Oh No! A Popular Beach In Thailand Has Been Closed Indefinitely

That's because on Tuesday, Thai authorities announced that the popular beach will be closed indefinitely.

Maya Bay, which was made popular by the film 'The Beach' starring Leonardo DiCaprio, was closed for four months on 1 June to enable the area's coral reefs to recover.

However, authorities decided that four months were not enough as the damage to the reefs was too severe.

Songtham Sukswang, the director of the Office of National Parks, told news agency Reuters that more time is required for the reefs to completely heal.

How long, you ask?

“We need at least a year or even up to two years or maybe more for the environment to recover - this include the coral reefs, mangrove, and the beach,” Songtham was quoted as saying.

While you may think two years is super long of a time to keep the beach closed, we need to consider the effects tourism had on the poor beach ever since Leonardo DiCaprio made it famous back in 2000.

According to the news report, more than 6,000 tourists from nearby resort islands Phuket, Krabi and Koh Phi Phi throng the beach daily

As a result, it was estimated that 80 per cent of the coral around Maya Bay has been destroyed. So, just let her rest, OK?