Day 1: Arrival
Having left our bags at the hotel we headed to see the sunset by the beach and grab a bite to eat. Krabi is a touristic area but it's not as much of a party area as Phuket is which is what I wanted to avoid.
Day 2: Phi Phi Islands Day Tour
For the next day we had a Speedboat tour booked through GetYourGuide. We got picked up around 7.30am from our accommodation and taken to the main beach where most of the tours start.
GetYourGuide offered several tours including a 4-island hoping tour which I also considered but given that the day trips are 7-9h long, I didn't want to rush from one place to the other. See what works for your interest and itinerary but the “simple” Phi Phi Islands tour was fine for me.
Phi Phi Islands is actually a combination of 6 islands of which most are not inhabited. There are snack/ food options for us day tourists but you basically stay for a short period of time and then move on. Be careful with monkey island - there are wild monkeys and they not only take your things such as your phone or wallet but if they bite you, you need to get to a hospital and get rabies shots. It was on the tour itinerary but I wasn't mad that we only stopped for pictures but didn't actually end up walking on the island. It's a small beach (think of a couple parking spots next to one another) and you don't have many options to avoid the monkeys.
Another part worth mentioning was Maya Beach - if you have seen pictures of Thailand chances are they were from there. Maya Beach is part of a national park and you need to pay an entry fee (400 Baht = 10,80€) which is used to preserve the marine life there but my gosh that place is TOURISTIC!!!
Basically when you get there, there are TONS of people getting on and off the boats and stand in line to get going. Once you get to the main meeting area aka the toilets (which were insanely unsanitary as you cannot flash there, you only have a bucket to add more water to the toilet…), you can walk down the wooden pier to get to a food court and then the actual beach. Since you are not allowed to swim or walk deep into the sea, you can basically just take pictures and then join the line again to get off the island. While it's beautiful, bare in mind it's really not a pleasant experience!!
The next part of the trip was a visit to a restaurant at the main island which was fine and this part was way less crowded. If we had more time there, it would have been a great opportunity to go hiking and seeing the island from above (if you don't have a sprained ankle of course). The hiking paths there reward you with a great panoramic view but going up is challenging. I obviously haven't gone but if you want to find out more in this blog post or this really detailed one provide a good picture.
The last stop was at Bamboo island which is another small island. It's beautiful to look at but you're only allowed to swim in a certain area (we snookled a bit further of the coast for a wile prior). Once again the toilets there were aweful (get used to this for basically all of Asia!!) and there was a small shop offering food and drinks which looked more than unhygienic. Our tour provided water bottles and a few snacks but otherwise I would recommend you buy things prior in a 7-11 or supermarket & take it with.
On that note: for those tours and their destinations take cash with! Generally entry fees for islands are 200-400 Baht (=5,40-10,80€) per island, extra tours or equipment can add another 100-400 Baht (2,70-10,80€) to your budget & getting food or drinks will cost you too. For example fresh coconut water costs around 50-90 Baht (=1,35-2,45€) in Ao Nang but at least 120 Baht (=3,24€) on those islands. My personal recommendation is to have 1,000 Baht aka 27€ in small bills with you per person (500 Baht only for food/ drinks) as this will cover any additional offers you might want to do later on.
We go dropped off by out hotel afterwards and headed to grab dinner after.
Day 3: Beach day
Ao Nang is one of the most well known beach towns in the Krabi region. The town basically consists of 2 main streets leading to the beach (think of the shape of a “V”). The beach itself is fairly long - almost 2km according to the Thai Government.
You can go swimming however keep in mind that it's not recommended during low tide or rain/ thunderstorms. The Thai Goverments just issued a weather warning for several regions that morning and we expected it to be raining all day however we were lucky and the sun actually came out and stayed until the late afternoon. We went to the beach and you can sit down in the sand on your towels but to be more comfortable we rented beach loungers. It's very common to have Thais randomly sitting around - you never really know if the items around are from them or not but eventually someone will come up to you otherwise. In this case the few people around were managing the loungers. The rent was 100 Bhat per lounger for the whole day (cash again!) and we got complimentary fruits when we sat down (this is also normal and perfectly fine to take). The water in Thailand is not super warm but still more comfortable that the Baltic Sea (if you ever swam there, you will know how cold it is…). It is salt water and not super clear - There are more shells when you get into the water but I didn't feel any sea weed or shells when you walk further in. Bare in mind that based on the season there can be jelly fish. It's always good to inform yourself before and keep an open eye when you first get in. Lots of places around have water shoes for sale too.
In the afternoon the weather got colder so we decided to stroll around the shops, get souvenirs & food.
Careful! Lots of shops DO NOT have fixed prices. Usually they don't display them at all and the sales men will give you a pretty high price. It's normal to “argue” with them and offer your price. You can pick a lower one and then meet them in the middle or insist on your price. Usually they accept (when you walk away, they usually give in) - you're wise to look up the currency conversion and think of how much an item is worth it to you. If someone wants to sell you something for 300 Baht or more you're veeeery likely overpaying them! I felt uncomfortably doing it but nonetheless I did it. It's hard with the currency but don't get scammed & always count your change too!
Day 4: Elephant Sanctuary Ao Nang
The next morning was another activity we booked over GetYourGuide that I absolutely loved and can recommend: Visiting an Elephant Sanctuary. Now bare in mind that elephant tourism is a thing in Thailand and there are providers who let you ride on the elephants which is not really ethical. Research the providers before you go - animals deserve to be treated as well as humans!
That being said I loved how they cared for their rescued elephants at the Ao Nang Elephant Sanctuary! We got picked up from our accommodation and learned about the animals in general and the individual elephants we were going to meet. Each elephant had their dedicated Mamouth (care taker) who has been with them for years and cares for them day in day out (the also live there). The price we paid for the tour is a donation towards the food and medicine they need. We got to give them bananas (under careful supervision), make small energy bars (some contained medicine) and bathed them with their care takers. It was a unique experience and I loved that the animals were their main point of focus, not just making money and allowing tourists to take pictures for the “beautiful Instagram culture” we live in… (my words, not theirs but I hate that nowadays everything is just picture perfect instead of living in the moment)
We got a small snack too and headed back to the accommodation afterwards. Let me tell you caring for elephants is tiring!! But it feels so rewarding too!! While we felt hungry, we went for lunch and then the weather alert hit Ao Nang and it was pouring down raining for the rest of the day. The downside to this is that there really isn't anything to do there when it rains… If you plan to go during rain season don't bother… You will be stuck in a cafe looking out and that's it.
Day 5: Rainy Day & Krabi Airport (KBV)
With the weather warning & the pouring rain still in tact we stayed inside until it was time to head to the airport. We originally had a taxi booked for a different time but decided to go earlier due to the weather.
Restaraunts in Ao Nang I can recommend
- Ali Baba Restaurant - The owner is super nice and it was my first time trying Thai Green Curry! Lots of good vegetarian options and good prices since they are further away from the beach area
- Jungle Kitchen - you can actually expect a small waiting line for this place as the food is good and once again fairly affordable for the area. We ate there twice and I tried Thai Yellow Curry for the first time (and had Green Curry again)!
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- TAN Hostel x Cafe - They have a good selection of breakfast items and the bowls are good though at on average 240 Baht (=6,50€) for a small-ish bowl, you can tell it's touristic prices
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