Krabi

Introduction

Krabi, a coastal province in Thailand, is known for its unique geographical features. The province features distinctive rocky outcrops, known as limestone karst, as well as tropical rainforest and mangroves. A noteworthy feature of Krabi is a 40 million year old fossilised 'shell cemetery'. More than 100 offshore islands also come under the province, meaning one has plenty of water-related activities to do in Krabi.

Geography

The province features distinctive rocky outcrops, known as limestone karst, as well as tropical rainforest and mangroves. Krabi is recognised internationally by the huge rocks protruding out of water. A noteworthy feature of Krabi is a 40 million year old fossilised 'shell cemetery'.

Cities

Krabi town, a lively and bustling town, is the capital of the province. It is an excellent base for travelers to make trips to entire province. Transport is available from here to all nearby beaches and islands. Entertainment is readily available and nightspots are springing up rapidly.

Weather

Like much of Thailand, the weather here is of the tropical variety, meaning hot and humid conditions year-round. Temperatures hover around 32 °C during the day and 25 °C at night, with just a few degrees difference between the warmest and coolest months. Humidity is mostly around 80% or more, so be sure to drink enough fluids! November to February in general is the driest time of the year, with just some regular showers (later afternoon) and a mix of clouds and sun. Rain increases from March onwards, reaching a peak in August and September before preparing again for the somewhat drier and cooler season.

Sights and Activities

Ao Nang Bay

Sunset on Ao Nang Bay, Krabi

© Twinkle

A range of lovely beaches here contours a long limestone range. Few tourists to Krabi miss visiting Ao Nang. The bay has several tiny yet idyllic islands, accessible by boat. Railay Nopporat and Tubkak are some most popular beaches here. Railay Beach is tailormade for enjoy relaxing holidays in solitude. Swaying casuarina trees, which contour Nopporat Beach, make it fantastic. Tubkak Beach offers fresh sand blending in sea. With the backdrop of forests, it seems fantastic.

Railay

Railay is a peninsula just south of Ao Nang. However, towering cliffs make it impossible to access it by road. The inaccessibility factor endows it the feel of island. Railay beaches are ranked among the best in Thailand. You could decide to just laze at the beach or go for rock-climbing. At night, Railay becomes fairly quiet.

Koh Lanta

Thailand - Koh Lanta - Cove

© cleichter

Located just south of mainland Krabi, Koh Lanta is a lush, unspoilt scenic beauty. Biggest island in Krabi province, it is blessed with nine sandy beaches, catering to backpackers who wish to have their vacations in solitude. The western beaches here have particularly unblemished stretches of sand, and are very good for swimming.

Caves

Caves in Krabi, interspersed with stalactites and stalagmites, look mysterious. Traveling to these caves is in itself a pleasant experience. Khao Khanap Nam, accessible by boat from Chao Fa Pier, has some prehistoric paintings. Viking Cave at Phi Phi Lei Island is also known for its prehistoric murals. At Tham Phra Nang Nai, you would find a pool within the cave.

Rock-Climbing

The limestone cliffs surrounding Krabi seem to challenge the hiking enthusiasts. Hiking routes include quality limestone, steep, pocketed walls, overhangs and hanging stalactites. The rocky land between Tham Phra Nang and Rai Leh Beaches is a preferred place for hikers, with good climbing for beginners and experienced climbers. Skilled guides and climbing gear are readily available.

Khlong Thom

45 kilometres south of Krabi is Khlong Thom and the Emerald Pool and hot springs. Best way to get there is to rent a scooter. The pool is a large natural pool that is filled from thermal springs. The hot springs are about 3 kilometres away.

Tham Seva

Tiger Cave and Temple, just a 5 kilometres south of Krabi. You can't miss this place, its situated on the biggest Karst around. Walk the 1,200 steps to the top for a great view. But watch out for the monkeys, they will steal everything you have.

Weather

Like much of Thailand, the weather here is of the tropical variety, meaning hot and humid conditions year-round. Temperatures hover around 32 °C during the day and 25 °C at night, with just a few degrees difference between the warmest and coolest months. Humidity is mostly around 80% or more, so be sure to drink enough fluids! November to February in general is the driest time of the year, with just some regular showers (later afternoon) and a mix of clouds and sun. Rain increases from March onwards, reaching a peak in August and September before preparing again for the somewhat drier and cooler season.

