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-   -   Phuket (Kata Beach) or Krabi (Railey Beach) (https://www.fodors.com/community/asia/phuket-kata-beach-or-krabi-railey-beach-288606/)

meliss35 Jan 20th, 2008 02:05 PM

Phuket (Kata Beach) or Krabi (Railey Beach)
 
We are planning on going to Thailand next January. We are in our 40's and are looking for a beautiful beach for 3 nights at the end of hour trip. This is our itinerary:
Bangkok-4 nights
Chiang Mai-5 nights ( includes hilltribe trekking and golden triangle tour)
Either Phuket(Kata Beach)or Krabi (Railey Beach?-3 nights
Bangkok-1 night
Home
Which is nicer to go to? We are not interested in nightlife. Originally we were going to Phuket but just saw some picture of Krabi and it looks nicer then Phuket. We were planning on going on John Gray Hong by Starlight tour if we were going to Phuket. If we go to Krabi we won't be able to do that trip. I hear it is a great trip. Will it be a pain to go to Krabi if we are in Chiang Mai before? I guess we would have to fly to Bangkok from chiang Mai and then to Krabi. It seems like alot of traveling. The beach on Railey looks beautiful. Is it worth all the traveling or are we better off sticking to our original plan and go to Phuket?

shanek Jan 20th, 2008 04:10 PM

I have been to both and would return to both but they are very different. Railay has more of a tropical Island feel but is isolated due to it's topography. You can only get there by boat so there are no cars to deal with but there is much less chioce of shops and restaraunts in the immediate vacinity. If you catch a long tail to Ao Nang (about 15 min), you will find as much there as Kata has to offer. The beach itself at West Railay is nice,but the real jewel in the crown is Phra Nang beach which is a short walk but has only one place to stay at and it is very pricey.You will find this is as stunning as any location in the world.
Kata Beach is beautiful and it has plenty of infrastrucre around it. There are limited properties right on the beach and you may find it difficult to get a room without booking well in advance at that time of year.
As you are already spending plenty of time in regions that will have shopping etc, I would recommend Railay in one of the West Beach properties if you prefer something quiet and laid back.

MichaelBKK Jan 20th, 2008 06:23 PM

I'd also have to give the slight advantage to Railay - and I wouldn't assume that you can't go on the John Gray tour. Check with them before you give up on it.

I do know that you can get a sea kayak hong tour from Railay. You're actually closer to the hongs in Railay than you are in Phuket.

meliss35 Jan 20th, 2008 06:47 PM

Thanks for your replies. Going to Railey Beach sounds great especially Phra Nang beach. The only problem about going to Krabi is that we will be doing alot of traveling in one day. We will have to fly from Chiang Mai to Bangkok and then to Krabi and then take a long tail boat. I just wished you could fly from Chiang Mai to Krabi. It sounds amazing and we might have to deal with all the traveling. I guess if we can't do the John gray tour we can still do a hong kayak tour. Any recommendations for a tour company to do that? Also does anyone recommend a tour to go to Phi Phi for the day from Krabi?

JamesA Jan 20th, 2008 07:01 PM

The flights could be different a year ahead.
There is the option of avoiding Bangkok taking the current Thai non stop from Chiang Mai to Phuket and then getting taxi/van from there to Ao Nang.
It's the choice of flight Chiang Mai to Bangkok, change flights to krabi and then transport to Ao Nang, or, non stop to Phuket and then road to Ao Nang.
Chiang Mai Phuket is about 2 hrs non stop.

If you plan to use Thai you could check their pass if still available then ) for Bangkok-Chiang Mai -Phuket and then Krabi-Bangkok.
3 sectors.

meliss35 Jan 20th, 2008 07:25 PM

How long does a taxi take from Phuket to Ao Nang? How much would that cost?

shanek Jan 20th, 2008 08:12 PM

I have driven from Patong Beach to Ao Nang in under 3 Hours (early morning). The Airport to Ao Nang should take 2-2.5 hrs max. I would think you would pay around 2000-2500 baht for a private car. This could be a good option rather than changing planes,and it is still 30 min from Krabi airport to Ao Nang.If you are only spending 3 days in the Krabi area, I wouldn't do the day trip to Phi-Phi, it is too rushed to get the full Phi-Phi experience. You are better off doing a half day sea-kayak trip through the hongs and do a 2-4 small Island trip(better to do this privately with a long-tail boat)and take in the beauty of Chicken or Poda Island(great snorkelling). You will want to spend a couple of full days on Phra Nang beach as well.

meliss35 Jan 21st, 2008 04:39 PM

Can you get a private driver to Ao Nang at the airport or do you recommend someone to contact before we go? How long is the flight from Chiang Mai to Bangkok and then from Bangkok to Krabi? Also how long is flight from Chiang Mai to Phuket?

shanek Jan 22nd, 2008 02:14 PM

I havn't flown from Chang Mai to Phuket but the CM-BKK and BKK-KRB flights are both around an hour. The issue wont be flight time but layover time in betwwen flights. There are plenty of Taxi's at the airport that will happily negotiate a rate to take you to Ao Nang. You can pre-book on line at krabitaxi.com but will proberbly pay more and it wont be necessary.

JamesA Jan 23rd, 2008 02:13 AM

The non stop Chaing Mai to Phuket is about 1 hr 50 / 2 hrs.
The sector CM to Bangkok is around 1 hr / 1 hr 10, BKK to Krabi 1 hr 10/20, as Shanek has sai it's also the time connecting.
If you connected via BKK on Thai they would boarding pass/baggage you Chiang Mai-BKK-Krabi ( but that would only be if you could not get seats on the non-stop ).

If you do BKK-CM, CM-Pguket and then Krabi-BKK don't forget to check the Thai pass for 3 sectors or more. The link Shanek gave you could also quote for a car ti collect you from Phuket.

From Phuket Airport to krabi allow 2 hrs 30 depending on exact destination, that is without rushing it, relax and stop on the way for a drink/snack/restrooms and enjoy some scenery, not amazing but you see some limestone rocks and also rural village areas along the way so quite pleasant.

I would non-stop CM to Phuket and then leisurely drive as opposed to changing in Bangkok.

travelday Jan 25th, 2008 09:29 PM

My husband and I were just in Railay (we're in gorgeous Ko Phi Phi right now - I know, I'm getting off the e-mail in a few minutes) and we didn't love it. However, if I had to choose between Phuket and Railay, and taking into account your interests, you will probably love Railay. We were there for my husband, who is a rock climber, and he had a terrible experience with that aspect of the trip. We're also not really beach resort-types (more city travelers) so the lack of options for food, beverage, and entertainment was difficult for both of us. We were also unimpressed with the surly and indifferent staff. It's not that I don't understand their ambivalence, I just don't appreciate it. We stayed on Railay East at Sunrise Tropical, which I would highly recommend. It was lovely and a very good value. It's a short walk to whereever you want to go, so despite it not being on the best beach, it was easy to get over to the others. I hope you have a better experience than we did. It wasn't all bad, but after the amazing experience we had in Cambodia, it was a bit of a shock. Oh, and if you take a longtail boat over in the mid to late afternoon, make sure to wear flip-flops. You'll have to walk a good bit from the boat to the shore, on a rocky concrete path. Have fun!


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