Hah! First time I am writing a post as I am doing stuff!!!
Great to be back in Krabi again and excitedly awaiting the arrival of the family! It's so lovely to be able to hop on a plane and be somewhere else in less than 2hours. But I think I have been here too many times when I can recognize the immigration officer and he confirmed he has definitely stamped my passport before. I don't mind. I'm an advocate of quick getaways!
Day 1
After a 30 minute drive, we arrived at Golden Beach Resort, it's a lovely beachfront resort which on a normal day doesn't usually cost too much but because this time they were having some convention so it was slightly expensive and fully booked!
We got the Executive Pavillion Bungalow with jacuzzi as we always do. Perfect for couples and it doesn't cost too much to upgrade from a normal room. It's a lovely view and the beach is literally at your doorstep along with an amazing chicken noodle stall and beach bar on the left and a massage area on the right. It doesn't get better than this. Take note that massages are 50% off from and if you get more than 3 treatments you get a gift (It's usually scarves).
First order of business- let's get fed. Of course we go for the noodles stall on the left! So friggin amazing! I could eat there every day (and I did!). It's the epitome of cheap and good. I always ask for the woon sen (glass noodles) with chicken soup. Yums! Of course, no meal in Thailand would be complete without the mandatory fresh coconut. Then there is the post meal banana Nutella roti, thin fried chocolate-y banana-y goodness. Total cost = 270 Baht! Satisfaction = priceless.
Then like the sloths we were, it was nap time! Honestly, sometimes the hustles and bustle of the city really does my head in! Waking up 2 hours later, hunger strikes again and so we went for a walk with the sole purpose of getting a light snack. This light snack turned out to be a shared light bite of morning glory with garlic, spring rolls and some rice at A-Ning restaurant.
My parents and sister arrived in the evening and checked into the Pavillion Suite Gallery which is on the second floor of a chalet and can fit 3 people. I really liked how the hotel provided for 3 which included 3 bottles of water, towels, amenities and etc. The room is also big enough for everyone to enjoy. I realize that the lighting in my room vs the lighting in the room also accommodates couples vs non couples.
For dinner, we choose Chaba Thai Kitchen on the Seafood Street for dinner because I remembered that they did pretty thick curries. They didn't disappoint. We ordered quite a lot as the portions in Thailand are generally fairly small.
For vegetables, we had the melinjo with eggs and morning glory with garlic which too be honest was just vegetables so it's nothing to write home about. The Massaman curry with duck is by far one of the best as I prefer fattier cuts of meats and the duck slices still had their sliver of skin on them. The Green curry with chicken was so so- wasn't as thick as I would have liked it. The Pineapple fried rice portion is a little bit tiny. The plain omelette is just plain eggs.
The tilapia steamed with chili and lime was really good- I liked the sour sauce that the fish was sitting in. My biggest disappointment was the prawns with roasted butter which was fried with the shells and this is probably why the flavors didn't seep through and flavor the prawns. With a little help from the waiter, I managed to convey that we were celebrating my sisters birthday and for dessert we had the mango sticky rice with a little candle for her to blow out. While the mango sticky rice wasn't amazing, it's the effort that counts on their part. Altogether the meal cost 2750 Baht and finished off at 3000 Baht after tips for 5 people.
Day 2
The next day my sister and mum decided last minute (at 7 am!) to go for kayaking (at 8.30 am) so I bailed because I can't do last minute plans on my holidays- I drag the thought of rushing around. Instead the hubs and I went to enjoy massages at 50% off. We both choose back, neck and shoulder massage plus a foot scrub each and the total for both was 500 Baht! To appease the hunger pangs after the massage, again we went to the chicken noodles at our doorstep. But this time we made ourselves comfortable and brought the food to the room!
After my sister and mum came back at about 1 pm, we decided to go to the beach and catch whatever limited sun that we could. We moved to the swimming pool after awhile and then it was nap time again! We took a nice evening walk up towards Pakasai Resort and did some window shopping so we could plan what to buy post dinner.
We decided on A-Ning Restaurant for dinner hoping to catch the live band but unfortunately the band doesn't perform on Sundays. We still had dinner there and with no regrets. There were 8 of us and we ordered A LOT (again)!
Really impressive was the Calamari Stir fried with Yellow Curry which everyone enjoyed. Their red snapper dishes which we had 2 ways, one in Red curry and one with Garlic Butter was also really fresh and tasty. I can honestly say that eating here is always an enjoyable experience. The most impressive thing however is the fact that the wait staff are so experienced and happy to accommodate your requests without too much fuss. They speak English fairly well and despite some changes in the dishes, they got it all correct every single time we went.
Total bill was 3728 Baht after a 20% discount (for Thai Food). After tips it was about 500 Baht per person which is more than reasonable because we all felt like we had to be rolled out of there!
Day 3
We booked a longtail boat with our favourite longtail boat guy, Beer, the day before. In Krabi, Beer is our go to guy! He has officially met both sides of my husbands and my family now, as well as several friends! We always call him when we are in Krabi and just want to spend a day island hopping without the schedule. A quiet man of few words, I would recommend him to anyone wanting to do a half day island hopping trip around Krabi. Simply head to Ao Nang pier and look for Beer, the day tour becomes leisurely and easy and super fun. Basically because I usually spend the entire day "running" from island to island when the big tour groups start to arrive!
So our trips usually start with us going to Poda Island where tourists will need to pay the park ranger 200 Baht per person to access all the islands, we pay 100 Baht per person (locals price I think)...the park ranger seems to know Beer by name!
Then after that we headed to Tup Island and walked the sandbank to the island across for some more pictures. After walking back, it was nice that Tup Island had cold coconuts that you could buy! What a dream come true! Nothing like a cold coconut after playing in the sun.
Just a little bit off Tup Island, is a place that you can anchor the boat and jump into the ocean for a bit of snorkeling. The water isn't the clearest compared to a lagoon or something and you always end up seeing the same sea urchins and fishes, occasionally one unique fish. Again, its optional to jump off the boat here but its just for the sake of doing it because honestly, by then, most people have had enough of the sun!
Now is usually a good time to go to Railey South- Phra Nang Cave. It's by the Rayavadee Hotel and Grotto where you can go take pictures if you can't afford to stay at the hotel, so you can kind of strike it off your list of things to do! Phra Nang Cave is usually the star of the trip there because its an interesting cave full of phallic wooden carvings in ALL shapes, sizes and color! As this is still a a place of worship, I would suggest that one actually respects the items left behind and not touch, move or play with them. Sure, take your photos, lean in, get real close, but do you really have to pick it up?
This time round, it was low tide, so we were able to walk to the other side of the island after climbing through some rocks and check out the caves behind.
We swung by Railey just to have a look see before heading back to Ao Nang pier, all tired, tanned and hungry. Total cost for the trip is 3000 Baht for 4 hours and plus 50 Baht per snorkel.
The only thing you can do after such a long morning is shower, eat, massage and/or nap! Each of us went on our own agenda and reconvened for dinner. This time it was a family affair though and guess where we went? Yup, A-Ning restaurant! And this time, we caught the live band! Amazing music and loads of classics. By far the best live band in Krabi!
Last Day
Time to go, it's been fun Krabi and I look forward to seeing you again soon! Just a little tip for travelers, it takes about 30 minutes to get from Ao Nang area to the airport. There is no point leaving the hotel too early as there are no traffic jams or contingencies to be worried about. The airport is also rather small and straight forward. Leaving the hotel 2 hours before your departure time should leave you with enough time to get to the airport, check in, go through security and immigration as well as grab a cup of coffee before your flight.
Happy Travels!