Getting There

By Plane

Krabi Airport (KBV) has regular connections with Kuala Lumpur, Bangkok and Singapore. Tiger Airways, a budget airline, handles the Singapore - Krabi traffic. Bangkok Airways also flies to Bangkok and Koh Samui. Air Asia flies to Kuala Lumpur. There are even seasonal flights directly to Krabi from Helsinki, Warsaw, Copenhagen, Stockholm, Goa, Oslo and Gothenburg.

There is a bus / shared minibus from the airport to Krabi bus terminal (80 Baht) / Krabi town (90 Baht) and Ao Nang (150 Baht). The counter at the airport selling the bus ticket might switch you a bit later to a minibus (the minibus stop in Krabi town is in Chaofa rd. near Ruamjai rd., the bus more convenient in Udonkit rd.). For going to the airport ask your hotel of they can arrange it, the bus stops are not well marked. In Ao Nang there is one close to the Railay beach boat stop, in Krabi town at Utarakit road. Songthaw's (shared pickup) you can find outside the airport on the mainroad (highway 4) to Krabi town (50 Baht), from Krabi town Utarakit rd. and Maharaj 10 (in front of Krabi River View Hotel).

By Train

Krabi does not have a railway station. Surat Thani has a station and you can transfer onto buses to Krabi from there.

By Car

Krabi is just off Hwy 4. It is 784 kilometres south of Bangkok, 165 kilometres by road to Phuket, and 80 kilometres to Phang Nga.

By Bus

There are several daily daytime and overnight buses from Bangkok's Southern Bus Terminal (tel. +66 2 4351199, 12 hours, 600-900 baht).

For a bus from Krabi to Bangkok there is a choice of either a private bus company or BKS, the government-supervised bus company. Entering the Krabi Bus Station's front entrance, the BKS ticket vendor is to your left. The private company ticket sellers are to your right. You will have your choice of Bangkok destinations: the Northern Bus Terminal (Mo Chit) or the Southern Bus Terminal (Sai Tai Mai). Mo Chit is the better choice if you are heading north immediately, say to Chiang Mai, as buses to the north leave from Mo Chit. Mo Chit is also marginally closer to downtown if you are staying in Bangkok.

Surat Thani—a major east-coast bus, rail, and ferry hub—is about 3-3.5 hr away. Pantip Bus Company runs ten buses per day to Surat Thani from Krabi, the first at 04:30, then one just about every hour until the last at 16:00. Fare is 150 baht (2016). These buses stop frequently to let people on and off. A faster option might is a minivan. You will see a row of white minivans parked at the bus terminal. These travel to Surat Thani and other destinations regularly. Fare is 180 baht (July 2016. The journey will take 2-2.5 hr. Beware of a little scam that the minivans like to play with their taxi driving pals: when in-bound, the minivans frequently stop at a tiny restaurant about 75 m from the bus station proper. Here you will be besieged by taxi drivers offering to take you to Ao Nang (where 90% of in-bound Krabi passengers want to go) for 400 baht. If you walk to the bus station (look for the big buses) you can catch a songthaew to Ao Nang for 60 baht (songthaew service stops at night).

Phuket airport has several buses direct to Krabi airport. There are also hourly mini-buses that make the two hour run (more likely to be 3 hours) from Phuket's bus station to Krabi town (120 baht).

Hat Yai is just over four hours away by minibus (250 baht). Generally, they stop where you want.

Ao Nang is well-served by white songthaews that run from the bus station and the 7-Eleven on Maharaj Rd in Krabi Town via Klong Jilard, Sai Tai, Ao Nang Junction Village, and Noppharat Thara Beach. (50 Baht until 18:00, 60 Baht 18:00–22:00, at the stop on Maharaj Rd/7-Eleven is a sign stating the price). They run every ten minutes during the day and every 30 minutes from 18:00-22:00.

By Boat

Several daily ferries connect Krabi with Ko Phi Phi, Ko Jum and Ko Lanta, though most depart in the morning. Tickets can be purchased at the dock or from tourist offices and most local guesthouses and hotels. The normal passenger ferry does not start from the centre of town anymore, but from a new passenger port about 3 km outside Krabi. Free taxi transfer to the pier should be included in the price of your ticket. If your boat starts from the old piers in the centre of town (Chao Fah Pier or Phi Phi Pier), you are most likely on a more expensive and longer tourist boat ride. Also, make sure that when you arrive at the airport the taxi driver takes you to the correct pier. Many times they'll take you to a travel agent near the old pier and sell you additional accommodations or services. Only buy the ticket you need. Prices often get cheaper the closer you get to your next destination.

