We got a ferry from Langkawi island to Satun. The ferry was not as sickening as the one from George town to Langkawi island. Straight after we got out of the ferry a man told us that there was a bus to Krabi and he followed us to the border point. I was a bit worried and was wondering whether he just wanted money but he was genuinely helping us and after giving him money for the bus ticket, a songthaew (pick up truck bus) picked us up right outside and took us to the bus terminal and soon after we had our ticket for the bus although upon viewing the songthaew driver change money with the bus driver we paid a fairly high amount for the short songthaew ride but ah well we got here and had a seat on the bus. The bus was leaving in half an hour so we managed to get some food from the terminal beforehand. We were very glad that we managed to get this bus as in low season this was the only direct bus to Krabi. Although there were many mini vans waiting around but they as for space inside it is a little limited with all our luggage.
We were staying in the centre of Krabi near large street markets and shops. Our hotel owner was very sweet and answered all of our questions, the apartment we stayed in was cute and had very fast internet. We looked at some island hopping tours but decided to get a songthaew to the main beach area (Ao Nang) where most of the tourists are in the day. There are direct boats to many beautiful beaches and islands in the area but they only leave if there are enough people to go on it. We were lucky that there were queue of people around the ticket booth so we hopped on a boat to the Phra Nang cave beach, it was the most beautiful beach I have ever seen. Now I understand why so many tourists would want to come to Thailand. We were able to swim in the waters around the caves, which got very deep very quickly, and watch rock climbers do risky poses up high while taking selfies… The beach was very busy, which I guess was the downside, and while you there you can even pick up lunch from one of the long tail boats selling a verity of cooked food.
The street market near us that only operated in the evenings between Friday and Sunday was great to see and we were able to try some amazing street food, best street food yet. On our last day we did a mangrove tour as we didn’t want to go as far as Ao Nang as it does take at least half an hour to get there. While on our mangrove tour we saw a crocodile swimming past us and we went inside a cave as well. If we went to Krabi again, we would stay nearer to Ao Nang area but staying in Krabi town was still a great experience especially having the awesome street market near us.
From Krabi, we went to Phuket with a direct bus. Our accommodation was awesome probably best yet, we even had a little kitchen for ourselves. It had a nice a swimming pool and even a gym, and what topped it off was a lovely view to wake up to, now it wasn’t a beach view but a view of the mountains which is equally as good. We came on the right day as there was street market a night which supplied us with lots of tasty food.
We went to a couple of beaches in Phuket. The hotel included a free shuttle to the beaches nearby so we went bang tao beach and then to surin beach after. We were disappointed by Bang Tao Beach as it was dirty and not really well kept. Surin beach was tidy and clean but was not nearly as beautiful as some previous beaches in Langkawi and near Krabi.
We were planning to rent a motorbike but Nick didn’t look comfortable on it so I thought I would give it a go, I was happy and I enjoyed it and felt pretty comfortable but I wasn’t ready to ride both of us on one motorbike. We asked to rent another one but unfortunately, the hotel wasn’t able to give us any more. I gave it a go with having Nick on the back but that I did not feel comfortable and it was not easy to ride it with more weight so we had to give up on our idea and we ended up renting a car instead. They luckily drive on the left just like us Brits, so driving was pretty easy to get used to even on the hectic roads with bikes all over the place. We spent some time on a beach in a national park but the downside was all the rubbish scattered across the beach which is a real shame. We checked out a few beaches during the day and then headed over to a waterfall although we ended up going the scenic route to avoid paying the high entrance fee, this ended up being a jungle hike into a nowhere… We never found the waterfall but was an interesting walk into the unknown, shame we forgot to bring bug spray.
After our day of driving around we drove over to Surin beach to catch the sunset, and this was not to be missed and luckily we go there just on time to witness one of the most beautiful sunsets we have ever seen together. It seemed to be very popular with many tourists making the most of the photo opportunity.
As a summary, Phuket is alright but I think it has been ruined by tourists and if I had to choose between Krabi and Phuket, I would definitely choose Krabi. Phuket is not really worth to see anymore unless you are planning to do island hopping and not really spend much time in Phuket.
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