LAND.
From Bangkok, a bus to Krabi will take about 13 hours in duration.
Daily services leave from the Southern Bus Terminal (Sai Tai Mai) in Pinklao (Thonburi), and there are many private services available from almost any travel agent and hotel tour desk in the city.

Phuket to Krabi by road. Take Route 402 to Route 4.
A number of buses run this route from Phuket daily, taking around 3-4 hours, or alternatively, taxi's or air conditioned mini-vans can easily be arranged. From Surathani the road journey to Krabi takes about 4.5hrs.

TRAIN.
From Hualomphong Station in Bangkok to one of the following stations: Trang, Putt Pin in Surathani Province, or Tung Song in Nakorn Sri Thammarat Province; and catch a bus from any of these places to Krabi.

Travel to Surathani by train takes approximately 12 hours, with various classes of seating available ranging in price from 187 Baht to 1040 Baht.
Train schedules for the State Railway of Thailand can be found by contacting Tel: (02) 220 4334.

FERRIES.
Between Phuket and Krabi via Phi Phi Island are available.
From Phuket - Phi Phi Island a regular ferry trip takes approximately 2 hrs.
During high season there are 2 scheduled trips to Phi Phi and return.
From Phi Phi Island - Krabi a regular ferry trip takes 1.5-2hrs, with 2 services running daily all year round.
(Schedules are such that you can make the Phuket/Phi-Phi/Krabi trip within one day).

Other ferry services from Phi Phi and Krabi to Ao Nang and Koh Lanta are run on a daily basis all year round.
Detailed information on ferry schedules and connections to the ferry piers in both Krabi and Phuket are available from the respective airports upon arrival there.
Private boat charters to and from Krabi are also possible through local tour companies and agents.

Long tail boats are readily obtainable from Krabi Town at the Chao Fah Pier and at all major beaches
For those who prefer to go by land, hire a car or motor cycle, or rent a Songtaew (taxi truck) to drive you round for the day.
Local buses also shuttle between major areas in the province,
from the bus station just outside of Krabi Town at Talaat Kao (market).

COMMUNICATION.
Mail and Postal Services The post offices are usually open from 8am to 4.30pm. Main post office is located on Uttarakit Road, near the Customs Pier.
International phone calls, bureau fax, and Internet services are widely available throughout Thailand. Krabi Town's post office and most hotels can provide telephone and fax services and Internet services are springing up in all the main tourist areas.

MONEY.
Krabi Town has a number of banks that provide standard services, Mondays to Fridays, except public and bank holidays, between 8.30am and 3.30pm.Currency exchange centers also operate from 7.00am to 9.00pm, seven days a week including holidays.

HEALTH.
Krabi Hospital 611-202, 611-210, 611-2203 Ao Lak Hospital 681-159, 681-510 Koh Lanta Hospital 697-017, 697-100

POLICE. Provincial Tourist Police 637-308 Immigration Office 612-740

Tourism Authority 212-213
Provincial Travellers Assistance Centre 612-740

Rai Leh Beach West

Phra Nang Shrine, north end of Phra Nang Beach. Dedicated to the spirit of the drowned princess (phra nang) who gave the beach her name,
this small shrine in a small cave is notable primarily for the dozens of carved red-tipped phalluses donated by fishermen seeking her favour.

Climbing
Thaiwand Wall Rai Leh is perhaps the best winter sport rock climbing area in the world, with over a thousand bolted routes up limestone faces with breathtaking views over the ocean.
If you are an avid rock climber, chances are you already know about this place and the spectacular cliffs are the reason you are here.
Climbing is graded on the French scale, most is steep and challenging with only limited possibilities for beginners.

Due to the corrosive nature of the seaside location, the steel bolts may be of questionable integrity,
bolt failure is not uncommon here, and threads (rope tied through holes in the rock) may be of questionable integrity as well.
Overall the rock quality is superb; however, like everywhere else, you will find the occasional loose section including the famed Rai Leh stalactites.

