The Muslim island of Koh Panyi is a floating fishing village in the province of Phang Nga. The construction of this village was started at the end of the 18th century by an Indonesian man and the reason was to prevent the ownership of land by non-Thais. It is famous for its construction on floating stilts by Malay fishermen, and its population consists of 360 families or 1,685 people descended from two Javanese Muslim families who work at sea, who were the first to settle on Koh Panyi about 200 years ago. About a 20-minute long boat ride from Soracol Pier, this small island community consists of hundreds of huts, restaurants and villagers' homes built on stilts over the shallow sea, a remarkable and unique feat of informal architecture. In the village there is a school, mosque, health center, playground, lots of small souvenir shops and a number of great restaurants overlooking the Andaman Sea all floating, there are also huts offering overnight accommodations.