Who is off to Thailand soon and has no idea what to do in Krabi? I feel you!
Krabi offers up a ridiculous amount of things to do and places to go, which are all very tempting. So here’s a realistic Krabi Itinerary on the things you can do in the area, depending on how many days you have and your preference.
The activities for Krabi I have right here are some of my favorites, and I laid it out in a way so you can see what things to do in Krabi you can realistically fit into a day.
Top Experiences and Tours in Krabi
Go on the most beautiful island tour around Krabi Private Longtail boat
Where to Stay During Your Time in Krabi
Things to Do in Krabi—1-7+ Days in Krabi Itinerary
Krabi Itinerary: 1 Day – Ao Nang Beach
If you’re only here for a day, you’re going to want to get out of Krabi Town and get to the beach. So head to Ao Nang ( I recommend staying in Ao Nang, not in Krabi ), which is essentially Krabi’s main beach. Here’s everything you need, so you don’t have to waste too much time traveling around.
You can beach bum, or if you’re a bit more adventurous, grab a kayak from the end of Ao Nang beach and kayak out to the crazy beautiful karsts jutting out of the water.
Walk along the beach towards the Last Fisherman Bar, just after, you’ll see someone renting kayaks by the hour. Kayak around the large karst rock on the left and find the tiny secret beach on the other side.
Grab a massage at the million-and-one places available in the area, and try some street food or eat at one of the many restaurants – Massaman House is excellent!
Krabi Itinerary: 2 Days – Krabi Island Hopping
Visiting the islands is one of the best things to do in Krabi! Krabi island hopping is an absolute must while you’re in the area and will take up most of your day. There are plenty of islands to go hopping on, the four-island tour in Krabi is, you guessed it, a day of visiting four islands around Krabi.
I can’t lie; you’re not going to get the islands all to yourself unless you’re here during the off-or-shoulder season (more info on that below), but it’s still an excellent tour, in my opinion. There’s no particular company to go with; they all offer mainly the same thing for the same price
Taking a tour is so cheap and easy, it’s a great thing to do in Krabi and it’s kind of a must! The beaches are gorgeous with white fluffy sand, crazy blue water, and limestone cliffs towering above you. A few of the islands have fun snorkeling too and the tour operators include the snorkel rental in the price.
Krabi Itinerary: 3 Days – Chill on Railay
I LOVE Railay Beach. Is it off-grid and quiet? Eh, not really. It’s certainly no secret, but it’s damn beautiful, so can you blame people for flocking here?
Visiting Railay West
It’s one of the prettiest and best places to visit in Krabi.
Railay West and Pranang Cave Beach are the two gorgeous beaches here, the latter being the busiest (mostly because it’s smaller, so it seems fuller).
Rock climbing here or on Tonsai (below) is also one of the best things to do in Krabi—literally, this area is a world-renowned area to go rock climbing, and it’s SO much fun (and cheap) to do.
On Railay you can visit the “penis cave” (yep, it’s a thing when you get to Pranang beach, you’ll see it), climb to the lagoon, and the Railay viewpoint (a bit of a sketchy climb but so much fun if you’re up for an adventure), and try to spot dusky leaf monkeys (they are the cute and sweet monkeys, gray with black and white circles around their eyes).
I’d say Railay is my favorite thing to do in Krabi but then there’s Tonsai…
Krabi Itinerary: 4 Days – Get to Tonsai
So, I love Railay, but I love Tonsai. It’s a more chill version of Railay, and a lot of people flock to Railay and disregard Tonsai (Woo! I win!), which is funny since it’s a 15-minute walk away from Railay. It has grown in popularity from my first visit seven years ago, but it’s still a favorite.
Tonsai possesses an incredibly picturesque beach with hippy reggae bars tucked into the jungle.
The beach is clear of pretty much everything but a couple of restaurants. Unfortunately, there are plans to put a resort right on the beach, but it’s a very slow-moving process, which is excellent news!
Rock climbing on Tonsai Beach
Views when you rock climb
Just like Railay, rock climbing here is like no other! I rock climbed on Railay and Tonsai, and while Tonsai is a bit more challenging, it’s my favorite.
If you want to know what to do in Krabi, I’d say Tonsai and Railay are two of the best places to chill out.
You can easily reach one and the other by walking for 15 minutes over a hill. When you’re on Railay, look at the beach, and to the right. Walk over that hill! If you’re on Tonsai, look at the beach and to the left and you’ll see the hill to walk over.
It’s an easy trail but DO NOT walk this trail at night.
Krabi Itinerary: 5 Days – Climbing Dragon's Crest (Ngon Nak Nature Trail)
Drive up to Tup Keak beach and spend the day beach bumming and climbing the mountain.
Curious to see what Krabi looks like from a birds-eye view?
That’s what you’ll get here. You’ll need to take a tuk-tuk here and make them wait/come back to pick you up or ride your motorbike out here.
The hike provides some of the most incredible views you’ll experience on your Krabi itinerary as there aren’t too many options to get to viewpoints (rock climbing and Tiger Cave are the only other ways to get some great views.)
My friends and I on Tup Keak at sunrise – Credit to my friend Yuri!
A round-trip hike takes around 3-4 hours depending on how quickly you hike and how long you spend at the top.
At the end of your hike, Tup Kek Beach is a few minutes away, take a dip and chill for the rest of the day.
Krabi Itinerary: 6 Days – What to Do in Krabi – Mix Day
Grab a motorbike and visit Tiger Temple, a hot spring, the Emerland pool, and overall just get lost riding around.
Today is kind of a mix-it-up-as-you-please kind of day. You could squeeze in probably two of the following activities in one day, maybe more if you go quickly…
The Emerald Pool is a popular tourist spot; it’s undoubtedly beautiful, but depending on when you go, the crowds make it less than desirable. Go early in the morning or later in the day to avoid the tour buses coming through.