Required climbing gear: Rai Leh and around is all sport climbing.
Beyond a 60 metre (200 foot) rope, sixteen quickdraws, your harness, shoes and a lot of chalk,
you won't need much else. Anything you forget or don't have can be rented at the climbing shops.

Guides: Rai Leh and Tonsai have several guide operators with services ranging from introductory rock climbing courses to rent-a-belay partner.
Phra Nang Adventures - on Ton Sai Beach (50m from Rai Leh). American, British, Swedish, and Australian guides. Exclusive guide to Ko Lao Liang for climbing/diving/camping.
King Climbers - on the east side of Rai Leh, next to Ya Ya's accommodation.
Cat's Climbing Shop - sells guide books and chalk in addition to their guide services and intro courses.

You'll likely find a cat and small kitten or two wandering around the shop which is located on the west side of Rai Leh near Railay Village Resort.
Hot Rock Climbing School - on the west side of Rai Leh, near The New Scholar Real Coffee shop, and the owner Luang has been around the area for over 15 yrs.


Diving & Snorkeling
Rai Leh is not a major diving spot as the local coral and sea life is not as diverse or spectacular as other areas of Thailand.
However there is a dive shop that will certify divers and take them on boat trips to decent dive sites, including a sunken wreck.

Serious divers tend to prefer the Similan Islands, Ko Phi Phi or Ko Lanta for quality diving.
King Cruiser is a car ferry that sank in 1997, providing the area with its only wreck, located at 30 meters.
Unfortunately its condition is deteriorating fairly fast in the warm waters.
This is the most popular dive site in the area. Snorkeling is not a major draw for Rai Leh though it is possible to swim out and see coral and fish a few meters off the sandy beaches.

Beware of the ever present longtail boat traffic. Most looking for some snorkeling fun rent a longtail and head for the islands south and west of Rai Leh, such as Poda Island,
but even there the snorkelling is only moderate. Some hotels organize snorkeling trips or you may prefer to charter your own boat for the afternoon.
A one way trip usually takes less than 25 minutes.

Kayaking
While not as good as at Phang Nga, the kayaking around the peninsula at Rai Leh affords a great alternative to climbing and a stunning view of the area.
Several of the limestone islets off Phra Nang beach have sea caves eroded into their bases,
including a few large enough to offer opportunities to beach the kayaks and explore.
Paddling into caves and through subterranean passages is particularly interesting, but watch out for low, jagged ceilings. For those with more ambition, a short open-water crossing (about one hour of steady, heavy paddling) leads to
the private island of Ko Poda which has beautiful and relatively isolated beaches.
Several bungalow resorts on the Rai Leh West side of the peninsula have sea kayaks available for rental
for around 600 baht/half-day, 1000 baht/full-day (including life-vests).
The kayaks are simple two-seat plastic models, but perform fine on the millpond-smooth water of the bay.
A half-day is probably plenty long enough to explore the immediate environs of Rai Leh.
A bottle of water, a hat and plenty of sun protection are essential!

Trekking
Rai Leh itself does not offer many trekking opportunities, as the peninsula is so tiny.
The one interesting and undeveloped area is the jungle atop the limestone towers that make up the club-shaped southern end of the peninsula.
Along the paved path that runs from Rai Leh East to Phra Nang beach, a so-called "trail" leads up a slippery, rocky embankment to the jungle-covered plateau.

A narrow, indistinct trail circles the top of the southern tower, with a left turn offering access to the highest point (accessible via a sheer face and thus navigable only with climbing gear) as well as a fantastic lookout point over the peninsula.
A right turn on the path leads downward into a hidden glen, which provides access to the secret lagoon called Sa Phra Nang or Holy Princess Pool.
The route from this glen to the lagoon leads down a steep, rocky ravine, and the path is covered with slippery red clay,
making it quite treacherous even for the experienced.
The technique is not so much climbing as scrambling, and the knotted nylon ropes are often more dangerous than they are helpful.
The lagoon itself is breathtakingly beautiful, but try not to step in, as the soft bottomless muck has quite a penchant for trekkers' footwear.

