Muslim Village of Panyee Island

The island of Muslims, Koh Panyi, is a floating fishing village in Phang Nga Province. The construction of this village began at the end of the 18th century by an Indonesian man, and the reason was to prevent non-Thai from owning land. It is famous for being built on floating stilts by Malay fishermen, and its population consists of 360 families. Or 1,685 people descended from two Muslim families from Java working at sea, who were the first to settle on Koh Panyi some 200 years ago. About a 20-minute longboat ride from Surakol Pier, this small island community is made up of hundreds of bungalows, restaurants and village houses built on stilts over the shallow sea, a remarkable and unique feat of informal architecture. In the village there is a school, a mosque, a health center, a playground, lots of small souvenir shops, a number of great restaurants overlooking the Andaman Sea, all floating, and there are also bungalows that offer overnight accommodations.