Krabi Town, Krabi Travel Package Tours, Thailand Tour Information Hotel Guide

KRABI OVERVIEW

The Krabi Town is mostly visited as a stop on the way to the surrounding hot spots: Ao Nang, Railay Bay, Ao Ton Sai, Ko Phi Phi or Ko Lanta. But one could easily spend a day or two in this sleepy provincial capital. While not wallowing in exciting sites, there are some good value choices for your stay, some surprisingly-good eating, and the surrounds do have a few minor sites worth peeking at. The town is carpeted with travel agents who can organise just about anything, including parting you with stacks of money in return for shoving you on poor quality buses. The only way to guarantee this won't happen is to use only the public buses from the bus station. They cost more, but are far better quality, and they'll always take you where you want to go. The regular minivans departing from town are also a safe bet.

Orientation
Krabi is situated on a relatively low and flat patch of land running along the Krabi River, which is to the east. Kanob Nam mountain is visible to the north -- two limestone rocks jutting up from the water at curious angles. Krabi attracts travellers mostly due to its location, being convenient to the airport (13km) Ao Nang (22km), Nopphara Thara Beach (18km) and the main pier at Krabi passenger port (3km). This is also where the main bus terminal is located, 3km outside of town. The 'Old Pier' (Krabi Pier) is located off of Klongkha Rd on the Krabi River, near the town centre, but other than infrequent departures to Railay Bay, no regularly-scheduled tourist boats use it anymore -- they all use the main pier. The de-facto 'centre of things' for most backpackers is the area around the Chao Fa pier in the southern part of town, where much of the budget accommodation is located along Klongkha, Uttarakit and Chao Fa roads. There are also three hotels along Klongkha Rd, offering views of the river, but the actual centre of town is located a bit north, along Maharat Rd, where you'll find the main shopping centre, KFC, Swensens, two 7-elevens, and the downtown night market. Internet is available everywhere, and the going rate is 1B per minute, 40B per hour -- no better deals are available, and quality varies widely. For a high-speed connection and full-range of services, including internet phone, CD and DVD burning, printing, scanning, and memory card readers, try World Net on the corner of Uttarakit and Issara Roads (open daily 08:00 to 24:00). On Uttarakit Rd heading north, about 1km outside town, is Krabi Hospital, with 24- hour emergency medical care T:(075) 611 203, (075) 611 227. For anything major, make sure you wind up in Phuket, at either the Bangkok-Phuket, or Phuket International hospitals. For English language novels, travel guides, and maps, you can head to The Books on Maharat Road in the centre of Krabi town, though there are also half-a-dozen used book stores offering potboilers and page-turners scattered throughout the town. Bibliophiles should definitely seek out Krabi and Beyond for a really eclectic selection of used books that focuses on more high minded matter.