Kings Cruiser - Htms Krarm - Hardeep Shipwreck
Kings Cruiser Ferry Wreck

An unexpected and dramatic which event happened on the 4th of May 1997 made Phi Phi Island famous worldwide. The passenger cruiser "King Cruiser" sank and turned Phi Phi into a Mecca for wreck divers.

The "King Cruiser" was on its normal route from Phuket to Phi Phi Island. The weather was perfectly fine. It was a bright, partially clouded day. The sea lay calm, there was no wind. Everything was business as usual until the ship all of a sudden hit an undersea rock, gently shuddered to a halt and began to take water in trough a hole in the port side hull of the catamaran's twin hulls. Slowly, the big ferry began to sink.

The sinking process took an hour or so. All passengers, there were more than 600, were brought to safety. There was plenty of time for the rescue operation and no panic at all, as the surprised travellers watched the big ferry sank to the bottom of the Andaman Sea, only 30 meters down under their life-boats. The Kings Cruiser sank with the portside forward, under thundering delivery of gigantic air bubbles.

There is nothing like the thrill of diving into a wreck. Nobody can free himself of the spell that haunts a sunken ship. Imagination runs wild, as one meanders through the furniture and outcrops, as one swims from one room to another. The "King Cruiser" is an easy dive. The ship has large openings that grant the divers easy access to the spacey interior.

For divers the "King Cruiser" is a sensational and wonderful opportunity to study the process of marine life-forms taking possession of a new part of their environment. Huge shoals of colourful fish are already occupying the ship. Groupers guard the holes and crevices. Even the sedentary settlers - shells and corals - have begun to move in. Conveniently, the "King Cruiser" has seated itself in upright position in fairly shallow waters. The steering house hovers just 10 meters under the surface. The propellers (deepest point) rest 30 meters deep. Therefore, Divers who have never dived a wreck before can enjoy the supreme fascination of wreck-exploring! The most interesting areas are the passenger decks between 10 and 20 meters.

 About the "King Cruiser"
The ship was built in Japan 30 years ago and ploughed the sea between Phuket and Phi Phi island until she sunk on the 4th of May 1997. She was a comfortable catamaran-hull passenger-cruiser with 4 decks.

Gross Tonnage: 3,000 tons
Length: 85 m
Breadth:25 m
Depth:8 m
Engine capacity:10,000 Hp
Max Speed: 22 knots