Krabi is often a jumping off point for tourists headed to the neighbouring islands of Koh Lanta or Koh Phi Phi. For us, it was also a destination in its own right. Krabi is home to world class rock climbing. We spent three nights here to experience some of this amazing climbing.
Ao Nang Beach
We stayed at Centara Ao Nang Beach which is a resort directly on the beach, but in walking distance to Ao Nang’s main street. Ao Nang has a downtown filled with restaurants and shops, and of course, fire shows and entertainment all along the beach. The beach itself is gritty, especially in comparison to Koh Phi Phi’s white sands and crystal clear waters, but the town itself has life.
Railay Beach
Railay Beach is surrounded by jagged limestone cliffs on all sides with a white sand beach nestled in between.
Each morning, we took a longtail to Railay as that was where most of the climbing was. We hired a guide primarily because with such a short trip, it would be a good way to maximize our climbing time. We started off on the beginner walls: Diamond Cave and Muay Thai Wall, but quickly got bored of the amount of beginners/tour groups there were and hiked up to Thaiwind Wall. Thaiwind is a cliff just off of Railay West, making for beautiful ocean views and solid climbing.
On the second day, we started at Escher Wall, right off of Phra Nang Beach. As the late morning sun came in, we hiked through Phra Nang Cave (Bat Cave), which was a steep dark hike up three sets of bamboo ladders. Once high enough, we were able to venture out to a little look out and take in the view before continuing to the top. From there, we rappeled down to get back to Thaiwind Wall. And we spent the rest of the afternoon climbing there again.
Each afternoon, post climbing, we would hang out on Railay West. Railay Beach Cafe was a perfect spot for some sunset mango daquiries and coconut water. Also, one of the days, we rented a kayak and paddled around the limestone cliffs. There were cool little tunnels to paddle through and the water was gorgeous.
