The Beach at Nai Yang, Thailand

Nai Yang Beach turned out to be quite a surprise on our trip to Thailand. The location is just south of Phuket international airport. That was the main reason we decide to stay here before heading off to other locations.



We had not seen a Thailand beach for many months and we eager to get our feet on the sand. Really any beach would have done. So it came as quite a pleasant shock seeing long stretch of sand.



Situated in Sirinat National Park, which means construction is kept to am minimum and anything built has strict regulations.



While we were there in the low season most of the beach was free from signs of tourism. There were just a few sun-beds at the busier part of town.  Maybe in the high season month the place become more tourist but I hope not.

The north end of the beach seemed the most pristine. There seemed to be nothing there apart from the trees and the sea with the golden sand in-between.



During the evening we has our meal on the beach, luckily the weather was favorable as it was supposed to be monsoon season.

This is definitely our style of beach, very quiet and not any sign of tourist traps anyplace. The hotels, restaurants a a few shops were all close together, just at the edge of the beach, but it never felt crowded in the little village.

Goodbye Kamala Goodbye Holiday Day 17

Our final and last day had arrived. We would be leaving Phuket and Thailand behind in a few hours time and jetting off back to concrete, skyscraper and pollution.

First port of call was the hotel restaurant for breakfast. There were a few other holidaymakers staying and the resort put on a good selection of food. But on the whole it was typically a international flavour. That is just something to expect from hotels I guess.



Not enough time left to take in a swim in the pool or a last look at the beach. Just packing bags and looking under the bed for anything we might have left behind.


Kamala Beach did not seem to provide any easy transport to the airport while we were there. We could have easily hopped on a bus and headed down to Phuket town and catch an airport bus from there. I`d guess during the high reason more routes would open up. So our last journey would be by Taxi. Yea we were splashing out.

The drivers were conveniently lazing out side the resort waiting for some trade. It was a hefty price we though, THB 600 to go to the airport. During the last few days we had made a few little enquiries about transport and the price always came back same. Maybe we could have haggled and tried to get a price a few THB 100 cheaper, but it was the end of the holiday and why stress.

Taking a couple of bottles of water from the 7-11 close by we jumped in our quite luxurious taxi and headed north. We passed quite a few built up areas that might be worthy of a visit next time but most of the trip was in silence. both of us were secretly crying inside realising it was time to go home.



The taxi ride was quick, I guess less than an hour, and we were dropped off at Phuket International Airport. We had a few THB left rattling in our pockets and that was exchanged for a couple meals of a sandwich at Subway.



It was the end of a good holiday. My camera was full of memories that would just give a little bit of a reminder of the places we had visited. We usually just jet in to a resort and stay for the whole trip. This time we took in 5 locations and it somehow worked. The travel times were quite short but did take away a little bit of extra time on the beach. On the positive side we found some fantastic locations to visit next time.

Nai Yang and Kamala in Phuket had changed my mind about this island. Both were quiet and had good stretches of clean sandy beaches. Khao Lak was just beach after beach. If we had to have one bad choice it would be Ao Nang in Krabi. The town felt quite a bit more of busy tourist location but it was still a great visit and we would probably go back. Koh Lanta, this trip was much shorter and quieter than our last. I think we should have pencilled in a few more days on Lanta but there is always next time.



The green season trip was extremely cheap with the resorts costing up to 1/3 of the price during the high season. No matter what season it is the beaches never close. We had a few rainy monsoon days but nothing to spoil our trip. The sun was never far away.

All that is left to do is look at our photographs and think of our next trip. Visiting a few resorts seemed to work and for that we needed 16 days. Maybe a quick long weekend might not be far away before we have the time for another holiday.

Arriving at Nai Yang, Phuket Day 1

The first stop on our trip would be Nai Yang. We didn't really know much about this place and it was really chosen for connivance.

We left for the Airport with the darkness closing and the rain falling constantly. With that feeling it would be nice to wake up the next morning in a different country with sunshine and a exotic sandy beach nearby.

Landing at Phuket Airport, Thailand, we had no luggage apart from our carry on backpacks which meant getting through customs and immigration was quick.

Our first hurdle, apart from being slightly tired and hungry, was getting to Nai Yang Beach. We were spotted by the local taxi touts and somehow gravity pushed us together. The price was 300THB initially which I thought was a little bit too much. I kept standing on my toes and pointing “look I can see Nai Yang from here”. The other half was meanwhile looking in her purse and complaining about the exchange rate. Final price was around 200THB by taxi to the resort.

It was a short trip, maybe 10- 15 minutes to the hotel. Standing before us at the hotel check in were another couple from the same flight. If we had found them at the airport then we could have split the price of the taxi between us.

Checked in and after what felt like a mile walk to our room, time to relax. It was around 1 a.m. now and our first bit of pleasure was sitting on the porch out side the room feeling the warm air and listening to the sounds of geckoes.

Across a path and no more then 10 steps away was one of the 3 pools in the resort. A dip in the water was tempting but going to sleep won in the end.

