Railay Beach is one of the most popular spots to explore in the Krabi region. Situated on the coast of the Southern Thailand mainland, Krabi overlooks Thailand’s famous tropical islands (and is only a stone’s throw – or 50 minute speed boat ride – from the world renowned Phi Phi Islands) and is a popular spot for both backpackers, holiday makers and retired explorers alike. One of the most common places to stay when visiting Krabi is Ao Nang, a vibrant party tourist spot that has excellent connections with the famous Railay Beach.
Suggested read: How to use the public buses in Phuket
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How to get to Railay Beach from Ao Nang
If you’re staying at Ao Nang, one of your top questions will be how to get to Railay Beach from Ao Nang? Although Railay Beach is found on the mainland, it is only accessible via boat – which while that may seem to complicate things, the whole process is very straight forward as you can find out below.
In Ao Nang, head down to the main esplanade road that runs alongside the beach. Here you want to look for the Ao Nang Boat Service Point. You can find this spot easily on Google Maps here.
Here you’ll find a small building where you can buy your longtail boat tickets. It will be easy to spot as there are signs advertising the cost and journey and likely to have other tourists waiting to purchase tickets.
How much do longtail boat tickets between Ao Nang and Railay Beach cost?
At the moment longtail boat tickets between Ao Nang and Railay Beach cost 100 baht each way (so 200 baht return). Pay for return tickets at Ao Nang (you don’t need to choose a return time) and pay in cash.
How often do the boats between Ao Nang and Railay Beach run?
The boats between Ao Nang and Railay Beach appear to run every 20 minutes in the day. They don’t operate to a strict schedule though, and you may need to wait for more people to come to fill up the boat before they will leave. However, this is a popular activity in Ao Nang so you shouldn’t be waiting long. When I visited, I was the last person to join the group so we left straight away but there was only 4 of us in total on the boat so they weren’t waiting for them to completely fill up.
When is the last boat from Railay Beach to Ao Nang?
When I bought this ticket I was told the last boat back to Ao Nang from Railay Beach is 6pm. However, online there seems to be advice about taking the journey at night. Ask when you buy your ticket to be sure but my understanding is this is just a day time transfer service.
Railay Beach Longtail Boat Journey: What to expect
Once you purchase your ticket from the Ao Nang Boat Service Point, you’ll either be asked to wait for more people or to follow the boat driver to the boat. This is located down on the beach. The boat is moored on shore but you will need to walk into the water and climb a ladder to get onto the boat. Expect to get a little wet and have to hold up anything like cameras to avoid the water.
Once you’ve boarded the boat, you’ll find it is a typical longtail boat. Due to travelling rather fast, you won’t be able to sit at the top of the boat but on the seats. I put my water bottle on the side and it actually slipped down *inside* the boat and couldn’t be retrieved so be careful where you put your belongings haha!
The journey takes approximately 15 minutes and you get beautiful views of the Krabi coastline as you travel along. If you want to be closer to the coastline views, sit on the left on the way to Railay Beach and on the right on the way back from Railay Beach.
Once you arrive at Railay Beach, the longtail boat will pull up between all the other longtail boats on the beach. Here it’s just a case of hopping out (again into the shallow water so be careful for things like cameras and expect to get a little wet) and heading out to explore the beach.
Personally (and I think this is a combination of being from Australia, visiting by myself and the weather not being particularly fantastic) I didn’t spend much longer than an hour here. There is places to buy food and drink and you can stay at hotels here if you want to spend longer. You can find hotels at Railay Beach here.
How to get to Ao Nang from Railay Beach: The return journey
It was easy to return to Ao Nang from Railay Beach as I just went back along the beach to where I had arrived and found someone with the same colour tshirt as the driver I had on the way over. I showed them my ticket and they pointed me to the right place. As there were already people waiting to return to Ao Nang, we set off straight away. The process was identical to travelling as the outward journey as you can see below.
We were closer to the coastline on the return Railay Beach to Ao Nang journey so were treated to slightly better views.
Railay Beach from Ao Nang is a very simple and easy trip to do and a great way to spend an hour, afternoon, day or overnight at a hotel for those in the Krabi region.
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