Myanmar (Mergui Archipelago)

The Mergui Archipelago sprawls across roughly 400 kilometres of the Andaman Sea in a loose scatter of some 800 largely uninhabited islands, and the cruising here feels genuinely removed from the modern world in a way that almost nowhere else still manages.

Limestone karst towers rise straight out of flat green water, white sand beaches curve into dense jungle, and leopard sharks drift through the shallows with a calm indifference to human company. The Moken sea gypsies still move seasonally through these waters in their kabang houseboats, and a respectful, unhurried encounter with one of their communities is among the more quietly affecting experiences offshore Asia can offer.

Between November and April the northeast monsoon delivers steady, moderate winds of 10–18 knots, making for comfortable day sailing with well-protected anchorages every few hours. Passages tend to be short and manageable — think 15 to 30 nautical miles between islands — and night anchoring in calm bays is generally straightforward once you have waypoints you trust.

Myeik (formerly Mergui) is the primary gateway and the only realistic provisioning point; stock up thoroughly before heading south, as resupply options vanish quickly. Fresh fish bought directly from local fishermen is easy and worthwhile.

Logistics require patience. Liveaboard charters operate out of Ranong in Thailand, crossing into Myanmar waters under a permit system that your operator handles, though the paperwork can shift without much notice. Bareboat chartering remains effectively unavailable; this is skippered-liveaboard territory. Satellite communications and a solid medical kit are non-negotiable given how far you are from anything resembling infrastructure.

Best suited to experienced offshore sailors comfortable with bureaucratic uncertainty and minimal shoreside amenities; avoid entirely outside November to April when the southwest monsoon turns the sea genuinely hostile.