First day over, not sure if it can be counted as a day of the holiday, but at least we had landed, had a roof over our head, a bed to sleep in and the rain was not pouring down.

Travelling to Koh Lanta

The trip to Koh Lanta was relatively easy despite the island being quite remote. The closest airport serves Krabi province and is an ideal point of of entry as it was for us without a long overland journey.

There are very few direct flights to Krabi Airport so if you are origination from overseas then Bangkok international airport will be your arrival point. Every time we have entered Thailand via Bangkok we found it to be quite efficient for getting through immigration and customs without much delay.

Bangkok to krabi Airport.

Our flight connections favored us with a short stopover with just enough time for a bite of food before we were off again. Krabi airport is mostly served with flights from Bangkok with internal flights but there are flights from Koh Samui in Thailand as well as Singapore and Malaysia.

Flying time was quick and we were soon at Krabi airport and without waiting for baggage as we were traveling light we were soon ready for the next part of our journey.

Krabi Airport caters well for the traveler with pickup and drop off for minibus routes as well as taxi hire. It was a bit like being herded like sheep as the the passengers were segregated in to groups depending on destination and soon picked up by transport. There is a bit of trust here but the Thai people at the airport do get your sorted even if you do not have much of a clue what is happening.

Krabi Town to Koh Lanta

We could have went to Koh Lanta from the airport by getting picked up by a minivan but we decided to spend a night in Krabi Town instead.

The only problem anybody might have is timing, especially if they are arriving late and taking a taxi. There are two ferry crossings and some drivers may not want an over night stay on the island as the ferries do not run overnight.

The seasons affect how you will get there. Some services run only during the more busy season but the minivan service runs all the year round.

If your staying in Krabi your hotel can arrange a pickup by minivan. We we were just around the corner and took the time to get a coffee and walk to the pickup. It just took a couple of hours with the ferry fares included in the price of the ticket we were dropped off at our resort and ready for the beach.

Our choice of transport suited us as we were just heading for Koh Lanta. If your travelling around a few places and expect lots of modes of transport then you might be a little bit upset. Ferry services and speed boat hire can be had from other locations like PhuKet but may just run a high season service or run infrequent.

Our next trip will possibly be a straight in and straight out single destination holiday like we have done before . But if we were planning to experience a few more locations on a holiday in this part of Thailand then I think we would set aside a few extra for travelling and not expect frequent transport connection.

You will not be stranded but it just might take a bit longer to get there. As this is Thailand and anybody arriving here should have left the stress and speed of city life behind then a few extra hours relaxing and taking in the beauty should not matter.

Krabi, Bangkok and Home – End of the Dream

Weather – Dry and Sunny

Woke early, really early about 4 hours too early for being on holiday. At 6.45 a.m. I was out on the streets of Krabi Town on the search for some 7-11 and a dose of chocolate milk for breakfast.

The streets were practically deserted, well what sensible people would be up walking around town so early apart from the foreigners. It was a good chance to get a look around without the crush of people and standing in the middle of the road without, much, fear of getting ran over by a speeding taxi driver.

Later we had breakfast proper and with a few hours to spare headed over to a morning market a few streets away. The place was full of everything imaginable here. Vegetables of all kinds, fruit and flowers along with a good sampling of fresh fish and seafood. It was a shame we had breakfast as there was also quite a bit of cooked food on offer.

Weather – Getting much Hotter

Decided to have a little walk along some of the roads and double back to the hotel to freshen up before heading to the airport. Using our excellent navigation skills of angles of the sun to gauge our direction everything was going fine until we realized we were lost.

It was turning out to be a good morning, forgetting to take our hats, the sun getting hotter and the sweat making us look like we had just stepped out of the shower clothed and the impending realization of not getting back to catch our flight.

Buddha or whatever must have been looking down on us and on the most deserted of roads sent along a little motorcycle and sidecar. Thinking this was a taxi we waved it down and it passed looking like it would never stop. Turns out it wasn’t a taxi but just some locals and their intuition that we were lost in Krabi Town. Despite us not speaking Thai and them not speaking English (how do you say “oh no another lost foreigner” in Thai) they took us back to the centre of town and relieved we walked the familiar streets to our hotel.

If that was not enough, Buddha also made our flight late just in case we somehow were late at the airport. The delay, unknown, at this time would call for a bit of skill by the pilots once we reached Bangkok.

Finally taking off and leaving Krabi and Koh Lanta far behind we had some nice view of the East coast. Gulf of Thailand where a few more island paradises. In the distance was Koh Samui and the memories more sandy beaches, great food and sunburn.

Weather – Monsoon and some more.

Approaching Bangkok and the reason for the delay was appearing. The blue clear skies of krabi were replaced by dark grey clouds as we slowly descended to land. It was difficult to catch any glimpses of the ground but the plane carefully tried to line itself up for the runway. It was not to be, the clunking of the flaps going up and the screaming of the little Boeing 737’s engines indicated an aborted landing. It was hard to see how close we got but I’m guessing a few feet more and the wheels would have touched the flood that was once a runway.

