Driving around the region

[Somtamnication]

I want to get out of Phuket for a couple of days and come back before the craziness of the 1st. of January.

Wife mentioned Krabi. Any of you local folk been down there? What did you do? Stay?

Any other suggestions besides Krabi? 2 or 3 days out of Phuket is pretty much the max for me.

[LivinginKata]

Khao Lak is a bit closer. Some quality hotels at reasonable prices.

I would give Krabi a miss and drive another hour to Koh Lanta. Much nicer.

[Familyaffairs]

Hi,

Krabi will be swarming with tourists, I usually pick a resort North of Khao Lak center where the beaches are nice, no noise and not too many people given how spaced out the resorts are. You can lie on a lounger under the trees watching the sea....ordering food and drinks to your table.

[grumpyoldman]

Hat Napparat outside Ao Nang is quite nice. A fellow poster here loves The Srisukant there. Take a picnic backpack and go hike around the national marine park there, or just chill on the beach with a good novel.

I'm not big on Ao Nang, but a sunset beer on the seawall there is up my alley.

Across from the Srisukant is a pier where you can get daytrips to outer islands, also you have Thai food BBQ restaurants (more my style) at the entrance of the National Marine park, thats the opposite direction from Ao Nang when at Hat Napparat.

[fiddlehead]

Why not head to the lake portion of Khao Sok national park (Che-lan lake i believe it's called), and rent a longtail and go stay on one of those raft houses.
Great experience.
We even spent one Songkran day there and it was not too crowded.
Kayaks are free to go exploring and get some fresh water swims in.
Just an idea.

There is plenty to see outside of Phuket.
Krabi, Lanta, Trang, Khao Lak, Ko Phayom (mostly backpackers there), etc. etc. etc.

[hansgruber]

I stayed in Natai area just over the Sarasin bridge this week. Not a single person to be seen except for a few thai fishermen. Amazing spot.

Edited December 25, 2015 by hansgruber

[simon43]

I just came back from Khao Lak this morning. Very peaceful, not busy at all.

[Guest]

I stayed in Natai area just over the Sarasin bridge this week. Not a single person to be seen except for a few thai fishermen. Amazing spot.

I was about to mention this, but you got it first.

Another options are Koh Ra and Koh Phra Thong. I stayed at a very quiet resort at Koh Ra few years back. There was hornbill birds in case nature interest you.

https://goo.gl/maps/dKVvDCwBtCS2

[schlog]

If you don't want to go from one island to the other then Chumpon is also a great place for some days. Only 4h drive.

[schlog]

From Natai go on to Thai Mueang to TonPri Waterfall. Real scenic and you can do jungle tours up the hills with the park rangers and sleep there.

[Somtamnication]

Super ideas from everyone! Thanks. Keep them coming. (And Happy Holidays to all).

[Shot]

I like Khao Lak, and it's a nice drive once you're off Phuket. That pic in hansgrubers post looks pretty sweet. Krabi too busy.

[Guest]

Not a drive vacation. Koh Yao Yai and Noy are also nice places to visit and stay for one night. Small island with not too much to see or do, simply for relaxation.

It's easy to get there either from Bang Rong pier or from Phuket town.

[LivinginKata]

Not a drive vacation. Koh Yao Yai and Noy are also nice places to visit and stay for one night. Small island with not too much to see or do, simply for relaxation.

It's easy to get there either from Bang Rong pier or from Phuket town.

Small island with not too much to see or do

And there lies the problem with those islands - nothing to do.

At least if you have a car in Khao Lak or elsewhere, then you can get out and about, look at places a short drive away and in comfort.

[Guest]

And there lies the problem with those islands - nothing to do.

At least if you have a car in Khao Lak or elsewhere, then you can get out and about, look at places a short drive away and in comfort.

That's the question, where we do have different values in lives.

For example I don't value the 5 star hotels, I have spend a lot of time in during business trips, at all.

Those are simply vaste of time for me. I don't value the tourists things which are presented as 'real Thai experiences' at all. I simply don't value anything what tourist business offers. I think all those things as fakes.

There are real world wonders to be amazed. If we can be still for an moment, the nature will give us a real show, which is not possible during a touristic trip. These are the things I value.

Edited December 25, 2015 by Guest

[Gonsalviz]

It takes 3-4 hours to go. Anywhere at Ao Nang is good but north (about 10 k) of there is Tab Kaek. Nice also and out of the way.

[phuketrichard]

Khao Lak is a bit closer. Some quality hotels at reasonable prices.

I would give Krabi a miss and drive another hour to Koh Lanta. Much nicer.

koh lanta is nice but

1., its more like 2 hours including 2 ferries

most likely wil be fully booked up

but than so will anywhere near a beach

Maybe head to Hat ya or surat Thani LOL

[bearpolar]

any pet friendly place in kao lak?

[2fishin2]

I gotta ditto Khao Sok national park or Khao Lak. Few weeks back I went to Sok. Its beautiful up there but, was raining cats and dogs and decided to cancel and go to Khao Lak and lay on the beach instead. What a chill kinda place after being in Phuket. I know where I will be going more often in the future but, shhhhhhhh keep this on the downlow.