Getting Around

By Car

• Krabi Friendly Car Rental, ☎ +66 75 612558, +66 81 6071494. You must post a "bond" (by credit card) in case someone who is uninsured runs into you or you are at fault. This is 10,000 baht and is returned to you at the end of the hire if no problems. 1,300 baht per day, plus refill of petrol.

Renting a motorbike is the cheapest way to explore sites outside of Krabi town. A reliable bike for 24 hours costs 150-200 baht.

• MotoKrabi Scooter Rental, ☎ +66 91 413 7811, e-mail: [email protected]. Daily, 09:00-22:00. Reliable motorbikes including small and big models, Click, PCX150, Honda Phantom and even tuk-tuks. Friendly owner, speaking English/Russian. Free delivery and cash deposit instead of passport.

By Public Transport

You can use either the songthaew or a taxi. From the bus station to town centre a taxi will cost 100 baht as it is about a 4-kilometre trip.

With a songthaew, opposite and a couple of hundred metres up from the pier, opposite the police station, is a songthaew stop at Maharaj Soi 7. Blue ones go to Tesco Lotus and other out of town places. Brown ones go to the bus station and charge 20 Baht. Blue with white/yellow/red stripe go to the airport, 50 Baht.

To get to and from Ao Nang, in the centre of Krabi town on Maharaj Rd (main road) near the traffic lights where male statues hold them up is the Vogue Department Store. A white songthaew goes from here to Ao Nang and costs 50 Baht (60 in the evening). Most will go to Ao Nang via Nopparat Thara. These white ones also start from the bus terminal. Fare from Ao Nang is 50 Baht to Krabi center before 18:00. With the songthaew, push the button to stop where you want to get off, then pay the driver.

Eat

At night there is a charming night market close to the promenade next to the piers. Food is good and cheap, with Muslim influences. From time to time the town organizes shows on a small stage next to the market, beer is quite reasonable on this night market.
An even better market can be found on Maharaj Soi 10 in the centre of town. This market has plenty of fresh fruit and lots of authentic cooked food. Only a few places have menus, otherwise point and enjoy. This market does not sell alcohol.
There is also the new Walking Street night market, between Vogue Department store and Vieng Thong Hotel, F-Su, 17:00-22:00 which sells food, drinks and general items such as clothes and handicrafts, and there is a largish seating area.

Not to be missed is the covered morning market (the biggest in south Thailand) on Maharaj Soi 9 (behind the Shell station). For early birds only. After 08:00 all the action is subsiding. Exactly at that time you can watch a show of national pride: the national anthem is played and almost everyone comes to a standstill for the duration. The best place to get all kinds of fresh fruit and vegetable, khao niao (sticky rice), Patong Khoo, cha rohn (sweetened Thai tea), or fresh hot soy milk. The section of fresh fish and meat sellers is for hardened stomachs only.

During low season very few restaurants open at all. The floating restaurant (RuenPae) is open as well as a couple near the tourist area towards the pier, but in the town very few at all. The floating restaurant does brilliant seafood at a reasonable price as well as providing mosquito coils to keep these pests away from your legs.

• Arun (Near Relax). Good breakfast place with decent Thai coffee. Closed during low season.
• Le Gateau (Utarakit Rd). 10:00-21:00. Charming little French place that serves good coffees and desserts, Thai food, and a limited Western menu featuring steaks. Good place to take a date.
• May & Mark's House Cafe & Restaurant, 6 Maharaj Soi 10, ☎ +66 75 612562, e-mail: [email protected]. 07:00-21:00. The story of this restaurant is fascinating. Husband and wife Matee and Kittiya opened a small restaurant in 1990. It was named May and Mark after their two children. It offered a selection of pre-cooked curries to be served over rice. Travelers would stop and stare at the pots of curry, then move on. The owners did not know why. Later they figured out that farangs were unaccustomed to eating food that had been cooked and then left to sit. To lure farangs, the owners added pancakes to the menu. Things didn't improve much. To make ends meet they started renting out rooms above the restaurant. One boarder, a man named John Kean from New Zealand, stayed for two months. When he was not off exploring Krabi, he taught the owners how to bake bread and prepare farang food. The menu expanded and so did the customer base. Other travelers shared their favourite recipes. A woman from California taught the owners how to whip up some Mexican food. Soon they were serving food from Sweden, Denmark, Germany and elsewhere from an extensive menu. They also do Thai food, coffee, and serve beer. Free Wi-Fi. This is primarily a restaurant, but the friendly owners also keeps some rooms above the restaurant.
• Relax Coffee (Near the pier). Great Western and Thai breakfasts plus decent coffee.
• Ruen Mai Restaurant, Marharat Rd (About 2 km from the centre). Nice atmosphere and very good local dishes from 100 baht. Open daily, but closes from 15:00-17:00.
• Sin-O-Cha Bakery (Next to Vogue Department Store). Also does meals and is a good place for breakfast or to have coffee and cake. At night the pavement pancake stall outside the bakery is always packed with locals. The pancakes are larger than those at other stalls.
• Tamarind Restaurant, Chao Fa Rd (Near A Mansion Hotel). Excellent thin and crispy pizza from 150-190 baht; french fries and the pricey, lacklustre tuna salad are disappointing.
• 31 Kitchen. Fantastic Thai food.

