On the morning of February 12th, I took the large catamaran from Ko Tao to Ko Pho-Ngan which took us an hour, followed by a 20-passenger speed boat to Surat Thani that took another hour. The tour company then had us board different minibusses to our destinations. I headed to Ao Nang Beach, Krabi, an hour away. The cost was 1,300 Baht—$40 USD.
The driver dropped me off at the Palace Ao Nang Resort—$18 USD per night— in the Ao Nang area of Krabi during a rain, thunder, and lightning storm. I took a quick dash from the minibus to the hotel reception area and quickly got to my room. Here is a view down to the pool and the huge karst in the background. The resort is just a block away from the beach and the many long-tail boats that would take you on tours or travel to the nearby Railay Beach.
After a couple of hours, the rains stopped so I was able to walk along the beachfront walkway and stop for dinner.
After dinner, I enjoyed visiting two entertainment venues. The small Beach Bar was just across from the beach about a block away from my hotel and featured jazz performers.
The other place was larger and across from the hotel. It featured a variety of performers including a guitarist and a few loud bands that played many favorites ranging from the Beatles, Eagles, Nirvana, and A/C D/C.
I spent 3 days in Ao Nang, Krabi, and the highlight was the all-day boat trip recommended by the hotel staff which included snorkeling, lunch on Phi Phi Island, Monkey Bay, Viking Caves, Bamboo Island, and Maya Bay —about 8 stops on this one. The cost was just 1,200 Baht—$37 USD—which is a big discount over the holiday charge of 2,800 baht—$86 USD.
On this snorkel trip, all but one other passengers were Thais. Some of the women were Muslim and when we snorkeled they swam with all their clothes on, including their hijabs.
Here is a view of Chicken Island on our way to visit several islands and snorkel.
We snorkeled in Lobsamah Bay, Pileh Bay, and Bamboo Island.
Even the rain squall did not stop us from snorkeling.
Here is a monkey we spotted on Monkey Island.
We toured the Maya Bay made famous by the movie “The Beach” starring Leo DiCaprio. After several years of closure due to overexposure, this beach was open for tourists, but there was no longer swimming allowed, nor were any boats allowed into the bay. Instead, our boat dropped us off a dock on the other side of the island along with hundreds of other tourists and boats and we had an hour to enjoy the now pristine beach.
Maya Bay drop-off point for tourists and their boats.
I am at pristine Maya Bay which was featured in the movie “The Beach” where boats are no longer allowed to enter nor moor nor is swimming allowed. It is enforced by whistle-blowing park police who are paid some of the 200 Baht admission fees to this park.
Boats queue up to pick up returning passengers. No docking allowed.
Hordes of tourists returning after visiting Maya Bay.
On Phi-Phi Island, we had lunch at a huge dining area where we enjoyed a buffet lunch with hundreds of other tourists from many of the other tour boats. It seemed like most of these tourists were Thais as well. At my table, there were a group of 8 women who came from Trang and were eager to practice their English as well as share plates of watermelon and pineapple.
Our last stop was on Bamboo Island where a whole fleet of tour boats was moored along the sandy beach and the nearby coral was filled with all types of fish and sea creatures. While swimming, I got nipped a few times by some aggressive white fish and that was enough snorkeling for me.
On my last night in Krabi, I again enjoyed the two music venues I had enjoyed the night before.
In the morning I awoke to a big rainstorm and spent my time having breakfast and lunch at a nearby restaurant. Afterward while waiting for the afternoon departure, I enjoyed relaxing at the hotel pool while the rain continued.
The minibus took me and a few other passengers to the Krabi Harbor. We traversed three huge tourist boats that were moored before we boarded a smaller 20-passenger speedboat bound for Phuket Harbor about an hour away across some rough seas. Once there, the tour company provided a minibus ride to our hotels. The cost of this scenic trip from the hotel in Krabi to the hotel in Phuket was 1,300 Baht—$40 USD—which was the same as I paid for the trip from Ko Tao to Krabi.
Our boat is passing Poda Island.
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