[Somtamnication]

We decided on Khao Lak. But everything appears booked (my loss for waiting too long).

Anyone have ideas for hotels there? (We have car, so no need to be by the beach).

[2fishin2]

I pimped it and stayed at the JW Marriot. Had some points to use up. There are a bunch of hotels and guest houses up there. Its close enough to drive and try walk-ins with some of them. Im sure you can find a place to stay up there.

[LivinginKata]

We decided on Khao Lak. But everything appears booked (my loss for waiting too long).

Anyone have ideas for hotels there? (We have car, so no need to be by the beach).

I see loads available from https://www.agoda.com/pages/agoda/default/DestinationSearchResult.aspx?asq=A%2fntJMdz18Lo0bKg%2b0%2b1pcE6eo9P0vd18uVUBAQq57oaoojUE5o3ndXPSJ%2fn2ufdwqu5Hgm33hok2WZqB1583PNsaiSldw3Wy2icjq3yxgcjV6ehAaaDPibe0Qh0bQyoQr6Dd5y6k9%2fi6RNMzn7L%2fKeEQ%2bpmHFU7pxbZeHp1BrKEpCEaI8B0LydgB54fkzjjj4deX5sMdeiH%2bb%2bcggJY4z%2fpqit46T079mwhgrYZCoh%2fNlZCBg%2bDy6DVYuLZCdCs&city=17191&tick=635869246554

Edited December 28, 2015 by LivinginKata

[Somtamnication]

Thanks all. LIK, we loaded that site, along with bookings and hoteltravel and we tried to book but to no avail. The walk-in idea is what we are going to follow. It will be fun. We are a bit over an hour from home, so if nothing is found, then I have to take wife to Central to shop.

[LivinginKata]

Thanks all. LIK, we loaded that site, along with bookings and hoteltravel and we tried to book but to no avail. The walk-in idea is what we are going to follow. It will be fun. We are a bit over an hour from home, so if nothing is found, then I have to take wife to Central to shop.

These hotel booking sites need a couple of days to process your booking. Not really good for a walk-in idea. And do not expect the Agoda rate when you arrive - we tried that many times up in Khao Lak and were quoted a much higher rate - pointed out that the agoda rate attracted up to a 20% commission - blank look - no idea - me, bi bi.

[stevenl]

Thanks all. LIK, we loaded that site, along with bookings and hoteltravel and we tried to book but to no avail. The walk-in idea is what we are going to follow. It will be fun. We are a bit over an hour from home, so if nothing is found, then I have to take wife to Central to shop.

These hotel booking sites need a couple of days to process your booking. Not really good for a walk-in idea. And do not expect the Agoda rate when you arrive - we tried that many times up in Khao Lak and were quoted a much higher rate - pointed out that the agoda rate attracted up to a 20% commission - blank look - no idea - me, bi bi.

Book online from the hotel via Agoda etc using the hotel's WiFi.

[NamKangMan]

Thanks all. LIK, we loaded that site, along with bookings and hoteltravel and we tried to book but to no avail. The walk-in idea is what we are going to follow. It will be fun. We are a bit over an hour from home, so if nothing is found, then I have to take wife to Central to shop.

These hotel booking sites need a couple of days to process your booking. Not really good for a walk-in idea. And do not expect the Agoda rate when you arrive - we tried that many times up in Khao Lak and were quoted a much higher rate - pointed out that the agoda rate attracted up to a 20% commission - blank look - no idea - me, bi bi.

Book online from the hotel via Agoda etc using the hotel's WiFi.

It takes time to process the payment through Agoda.

No pay - No stay. Thai Business 101.

OP, walk in is a bad idea. They will up the price thinking you are desperate for a room.

Edited December 28, 2015 by NamKangMan

[LivinginKata]

Book online from the hotel via Agoda etc using the hotel's WiFi.

Steven - not sure how that helps for a walk-in .... ???

[simon43]

Use booking.com to book from the hotel lobby - that site takes no deposit or upfront payment from you and you then pay in full at the hotel.

I do the same with walk-in customers at my hotel, who maybe think I'm mad not to accept their direct cash, but to then accept it from them 5 minutes later after they have booked on booking.com whilst standing in my lobby.

The reason why I do this is because I have an excellent relationship with booking.com. Room bookings and room availabilities are automatically managed across all websites when an online booking is made. If I take a direct, walk-in booking, then I have to manually log into my hotel Channel Manager application and manually close off that guest room from sale on the travel websites. Running it via booking.com, even though I pay the 15% commission makes for a more efficient hotel management and also correlates better with my hotel stats application.

Of course, mileage may differ with other hotels.

Edited December 28, 2015 by simon43

[stevenl]

Book online from the hotel via Agoda etc using the hotel's WiFi.

Steven - not sure how that helps for a walk-in .... ???

Sure it does, do it all the time for my guests. No processing time required at all.

[LivinginKata]

^

That's interesting to know Simon - I might try that on my travels ...