We woke early and refreshed which I guess means the hotel room was on the better side. Our bellies were hungry for some genuine Thai food it seemed we had to do the obvious.
Alas breakfast would have to wait, outside our room was that hotel pool just begging for somebody to take a dip in its cool waters. How could we resist. A quick swim turned in to a couple of hours relaxing beside the pool with the feeling of that tropical sun warming our bodies. Eventually the need for some food and wanting to get out in Nai Yang won. We would only have one day here and sitting beside the pool was not the best thing to do.
The resort was quite large, lots of 2 or was it 3 storey buildings spread around the grounds which felt like a well manicured jungle with the amount of foliage spread around. The slight downside, our quest for lower cost rooms had us placed far from reception and the beach. Still it was only a few minutes walk.
Once outside we had our first views of Nai Yang. It turns out really to be one road running down the side of the beach with the resorts hidden on the landward side. Straddling the road were shops and restaurants, the beach side being most free from any large buildings. It felt like a nice compromise between nature and development with trees growing through roads and inside shops. It was small, not much to see, which for us meant looking for a place to eat wouldn't take long.
We sat down in a beach front cafe, open ended on to the sea and we had a good view of the long sandy beach. It looked remarkably clean and free from any signs of human flotsam washed up along its length. So food was ordered, Breakfast was chicken and noodles with the necessary bottle of cooling Thai beer.
Nai Yang appeared to be near the south side of the beach with a headland blocking us going any further so we chose head in a northerly direction. The further up the beach we went the more natural it became. A few sparse buildings, no deckchairs cluttering the beach, just the sun, the sea, the beach and the trees. Very few people, local or tourists, which made it feel like a personal desert island.
If we kept going at some point we would have reached the airport. Not that we knew it was there. We only noticed one aircraft and that was late at night, only giving itself away by its lights flashing in the distance. After an hour or two of sitting around under a tree and feeling the waves tickle our feet we headed back to Nai Yang. Tanking the road and soon we were back at the resort. As were were travelling tomorrow finding out about transport would be a good idea.
No bus service that we could find serves Nai Yang directly so it would have to be a taxi ride to the nearest bus stop to catch some transport heading north to our next resort, Khao Lak.
Our Enquiries at the hotel indicated that it would be 300THB for the trip but over the road at the taxi stand we were offered 250THB. 50 Baht cheaper but its really only a few pounds or dollars. We had said we would come back tomorrow for the ride and headed for dinner.
Another restaurant on the beach again and you cant get more on the beach than this. Luckily the monsoons were not bringing rain which made it a pleasant evening.
Tom Yum soup was needed and quickly served up. It was tasty but not the best we have had. It could be we are setting our standards a little to high.
A little walk after dinner and with Nai Yang being quite small the walk was short. Back to the hotel and a night time swim in the pool which we still had to ourselves.
Looking back at Nai Yang there is not much there. Nightlife and life in general seemed very quiet with not much happening. There are enough places to eat and drink to have something different every day for maybe a week. The beach was fantastic, clean and not busy. It’s location near Phuket Airport gives it some points as a place to stop off for a few days.
The one thing that we missed out on was actually getting in the water. I guess we never realized how short one day can be and time soon ran out. The waves were quite large and red flags were flying but it was still a missed opportunity.
Maybe Next time.
Tomorrow would be travelling to destination 2. Khao Lak, north of Phuket Island and with a 4 night stay, maybe I’ll get to swim in the sea.
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