Asia - Snorkeling destination?

I need an advice on a good snorkeling destination in Asia. It will be a winter trip from LAX for a week or so.
I considered Fiji initially (where we had some great time in the past) but Asia would add some added benefits of spa, good food etc etc.
Thailand may be the most convenient option but I am not sure about exact destination - perhaps Phi Phi islands?
Any suggestion is appreciated.

I think that Thailand probably has some good options and am looking forward to seeing the responses. My wife and I are not very experienced snorkelers or swimmers. However, this past spring we spent several days on the north end of Phi Phi at the H.I. resort. There is pretty good protected snorkeling right at your door. There are also numerous boat trips to various sites. I do not really have any basis on which to compare the experience.

Seems to be alot of that kind of thing going on in Vietnam these days... off Phu Quoc, Nha Trang etc.

Not my scene at all!

Google Koh Tao padi diving you will not regret it

Thailand is a good bet;

Khao Lak has day trips out to the Simillan Islands. This is a fantastic destination for both Scuba and Snorkeling. I think the Simillans can also be reached by speedboat from Phuket.

Koh Lanta also has good day trip and I believe reasonable snorkeling of the beach. I have not stayed at Phi Phi (I'm a scuba diver and there are better places to stay when that is that you care about), but I have heard its a nice place.

I'm an avid snorkeler myself (sadly can't dive due to medical reasons) and pretty experienced in various places in Thailand. For that time of year, you'll need to be on the west coast (Andaman) side of the peninsula. I'll be a partial party pooper here and say that anything close-in to the coast where there's been a lot of development is going to be disappointing, this includes Phi Phi. By disappointing I mean few fish, dead/dying/bleached out coral, sediment and murkiness, etc. Koh Lanta is not reknowned for great snorkeling. I'd suggest focusing your Thailand research on two locations: Similans (your land base of operations best out of Khao Lak) or Tarutao National Park.

If it were a different time of year (March-Aug), I'd suggest Redang Island off Malaysia, but weather conditions there are a no-go in the winter. Do look into Sabah (Eastern Malaysia on the island of Borneo)--fly in/out of Kota Kinabalu. THAT would be a great trip with a lot of variety in activities not just snorkeling/beach. You might also consider Palawan in the Philippines (native food ain't so great though), maybe Boracay would be acceptable to you also.

We are headed to Bali in about a week and plan to snorkel in Bali, Komodo, and Rinka. Will let you know what we find.

dont look too close as you might be amazed to what garbage you can find not that far off shore in Bali, dumped on mass

I would second Kota Kinabalu. Went there a few years ago and stayed at the Shangri-La Tanjung Aru hotel. There are several small islands just off shore that we took a boat to. Warm, calm waters full of fish.

Maldives.

We are headed to Bali in about a week and plan to snorkel in Bali, Komodo, and Rinka. Will let you know what we find.

The snorkelling east of Bali will be amazing. We are just back from Bali,Java and Moyo. IMHO the snorkelling all the way from Lombok to Komodo is amazing. I have never had amazing snorkelling around Bali itself.

The Phi Phi islands has some great places to snorkel and the weather should be good at the time you plan to travel, but it will be busy. Enjoy!

Definitely Maldives. I used to live in Thailand and have been to some of the island areas like Ko Samet, Ko Samui, Phuket, Krabi, Ko Lanta, Phi Phi, and others and they are not at all comparable to the Maldives and what you will see there (dolphins, manta rays, octopus, species of fish).

We are headed to Bali in about a week and plan to snorkel in Bali, Komodo, and Rinka. Will let you know what we find.
Didn't snorkel in Bali, but Pink Beach off Komodo was very colorful, rich, and no damage. just watch out for the dragons....

Thailand is a good bet;

Khao Lak has day trips out to the Simillan Islands. This is a fantastic destination for both Scuba and Snorkeling. I think the Simillans can also be reached by speedboat from Phuket.

Koh Lanta also has good day trip and I believe reasonable snorkeling of the beach. I have not stayed at Phi Phi (I'm a scuba diver and there are better places to stay when that is that you care about), but I have heard its a nice place.

I am leaning towards Khao Lak and a couple tours to Simillan islands. Prices though seem quite high (in 3000Bt range) for snorkeling day tours on multiple websites. Is it normal pricing or perhaps better deals can be found in Khao Lak?

Vanuatu. Near Fiji with connections from Australia and NZ. Unbelievable. Was just there and it ws the best I've seen.