Boats must anchor at the deeper Loh Samah, requiring people to walk through a short section of rocks and jungle to reach Maya Bay itself.

[10] The Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation claims to be investigating ways to control tourist numbers amid concerns that visitors are destroying the environment at marine tourism spots.

The move was prompted by marine scientist Thon Thamrongnawasawat, who posted photos of large numbers of low-season tourists packed onto small Maya Beach.

[4] In March 2018, Thai authorities announced that Maya Beach would be closed to tourists for four months to allow it to recover from environmental damage due to excessive visitor numbers.

[11] The government will spend 100 million baht to construct a boat parking zone and floating pier to receive tourists.

[13] In June 2018, work on coral rehabilitation was initiated by the Marine National Park Operation Center 3 based in Trang.

On October 1, 2018, the Thai Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation announced that Maya Beach would be closed indefinitely, because tests performed during the four month closure earlier in the year found the ecological damage to be far more extensive than previously thought.

The director of the office, Songtam Suksawang, said that the beach "was completely destroyed, along with the plants which covered it," and that reopening would not occur until the ecosystem "fully recovers to a normal situation.

In 2022, the bay reopened to tourists, under strict protocols of no boats, no swimming and no more than a one hour visit per person for a limited number of visitors at a time.