Snorkelling, island hopping and a sunset picnic dinner on the beach - Daytripping in Krabi

While Krabi is a favourite for climbers, it's perfect for people wanting to relax on magnificent beaches, away from the tourist hoards too. One of the best ways to while away the day is to hire a longboat and take off on a snorkelling tour of the nearby beaches.

We had booked a daytrip on arrival, but the Muslim holiday meant it was cancelled because there wasn't a boat driver. The hotel found us availability with Thalassa, and while I think we did their 4 island and night snorkel tour, we paid for the whole longboat so it was a private tour (to match what we'd booked prior with the hotel). This tour is exceptional, and a far superior experience to some of the bigger boats we've taken to other island off Phuket.



We were picked up at the hotel and taken to the pier (but make sure you eat lunch before you go, as the meal included is dinner!) Once we boarded a beautiful new longboat, we headed off to the islands. The first stop was some snorkelling off the boat, through a cave. While there was not that much to see, the experience of swimming through the cave was quite exciting. There were life vests for our kids (including a very small 5 year old), thought the current was hard work for two of them.


There are drinks on the boat (water and softies), so the kids were happily refreshed as we set off for the next stop, another snorkelling adventure. A family of lion fish and the deadly urchins provided much excitement this time, though for me, it's still the beautiful parrot fish that make me smile.

Finally some R & R on the beautiful white sandy beaches Thailand is famous for. Our third stop was a rest on a Poda island, that fortunately for us, was rather empty. Relaxing with some freshly cut fruit, we basked on the sand for afternoon tea.

Then we moved on to Tup island, and explored the sandbank joining it to Chicken Island at low tide.
Chrystal clear waters and white sands, spoilt only by the boat loads of tourists that coincided with our visit.

 

For dinner we headed to the stunning Phranang island, sheltered by the high cliffs Krabi is famous for, and after a little time to explore, we settled in for a picnic dinner on the beach. The food was Thai, with spiciness to accommodate both the adults and kids. It was a charming experience, sitting under the shade of the tree as the sun began to set.

After dinner there was one more stop, in the darkness with hit the water again to snorkel in a cove hiding the moon, so the bioluminescent plankton could sparkle in all it's glory. A real treat for those that haven't seen it before.

We contentedly made our way back to Ao Nang, and then the quick trip home to the hotel. An easy and perfect day for all of us!

Practicalities

Thalassa Boat Tours http://www.thalassatour.com

Further Reading:

Holiday Inn, Ao Nang

Elephant's End, Restaurant & Guesthouse

Dusit Thani Krabi Beach Resort

Krabi, Overlooked Tranquility 

Linking with #WaterThursday