Beaching it in Ao Nang, Krabi

When deciding where to go for our upcoming long weekend, we thought to go somewhere beautiful yet slightly untamed. After countless stories and photo's of Phuket, Phuket, Phuket from fellow travelers and friends, I felt as if I had already been there. This is not to say I'll never go to Phuket but since living and teaching in Bangkok, its always a hunt for the non-touristy destinations and unusual experiences.

Postcard moment on Tub Island

 We got cheap flights to Krabi and reasonable accommodation, and off we went. The bus ride from the airport to Ao Nang beach is exciting to say the least. You go from the busy city of Krabi Town, into giant mountains and palm tree laden beaches within half an hour. When we were dropped off at our accommodation, we found that the place was right on the beach! It was literally a few steps down to the sand... happy days! Let the holiday begin.

Breakfast right by the shore

I will say straight off the bat, the water is not turquoise and the sand is not white, but that was not the reason we came to Krabi. It is unlike any other beach holiday destination in the sense that it has mind-blowing mountain ranges, limestone rock faces coming out of the middle of the ocean, swamp-like trees growing in shallow waters, intricate caves and thick vegetation. It really was something to behold, and I had never seen anything like it.

The first thing I did was have a wander around the area and kind of get an idea of where we would be spending the next four days. I walked all the way to the end of Ao Nang and spotted monkeys swimming in the river leading into the ocean, and above the river there was a twisting wooden path leading up and over the mountain to the next section of beach. The shore was dotted with colorful long tail boats, which genuinely looked like a post card.

Monkeys along the mountain trail

 After a bit of settling in, tanning and a swim in the warm ocean, we sipped cocktails at a nearby bar (there are tons all along the main beach road) and watched the sunset. I thought I had seen beautiful sunsets in my lifetime, but none could prepare me for the sunsets in Krabi. The colours and textures change before your eyes and just become more and more magical as it grows darker. I was left speechless! Thereafter we made sure to watch the sunset every night of our stay.

Then it was time to grab some food, and I was pleasantly surprised at how many options you are given at the countless restaurants and cafe's. I love Thai food, especially living in Bangkok where I eat it three times a day, but there was also a heavy influence of Italian/Indian food in Ao Nang. I couldn't wait to get stuck into a good cheesy pizza or a curry! Falling asleep that night to the sounds of the ocean nearby is a feeling I will always love, finding a place so close to the beach was definitely a win!

For someone such as myself that loves to plan and organise every detail, Krabi is one of the few holiday destinations where literally everthing you want to see and do is cheaper and easier to book when you're there. It was actually a fantastic feeling knowing that we weren't held down to any specific schedule and could just go with the flow. Among some of the activities, we chose to kayak around the caves and rocks at Railay Beach. For the price you pay per hour (200 Baht) it is so worth the experience and you really get to see some amazing cave formations that are otherwise unreachable.

Kayaking around the rocks and caves

 The next day we booked the '4 Island tour', and opted against going to Phi Phi because we heard it was packed full of tourists and there is a specific window period of when you can travel to and from the island. The 4 Island Tour was absolutely brilliant, and again such value for money! We spent the whole day hopping from one island to the next, swimming in the warm waters of Poda Island, snorkeling around the reefs of Chicken Island and having lunch under the trees on Tup Island. These are the kinds of picturesque places that you would expect to see, with the turquoise water and the whitest sand. I took so many photos I didn't know what to do with myself! Overwhelmed doesn't even begin to describe it.

Trav diving off the boat at Chicken Island

Krabi is the perfect place to have an unplanned adventure, and really explore your surroundings whilst finding unexpected beauty along the way. When we went for a random walk around Railay we got a bit lost and ended up amongst a whole lot of rock and cave formations and a national park of some sort! This trip really taught me how to go with the flow and not plan everything beforehand as I usually do. It was the most unique experience I have had in Thailand thus far-and that is saying a lot! x