Drink

There are a number of bars and cafe bars in Krabi town centre that cater to tourists, expats and natives. A few of them will have live bands at the weekend belting out cover songs, though Rocky Bar has live music every night. Stick to the main areas and it is most unlikely you will have anything but a pleasant time.

Sleep

• A Mansion Hotel, 12/6 Chao Fa Rd (Near Tamarind Restaurant). A modern place with free high-speed Wi-Fi that reaches most of the rooms. 450-840 baht. edit
• Area 51, 1/13-14 Soi Ruamjit, ☎ +66 75 630257. Nice little guesthouse close to the city, with a bar downstairs. Friendly staff and free Wi-Fi. The place is also a local radio station. 200-300 baht.
• Blue Juice, 1/1 Chao Fa Rd, ☎ +66 75 630679. A diving shop, bar, guesthouse and travel agent, all in one building! 150-350 baht.
• Cha Guesthouse, 45 Utarakit Rd, ☎ +66 75 630609. Budget place. Single room, 150 baht. Double room for 220 (shared), 300 (private).
• Chan Cha Lay, 55 Utarakit Rd, ☎ +66 75 620952, e-mail: [email protected]. A small, budget, centrally located hotel. Clean and well-kept. Air-con rooms also available. From 250 baht, shared bath; 350 baht, private bath.
• Good Dream Guesthouse and Good Dream 2, 83 Utarakit Rd, ☎ +66 75 622993, fax: +66 75 622993, e-mail: [email protected]. Centrally located budget guest houses with many foreigner options for food and drink nearby and free Internet/Wi-Fi for guests. All rooms have hot water. 120-500 baht.
• Judy Guesthouse, Utarakit Rd (Next to Jamaica Seed Bar, above a convenience shop.). 150 baht.
• K Guesthouse, 15/25 Chao Fa Rd, ☎ +66 75 623166, e-mail: [email protected]. Rustic wooden exterior, Thai-style accommodation, different from the usual concrete buildings. 150-450 baht.
• KR Mansion, 52/1 Chao Fa Rd (close to town and next to the 7-Eleven on Chao Fa Rd), ☎ +66 75 612761, e-mail: [email protected]. Decent, well-priced fan or air-con rooms, good restaurant, travel services, a rooftop bar offering drinks with views and sunsets". 200-550 baht.
• Krabi Nature View Guesthouse (across from Chao Fah Park), ☎ +66 75 624037, +66 81 8922656, e-mail: [email protected]. Guesthouse with travel services. Walking distance to the main part of town and night market. Friendly staff and free Wi-Fi. 150-350 baht.
• Lipstic Guesthouse, 20 Maharaj Soi 2 (In an alley near Pizzeria Gusto in the centre of town), ☎ +66 75 612392, e-mail: [email protected]. 150-450 baht.
• No. 7 Guesthouse, Khongkha Rd. Hostel-style accommodation, with central TV lounge where you can watch DVD movies. Also free book exchange on site. Free Wi-Fi, and one hour of Internet in the lobby for each guest. 150-400 baht.
• Smile Guesthouse, 12 Khong Kha Rd, ☎ +66 75 624015, e-mail: info@smile-guesthouse.com. Hostel-style accommodation. 200-450 baht.
• Swallow Guesthouse, 31 Maharaj Soi 4, ☎ +66 75 612464. Check-out: 11:00. One of the longest running guesthouses in Krabi, right in town, minutes from all markets, shopping, etc. Tickets and tours for all area destinations and beyond. Extremely clean. Friendly service. Free in-room Wi-Fi up to 6 Mb. Towels provided. 200-350 baht fan rooms only.
• City Hotel, 15/2-4 Sukon Rd, fax: +66 75 621282. Standard Western-style hotel, comfortable but not luxurious. Facilities include hot water and cable TV. Clean, although dated. No restaurant. 450+ baht.
• Grand Tower Hotel, 9 Chao Fa Rd, ☎ +66 75 621456. A big hotel on Chao Fa Rd, with on-site restaurant. 300-700 baht.
• Greenhouse Hotel, 35 Maharaj Rd. Centrally located, some 200 m from the traffic lights and Vogue Shopping Centre. Breakfast is included in the price. Little English is spoken but this depends who is on duty at the time. Shower water is hot, no lift, and free Internet in the lobby. Reports of loud music late at night from from a nearby club. 850-1,000 baht.
• Thai Hotel, 7 Issara Rd, ☎ +66 75 611474-6. Standard Western-style hotel. Restaurant on the premises offers breakfast, lunch and dinner buffets. 400+ baht.
• Vieng Thong Hotel, 155 Utarakit Rd, ☎ +66 75 620207, e-mail: [email protected]. These prices are wishful thinking as it is barely adequate and has to be bargained down aggressively after looking at the rooms. A bit of a walk from Chao Fa Rd, close to the city-market. Some older rooms overlook the river and the Khao Khanab Nam rocks, the symbol of Krabi. The newer rooms have windows to a brick wall or to another room at just 2 m distance. There are conference rooms and an overpriced restaurant on the premises. 900-1,200 baht. e
• Krabi Loma Hotel, 20 Chao Fa Rd, ☎ +66 75 611168, e-mail: [email protected]. Standard hotel, with a swimming pool and restaurant on premises.
• Phanom Bencha Mountain Resort, ☎ +66 75 660501, e-mail: [email protected]. This garden resort is a 50-minute ride from downtown Krabi and the airport, and has a natural swimming pool and trekking opportunities in the adjacent Phanom Bencha National Park. This is an eco-resort. Low/high season prices are: double bungalows for 4 people 1,200/1,500 baht; single bungalows 600/900 baht.

