Many people think of Krabi as a single destination when in fact it is a province of Thailand made up of many destinations in which to enjoy holidays and travel. Krabi Town is the provincial capital and along the coast are beach resort towns such as Ao Nang and Khlong Thom. The islands within the Krabi region are places such as Phi Phi Island, Railay (a peninsula that is only reached by boat so it has an island feel) and Koh Lanta.
Places
Railay is a peninsula with three beaches – two are sandy and offer fantastic swimming and the other is a very picturesque mangrove encroached bay. Haad Railay is until recently a popular ‘hippy’ hang-out. Pra Nang Beach (Princess Cave Beach) next door to Railay is an area with limestone scenery, which dominates the entire region offering a fascinating network of cave systems, both inland and along the coastline. Phra Nang Beach (Princess Cave Beach) is considered by many to be one of the most beautiful beaches in the world and so many Hollywood movies have been shot there.
Koh Phi Phi is a National Park that has an area of 242,437 Rai in which 200,849 Rai is water. There are 3 distinctive kinds of forest here: moist evergreen forests, mangrove forests and peat swamp forests. Koh Phi Phi (Phi Phi Islands) are an archipelago. The surrounding sea is home to a variety of underwater anemones, coral reefs, and colorful marine life. The area is also a popular destination for snorkeling. Koh Phi Phi Don (Phi Phi Don Island) covers an area of 28 square km. Popular attractions are the twin bays with curving beaches of Ao Ton Sai and Ao Lo Da Lam. Koh Phi Phi Le covering an area of only 6.6 square kilometers, Phi Phi Le Island is surrounded by limestone mountains and sheer cliffs plunging hundreds of meters to the sea. The sea is 20 meters deep and the deepest point in the south of the island is around 34 meters. Ko Phi Phi Le has bays such as Ao Pi Le, Ao Maya, and Ao Lo Sa Ma. In the north-east of the island is a large cave called Tham Viking.
Haad Noppharat Thara is situated 17 km from the provincial town of Krabi, Haad Noppharat Thara (Noppharat Thara Beach) is a 3-km long sandy beach lined with dense casuarinas. The beach, paved with tiny seashells, was formerly called Hat Khlong Haeng. The area is a long beach and stretches all the way to the island of Ko Khao Pak Khlong.
Su-san Hoi (Shell Cemetery) Once a large freshwater swamp, the habitat of diverse mollusks of about 2 cm in size, Su-san Hoi features a slab formed from a huge number of embedded various types of mollusks which can be dated to approximately 40 million years ago. With changes on the surface of the earth, seawater flooded the freshwater swamp and the limestone elements in the seawater enveloped the submerged mollusks resulting in a homogenous layer of fossilized mollusk shells forty centimeters thick known as Shelley Limestone. With geographical upheavals, the limestone layer is now distributed in great broken sheets of impressive magnitude on the seashore.
Ao Nang is Krabi's most developed beach resort. Fringed by palms, the long beach is backed by a wide range of accommodation including resorts, bungalows and guesthouses. There are more than 83 offshore islands, which some of them are shaped like a boot, junk, or parrot’s head. Koh Poda, Koh Mo and Koh Thap are popular destinations among tourists for their beaches and coral reefs. They are popular islands for diving and snorkeling.
Koh Lanta National Park covers a total area of 152 square kilometers. The islands are less developed than the majority of Thai islands and have only recently seen luxury accommodation introduced. Some major islands in the area are Koh Lanta Yai, Koh Lanta Noi, Koh Taleng Beng, as well as, other surrounding islands like Mu Koh Ha, Mu Koh Rok, and Koh Ngai.
Than Bokkhorani National Park covers an area of 121 square km. The landscape is dominated by a series of limestone mountains, evergreen forests, mangrove forests, and numerous islands. The main flora is evergreen forest, peat swamp forest, strand forest, and mangrove forest, as well as, various types of marine flora. Other attractions include: Than Bokkhorani which is home to various flowing streams and numerous pools of different cascades among a shady forested area and two caves Tham Lot and Tham Phi Hua to Namtok Ron Khlong Thom. This area is full of hot springs in a shady forest. The temperature is not too hot at 40-50 degrees Celsius. The hot springs and cool streams converge on a slope to form lovely cascades with warm water.
Khao Pra - Bang Khram Wildlife Sanctuary is located at Tambon Khlong Thom Nuea. Comprising lowland forest, this area features the Emerald Pool or Sa Morakot, which are 3 hot springs with a temperature of 30 - 50 degrees Celsius. The forest is home to numerous flora and rare birds like Gurney's Pitta, Rufous-collared Kingfisher, and Black Hornbill. There is also a 2.7-km nature trail known as the Tina Jollife (Thung Tiao) Trail, named after an English activist wanting to conserve this batch of rainforest.
Pa Phru Tha Pom Khlong Song Nam Pa Phru or peat swamp forest of the canal of Tha Pom features a number of water sources, which originate from the Chong Phra Kaeo pool. Tha Pom is called Khlong Song Nam by the locals, which in Thai literally means "two water canal", because of its special feature location where crystal clear freshwater, which the pool’s floor and the roots of Lumphi palm (Eleiodoxa conferta) are virtually visible, meets seawater from the mangrove forest. Tha Pom features a natural trail made of lath.
Activities
Apart from its natural attractions, Krabi is also a popular place for scuba diving and snorkeling, kayaking, rock climbing, and jungle treks by foot, mountain bike or elephant. Famous spots for kayaking include Koh Hong, Koh Karot, Koh Phak Bia, Koh Ku Du, and Tha Len, while Tham Phra Nang and Haad Railay are a mecca for climbers from all over the world. Abseiling has currently become another popular sport in Krabi.
Diving & Snorkeling Diving in Krabi is one of the favorite pastimes of tourists because the waters are home to the likes of friendly leopard and whale sharks, turtles, moray eels and dolphins.
Rock Climbing in Krabi has grown very popular over recent years.
Sea Kayaking With a coastline composed of mangroves, limestone, small coves, caves and islands, and an interior with rivers lined with cave systems. Krabi provides a popular environment for kayaking.
Bird Watching There are many hard-to-find birds such as: Gurneys, Finfoots, Bigwinged Brown Kingfishers, Egrets, Bitterns and Herons etc.
Sailing & Cruising Krabi has plenty of anchorages but usually deserted.
Fishing Fishers catch the likes of marlin, sailfish barracuda and tuna.
Jungle Trekking in Krabi’s forests with attractive flora and fauna are popular for trekking. The Khao Phanom
Bencha National Park and the Khao Pra-Bang Khram are regarded as the two of the favorites among trekkers.
Golf Krabi has one 18-hole golf course to the south of Krabi town with a new development currently underway by an international group including Colin Montgomery.
Spa There are plenty of spas located in the major hotels and resorts. The treatment normally includes both traditional remedies and modern techniques.
Thai Massage Traditional Thai massage, characterized by its holistic approach to health is aimed at enhancing not only one’s physical and emotional state but also to allow one to grow spiritually. Massage parlors can be found at all major hotels and outside at private enterprises.