Ao Nang Beach, Krabi and Ko Phi Phi Don, Thailand

After spending a week in Chiang Mai and returning back to Pattaya for Christmas, we felt the next part of our winter break needed some relaxation.  As a result we split our time with three full days at Ao Nang Beach in Krabi and then three full days at Ko Phi Phi Don.

Krabi is well known for its amazing limestone cliffs and neighboring islands that provides bountiful exploring opportunities.  We stayed at the Holiday Inn within Ao Nang Beach.  The hotel was situated just across the street from the beach like many of the resorts, restaurants and local shops.  The town itself is small only taking about 30 minutes to walk from one end to the other.  All along the beach are the ever present long-tail boats awaiting to take you to the many islands and beaches for enjoyment.

While staying at Krabi we took a long-tail boat excursion to do some snorkeling in the clear waters of Paradise Island, Pakbia Island and Hong Island. We also had a great lunch right on Hong Beach!

In addition to this we spent two of our days at Railay Beach and also Phra Nang Beach. First let me explain Railay Beach.  The beach is only accessible by boat due to the high limestone cliffs.  The cliffs attract rock climbers from all over the world and the beach is consistently rated in the top beaches of the world. The water is crystal clear blue and such a relaxing place to visit, a true slice of paradise.

Phra Nang Beach is also only accessible by boat and is located just around some limestone cliffs from Railway Beach.  Accordingly it is also rated one of the top beaches in the world.  Both beaches are a broad strip of white sand completely surrounded by the cliffs, very relaxing places to spend our days in the sun.

Next we headed to Ko Phi Phi Don ("Ko" means island in Thai language).  The island lies between Phuket (one of our first trips as an expat family) and Krabi, accessible by a one hour speed boat ride from each of these resort towns.  The island was absolutely breathtaking.  The white sandy beach and beautiful sunsets made for the ultimate getaway we needed.

We took several excursions from the island.  First we took a four hour trip to Nui Bay and Lanah Bay for some spectacular snorkeling.

While an expat we have been able to "ring in the New Year" at some amazing places!

Another morning we hired a private speedboat to take us to Ko Phi Phi Lee Island located about a 30 minute ride away from our resort.  It is the second largest island following Ko Phi Phi Don.  The island consists of many steep limestone cliffs and has two shallow Bays, Maya and Loh Samah.  Maya Bay became most popular after the 2000 movie "The Beach" was filmed there.  We arrived to Maya Bay very early morning intentionally to avoid all the tour boats from Phuket and Krabi.  As a result we were only one of a handful of people on the beach.  This is one of my favorite beaches to visit due to the amazing scenery and shades of clear blue water.  Next we headed to Loh Samah Bay to do some snorkeling and enjoy the rest of our morning.

Lastly we visited Tonsai Village/Bay for an afternoon, also only accessible by a 20 minute long-tail boat ride.  I would consider this as the bustling heart of Phi Phi Island in contrast to the relaxation our resort part of the island offered.  The area consists of many tourist shops and restaurants just steps away from the beach.  This is a very popular destination for young backpackers looking to explore the neighboring islands during the day and party late into the evenings.

In conclusion, we had an amazing time on this part of our trip.  Much time had passed since we did a pure relaxing beach vacation and we found the perfect spot!