Man is the main culprit in the deterioration of natural landscapes and sometimes it is necessary to take drastic measures to stop the carnage. Maya Bay beach on the Thai island of Koh Phi Phi Leh in the Andaman Sea is one of those ultra-visited sites that tourist activity has ended up distorting, and for good reason, it is not unknown to the great public:it is the setting of the film La Plage released in 2000 with Leonardo DiCaprio, Virginie Ledoyen and Guillaume Canet. The damage caused by its great popularity has prompted the local authorities to close this magical place to tourists for at least 4 months each year. The decision took effect on June 1, 2018, so you will have to wait until next October to have the chance to tread the sands of Maya Bay again. This respite will allow the marine life and especially the coral reefs to recover after being damaged by the sand moved by the comings and goings of tourists.
If many beaches were already closed between the period of May and October in Thailand because of the monsoon, Maya bay remained open all year round due to high attendance. When it reopens, daily tourist numbers will be limited to 2,000. em> I've been trying to get this campaign done for years but as everyone knows Thailand's economy is based on the tourism industry which makes a lot of money that's why not many people listened before [what I had to say]. […] This should have been done 10 years ago, but what matters is that it was finally put in place ". The challenge for the government will now be to manage to make a profit while respecting nature and its sensitive fauna. This is already a very good start!