Luckily after a bit of holding and a break in the rains we landed. The thickness of the clouds must have helped obscure the dangers from the passengers as they mostly seemed unconcerned.

A short stop over in Bangkok and then boarding the flight back to home and reality. It was all over and the warming sun was gone, no more getting up in the mornings and lazing on the beach. The speed of life was about the change and the time on the clock will begin to rule our days again.

Day 1 – Traveling to Krabi, Thailand

The first day arrived with the sound of the alarm going off at 6 am. Some sounds are annoying and some are intolerable to wake up too. A happy “hello kitty” jingle chimed out from the other side of the bed. It`s at these times you wonder if murdering an alarm clock is a crime or justified.

Yawned, showered, dressed and coffee – as a 10 plus cup of coffee a day drinker, I did not realize this might be the last ever taste of the delicious liquid for quite some time to come. Grabbed our bags, two small backpacks full of as little as possible. We were travelling light this time after I manage to convince the O.H. that a full wardrobe with matching handbags and shoes were not really required on a remote island beach.

So last check around the house, door locked, pushed the elevator button while somebody else checked the door was locked again, then held the elevator door open for somebody ( I refuse to mention who) checked the door was locked finally.

Weather a bit cloudy….

First bit of transport, apart our sets of white and yellow legs, was catching the bus to the airport. Quite a long trip especially when you have to stand up but watching the faces of those seated with glum faces going to work and some trying to catch a few more minutes of snooze time broke up the journey. Airport arrived and after a walk to Terminal 2 ( yes we are travelling in the cheap seats), checked in and back to Terminal 1 for breakfast.

The foody places seemed to be more busy than usual and not many places to grab a seat. So we ended up in Burger King, now fast food is not the best food in the world and fast food breakfast is something you wouldn't give your worst enemy. The tomato ketchup and heaps of salt helped disguise the flavour but I only managed half. I was sure that when I accidentally dropped a bit of scrambled egg on the floor it bounced, but maybe I was still half asleep.

Time to board and yes it’s a cheap budget airline, Air Asia, where every little extra costs more and usually the price adds up to more than a traditional fair. No luggage so we saved a few $$s there, no food on the plane, so saved even more $$. Looking at the prices they were actually quite fair, a few 100%`s mark-up compared to buying for the cheapest places ever. Seating was better then I had expected too, enough leg-room for me and it was a short 2 hour-ish flight to Bangkok.

Arrived in Bangkok with a few hours to spare before our next leg of the journey, the flight to Krabi.

Weather even more cloudy, rain……

Had some lunch at the airport food mart. Now it seems handling money is too tempting in Thailand so all the mart used a voucher system. We handed over 100 THB and got our tickets back and after a wander around inside looking at what was on offer we spotted something we just love.

Tom Yum Soup, we are both a bit addicted to this and go out of our way to have it as often as possible. Two large bowls of Tom Yum Fish Noodle soup for a total of 70 THB. Along with 3 bottles of water for the other 30 and our vouchers spent. All spiced up and all for the cost of around US$3, not bad for airport food much better than the breakfast.

Waiting around and doing a bit of people watching, apparently somebody famous was - I have no idea who – in the terminal and I managed to catch a picture through the dirty glass.

It seems we were not the only ones going on holiday, I wonder what retreat this chappie was off too.

I expect it will not be the same destination as this group of people who probably have quite different thoughts on their minds.

Through airport security and a last bite of food. More can’t be trusted with money situation here. This took less than 10 seconds in total

• Order 2 donuts and 2 drinks
• Tried to pay cash but was asked to use electronic money
• Took 2 steps and handed over 500 THB and got an electronic filled tab
• Walked 2 steps and Handed tab to cashier
• Took 2 steps back and returned Tab and got refund
• Grabbed donuts

It’s not a problem but will not be doing that again, the cost was a bit too high, around 400 THB.

Short flight to Krabi, just over an hour and a bit but it was already getting near to dark time (6 pm) and there wouldn't be much to see on our first night of our holiday. Krabi airport was small but smart and this would be really the first contact with the people living there.

Tourist Touting, well it is their business and be prepared for lots of touting for your custom. It was quite light actually, just two booths inside the airport were trying to attract my attention here, one for taxi to Krabi town for around 300THB and next to it mini bus for I think 80 THB each. Needless to say we chose the economical transport. Went outside for a, um smoke, and really unnoticed the attention paid to us. The whole process was taken care off, somebody glanced at our ticket and soon a mini bus arrived without us even attempting to find one. People came and went were picked up and driven off to their locations, it was just two of us in a quite luxurious mini bus and soon we would be off to Krabi, and driven right to the door of our hotel.

It was a nice start, no stress of wondering where to go, wondering about connections or problems with language (English) especially when its your first time at that location.

Check in at the hotel was quick, we had booked one night here and after a quick shower we were going to head out for a look around Krabi town and find some delicious Thai food.