James Bond Island (Khao Phing Kan)

Why go

It is the view most Phang Nga Bay trips are sold on: Khao Tapu, a limestone needle about 20 m high standing in the water, which appeared as Scaramanga's hideout in The Man with the Golden Gun (1974).

Not for you if you dislike crowds and cannot leave early.

What you will find

Khao Phing Kan is a pair of limestone masses leaning against each other. Boats land on the beach between them, behind which there are souvenir stalls, and you look at Khao Tapu from there.

The needle is eroding: the authorities consider it the most fragile site in Ao Phang Nga National Park, and its stability was studied in 2021.

Getting there

By boat only, on a Phang Nga Bay day trip. From Phuket, trips either leave by boat from the east coast, around Ao Po, or drive 1 hour 30 to 2 hours to a mainland pier near Phang Nga town. On the listings we checked in November 2026, the day lasts about 10 hours by big boat, 9 to 10 by longtail and 8 to 9 by speedboat; a sunset cruise lasts about 8.

Before you go

You cannot land on Khao Tapu, and boats are not allowed close to it.

Boats crowd the beach from about 10 am to 1 pm: several guides advise leaving around 8 am.

Two guides give the Ao Phang Nga National Park fee as 300 baht for a foreign adult and 150 baht for a child; we could not read it on the park authority's own site. Many trips include it, others charge it separately: check your booking.