Phanom Bencha National Park has a few waterfalls and some jungle trails to get lost in.
There are numerous hot springs around Krabi as well; however, due to the regularly hot weather, this type of activity is kept to the rainy days or the days when it’s not sweltering outside!
Tiger Cave Temple is the most popular thing to do in Krabi
For some more excellent views of Krabi and a full-on workout, man up and take on Tiger Cave Temple (Wat Tham Sua). No worries, no tigers kept in cages or anything here, just a statue of one and over 1,000 steps to the top of a mountain to see as far over Krabi as you can.
Krabi Itinerary: 7 Days – Kayak Ao Thalane
Take a day trip to Ao Thalane and enjoy the area by kayaking. This isn’t that popular of a thing to do in Krabi so it’s usually not crowded around here.
Hope on a motorbike and head a bit north for a day at Ao Thalane. More incredible karst cliffs to admire, and you can spend the day out in a kayak going through mangroves and finding hidden beaches between the massive rock faces.
Kayaking through mangroves is a great activity around Ao Thalane.
There are options to take a tour so you can explore more and glide through the mangrove forest. If you’re down to go off on your own, stick to the ocean side of Ao Thalane. Maneuvering the mangroves gets tricky, and you can get lost in there, and even worse, get caught out there when it’s low tide, don’t go in there without a guide!
The Best Time To Visit Krabi
Finding out what to do with your Krabi itinerary is excellent and all, but what about when to go? The best time to visit Krabi can be a bit tricky as everyone wants nothing but perfect weather, but those “golden” months will also be the busiest and most expensive.
When Do I Think The Best Time to Visit Krabi Is?
The answer is easy between the end of December and February the weather is dry and not too hot, but it will be the busiest months.
June to October is a bit of a gamble to visit Krabi. You will likely experience rainy days and weather going as far as torrential downpours. December to April is sunnier and drier, and also the busiest months to visit Krabi.
If you want the best months to visit Krabi in my opinion, I’d have to say, April-May (some of the hottest months) or mid-November.
Of course, this is a bit of speculation on my part as I don’t have a crystal ball that tells me the weather for your exact dates I visited in June one time and we had less rain than in November when I visited again. (so let’s refrain from commenting things like, “What is the weather going to be like this August!?)
You can check what the weather in Krabi is right now but these months are my recommendation because…
They are shoulder season months. The weather in Krabi is often pretty decent but not perfect.
Things will be cheaper!
The weather, now more than ever, is very fickle and can change at any time.
A rule of thumb is to aim between high and low seasons for anywhere you go. (aka shoulder season)
Things to Think About When Choosing When to Visit Krabi:
When you’re contemplating the best time to visit Krabi, keep in mind that shoulder season doesn’t mean rain all day! A rainy season doesn’t mean rain all day every day either.
If you go just before or just after the rainy season, there’s no need to be afraid that you’re going to get rained out.
More often than not, the rain happens for a short period, and you get sun for the rest of the day, which isn’t a bad deal! Mainly because it sometimes even happens like clockwork – you can almost predict when it’s going to rain each day.
Krabi’s islands are my favorite islands in the world!
If you’re after the best time to visit Krabi and you run into some unfavorable weather, the worst-case scenario is you cuddle up with a great book, get a massage, and gorge yourself on amazing Thai food. Not a bad day, I’d say!
These shoulder season months are also unpredictable, and you could have an entire week of sunshine. On the other hand, if you get unlucky, it could be a week with mostly overcast and rainy weather. It’s certainly a gamble, but it can pay off.
How to Get Around Krabi
If you’re flying in, just after baggage claim, there is a bus that will take you to Krabi Town or Ao Nang—it’s very obvious and easy to find.
If you’re getting off at the bus station, grab a songtaew (shared taxi truck thing), and it will take you to the center of Krabi Town or Ao Nang—Again, it's very easy and obvious!
Songtaews are the main form of transport between Krabi Town and Ao Nang, and they are reliable, cheap (around 50B one way), and easy to ride. Outside the 711 near Vogue Mall is the central meeting spot for the songtaew in Krabi Town. This songtaew will take you to Ao Nang.
Roads around Krabi are surrounded by karst mountains.
Just outside of the Tanta Restaurant in Ao Nang, you’ll find the songtaew that heads back to Krabi Town. (You’ll see a sign that says “bus”)
The other option is renting a motorbike, but be careful. They are dangerous, and people are dumb about them. The road between Ao Nang and Krabi Town is a major highway. People go fast, and large trucks use this road too.
It is HIGHLY recommended that you avoid riding between the two towns at night
Getting to Tonsai and Railay
From Krabi Town – You can easily go to the pier (near Blue Juice Guesthouse) and get a water taxi to the east side of Railay.
From Ao Nang, just get a boat ticket right on the beach. These boats will either take you to Tonsai or Railay West.
The Ao Nammao pier will also have boats that go to Railay and Tonsai.
Catch a ride in these traditional wooden boats to Tonsai or Railay!
All rides will take around 20-25 or so minutes depending on which pier you leave from. Yes, you will be on a longtail boat, yes, it can be a bit choppy, yes, you may get splashed a bit, and yes, the leaking at the bottom of the boat is normal.
Nightlife in Krabi Town and Ao Nang
Ao Nang is the party place. Center Point is a big area with a lot of bars, and then there are random reggae bars along the main road to the right (when the beach is behind you).
In Krabi Town, there isn’t anything crazy, but I liked it more for that reason. There are some chill bars off Chaofa Road like FuBar and Playground or a few others scattered around like Deep Lounge.
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