapped in banana leaves. The base consists of glutinous rice, often with banana in the middle. All the glory is then sweetened with coconut milk and palm sugar or coconut sugar. We also get a fruit bowl and a hot drink (tea, coffee or chocolate milk).

And if you look, we soon see a small glowing orb ahead…

…which ascends quickly into the firmament. I’m always fascinated by how quickly it happens: that first trembling moment when we see the first glimmer of light is over in the blink of an eye! We are lucky enough to see an absolutely beautiful sunrise before the clouds come in and cast a blue haze over our early morning.

We all agree that this is an experience to remember for a long time!

There is an entire camera crew from national television on one of our company’s gondolas to record this ride, which is of course unique. The model smiles radiantly as we glide past her boat on the way home…

…to end the tour where it began, in the small village of Tung Yee Peng.

It’s a strange experience to come back and see the little pier in daylight, when we got on the boats earlier that morning everything was shrouded in darkness.

After a successful boat trip we wave thank you and hello and then sit in the car home happy, full and satisfied (transport is included in the price). When we get back to the apartment around 8am, the early morning catches up with us all and we all sleep for a few hours. A tip is therefore not to make too grand plans immediately after the sunrise excursion, but make sure you create space for a little rest when you return home. Anyway, after such a relaxing excursion, any kind of stress feels like a complete waste of time.

The trip gets five excursion thumbs up out of a possible five!

Good to know about the Sunrise Gondola

• What is included in the tour? Pick-up/drop-off at accommodation, gondola ride and breakfast. We are picked up at Slow Down (Klong Dao) around 5:15 am and back home about three hours later.
• Which animals can you see? According to our guide you can see kingfishers, herons, monkeys and otters, but also a whole range of crabs in different colors and sizes. Snakes? Yes, those exist too – you want that not being alone at night in the mangrove swamp.
• Booking and price: We book the tour at the Slow Down reception and pay 1600 baht/person. If you would like to book directly through the organizer, please contact WhatsApp: +66 62 059 3872 (Ananya) or +66 62 082 5848 (Gunn). Children under 6 years old can participate for free.
• More information and current prices you think on the Sunrise Gondola website.

Here you can read about our previous long stays in Thailand. Cover image: Sunrise Gondola in the mangrove swamp, Koh Lanta. Image and text: Annika Myhre/Resfredag.se