Phuket, Ko Phi Phi, and Krabi

We had planned to catch a train down to the islands, but after we found out that it would take us the best part of 2 days to get there we decided to investigate other options. We managed to find a flight to Phuket which cost only about 45 quid. The only problem was Phuket is on the opposite side if Thailand than Kho Samui, which was where we were heading. There are two main groups of islands in Thailand, and they are situated on either side of a small strip of land only 60 km wide. We had not planned to visit the Andaman Islands which are on the left but thought this was a good opportunity to see them.

We arrived in Phuket about lunch time and got a shared mini van to Ao Karon, Phuket's second most popular beach. On the way the bus dropped some people off in Ao Patong, the most popular. After a quick glance we were very pleased we had not chosen to stay there. It looked really grotty and run down, and it did not smell too good either. Our beach Karon was about half an hour more around the coast and is more popular with families etc. We had pre-booked a guest house called Legends and the bus dropped us right outside. We were very pleased with our choice of accommodation, the room was large and clean, and had a fridge, TV with DVD, wireless and air-con. It was run by an English bloke an ex footballer by all accounts (mostly his). There were lots of pictures of him in the 70's with bad hair, shaking hands with the likes of George Best etc. Outside however was a different matter, there was a distinct similarity to Benidorm in the 80's. Lots of cheesy bars (and bar girls), tacky shops and a drain smell that seems to follow you everywhere. The beach itself was really nice though, a 6km strip of soft golden sand and tropical blue seas. The second day we took a stroll down to the next beach Ao Kata and found that we much preferred it. Phuket is all about Tourism though and so with little cultural stuff to see and not much time, we did a bit of sunbathing and played a round of Dinosaur mini golf.

We headed off to Koh Phi Phi they next day after a false start when the first bus forgot to collect us. We waited for the next one which was at 11, and began what was a tedious journey. We spent 45 minutes and 3 hrs on a boat and then arrived at the port in Phi Phi. It was little more that a wooden pier really. A good friend had warned me before leaving that I may be disappointed with Phi Phi as 'it's just full of Americans looking for the beach'. Well she was wrong and right. It is really picturesque. It is tiny, you can easily walk through the main town in half an hour, and has two main beaches on the main island which you can walk between.

It has white sand and crystal blue waters surrounded by limestone cliffs. There are also no motor vehicles on the island so transport is limited to walking or riding a bike. We only had two days on the island, and probably could have spent more because of the scenery. There is however little to do in the town and there is only so many times you can browse around the same shops. Because of the time constraints we booked a trip on a longtail boat for our second day. My top tip for boat trips is now 'do not drink the night before going on a boat trip.'

This trip was very scenic, we first did some snorkeling, and then went to Bamboo Island where we literally swam with the fishes. The trip then came back around Phi Phi's main island and onto a beach called monkey beach, which has a small pack of very well fed monkeys walking up and down the beach, Dara went snorkeling around here for ages as it has a large coral reef teaming with marine life. We then went to Phi Phi Ley, the sister island which was the where The Beach with Leonardo Di Caprio was filmed, and this is where we found all the Americans looking for the Beach. As it is part of the marine park, there is little on the island apart from day trippers, unfortunately they had all left their plastic bottles and cigarette ends behind , which spoiled the effect a little. Great scenery though. Lastly, we went round the back of the island where you can see the caves where they harvest birds nests for birds nest soup. We then bobbed around a bit to watch the sunset, before heading into shore. Have decided sunsets are over rated, we are a bit bored of them now, and I am definitely not a fan of bobbing up and down for ages. (see tip)

The next morning, we were due to leave, but couldn't resist a full fry up in the Little Britain cafe. Not much of a cafe, but the breakfast was good. Dara had a "gut buster" which was almost too much or him after so many weeks of small breakfasts.....almost, he did manage it though. We had a few hours to kill so worked off the breakfast by climbing up to Viewpoint. Which overlooks the far eastern edge and affords a magnificent panorama of both beaches. It was a steep hours climb but the view was worth it. We then had to get another boat to leave Phi Phi, although this one was only about 2 hours and had better air con so it wasn't so bad.

Krabi Town is a transit town, people rarely stop, but as we had to travel the mainland and then get another boat on to Koh Samui we decided to stop there for the night. We stayed in the main town which was pretty uninspiring and did little part from stroll round a small night market and grab dinner. Apparently Krabi has some great beaches just out of town, but as we had little time we just rested up in preparation for the next leg of our journey onto the Gulf coast and Ko Samui.