View our map of accommodation in Krabi

Keep Connected

Internet

There are countless internet bars across the country in big and small towns. Internet cafés are widespread and most are inexpensive. Prices as low as 15 baht/hour are commonplace, and speed of connection is generally reasonable, but many cafes close at midnight. Higher prices prevail in major package-tourist destinations (60 baht/hour is typical, 120 baht/hour is not unusual). Keyloggers are all too often installed on the computers in cheap cafes, so be on your guard if using online banking, stock broking or even PayPal. Remember that in the smaller towns and more traditional areas the owners and staff of internet bars prefer if customers take off their shoes at the entrance and leave them outside. This might seem strange although this gesture goes a far way to make friends and give a positive image of foreigners to Thai people.

Outside the most competitive tourist areas, free Wi-Fi is not as common as in neighbouring countries in many budget hotels and guesthouses and they may charge small fee for Internet by LAN or Wi-Fi even if you bring your own laptop. Wi-Fi is commonly available in cafes and restaurants serving Westerners.

Phone

See also: International Telephone Calls

The international code for Thailand is 66. 999 connects to all emergency services. Standard GSM emergency number 112 is supported in mobile networks. 911 for Tourist Police Department, English available.

For mobile phone users, Thailand has three GSM mobile service providers - AIS, DTAC and Truemove - which may be useful if you have a mobile phone that will work on either one or both of the GSM 900 or 1800 frequency bands (consult your phone's technical specifications). If you have one, you can buy a prepaid SIM card for any of the Thai carriers in any convenience store for as little as 50-200 baht and charge it up as you go. Using your own mobile phone while on holiday with a Thai pre-paid SIM card can save a lot of money and lets you give your number to family back home, so they can have an emergency contact number.

Post

Thailand Post is the Thai postal service that deals with all local and international mail in Thailand. The business is operated from local post offices. Post offices are easy to recognise with their red white and blue motifs and the words 'Thailand Post' in English and Thai above the entrance. They are open from Monday to Saturday, usually 8:30am to 4:30pm (main ones until around 8:00pm), though keeping shorter hours on Saturdays (usually until 1:00pm). They are generally closed on Sundays and Public Holidays. Each post office offers a comprehensive service which includes an Express Mail Service (EMS) and parcel post. They also have a price calculator for letters, postcards and parcels, both domestically as well as internationally. They also have a track and trace system and money transfer services. If you want to send packages, it might be a good idea to check with private courier companies like DHL, TNT or UPS, as they are fast, reliable and generally quite competitively priced.

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