Shopping
Rai Leh has many small general convenience stores with various essentials at reasonable prices,
considering shipment costs to what is essentially an island.
Though most shoppers (souvenir or otherwise) will be better satisfied in nearby Ao Nang, clothing, souvenirs, beachwear and such
are all also available in various small shops in Rai Leh East and Rai Leh West.
There are no real grocery vendors, so meals are limited to the restaurants, though some small snack items are available in the convenience stores.

Eat Rai Leh has a variety of restaurants to choose from, although none are remarkable (for Thailand at least) in character or quality.
In general however, the food is what you would expect for southern Thailand - tasty and inexpensive. Rai Leh West has four restaurants: one for each of the three hotels on the beach, and a smaller restaurant near CoCo's bar.
All offer breakfast, lunch, and dinner along the beach with a lovely view of the surroundings. Rai Leh East has more restaurants and the variety is much greater,
though none offer the scenery of the west beach (restaurants near Diamond Cave may be an exception where they offer
an impressive view of the bay from their position higher up the hill).

BARS
There are several other bars situated on the beach, each attached to one of the hotel restaurants, and all quite pleasant for a relaxing sunset cocktail.
CoCo's is the only stand-alone bar on Rai Leh West.
It is quite small with only a couple of tables but they layout beach mats on the sand during the evenings which makes for an ideal location to enjoy the sunset.
Rai Lay Bay Resort Bar is attached to the restaurant at the Rai Lay Bay Resort and Spa Hotel.
The bar is beachfront and is lined with stools and shaded by the nearby palm trees.
As it is the largest bar on Rai Leh West, it usually fills up quite quickly prior to sunset.
Last Bar really is the last bar. At the end of Rai Leh East, it is the closest thing to a dance club Rai Leh has to offer.
With nightly shows, and plenty of travelers, it is the place to spend the night if you plan on having a few Chang beers. Rai Leh East offers more in the way of energetic bars with dance music. These bars can be found near the Diamond Cave Bungalows.

Agricultural based area, with sandy clay soil conditions, like many surrounding provinces, making it ideal for producing rubber, palm oils, oranges, coconuts, and coffee. Rubber is the main cash crop grown with over 700,00 rai being under cultivation for this purpose. Palm oil comes in second, followed by coconuts. Fishing is widely carried out along the coastline and on most larger islands, and although traditional methods are still in use

The PEOPLE.
The people of Krabi represent a mix of different races who over history came to settle from different regions. The Chao Ley or "Sea Gypsies" reside on various of the islands in Krabi's waters, and traditionally made their living from wandering around fishing and diving for their livelihood. Their small communities are in danger of overexposure to tourism, however some of their traditional ways are presented in the yearly sea gypsy sailing ritual held in May on Koh Lanta, Koh Pu and Koh Cham. Krabi itself has a strong Muslim presence.

CLIMATE.
Krabi has a tropical monsoon climate. It's warm all year 'round, but the two periods of April-May and September-October are the hottest. The September-October period is also the wettest. The best time to visit Krabi is during the cool NE monsoon season, from November though March, when it isn't so humid, and the cool breezes keep things comfortable. The average temperature is around 75ºF to 89ºF (24ºC to 32ºC). The hottest time is from April through May, with temperatures ranging from 80ºF to 95ºF (27ºC to 36ºC). There are frequent short heavy thundery showers, offering welcome relief from the temperature and humidity.
The Thai New Year (Songkran) occurs on April 13th and everyone sprinkles (or throws) cool water on each other. The usual pattern is brief but heavy showers, with plenty of sunshine between downpours. Everything is a little less expensive at this time of year, as well. Temperatures range between 70ºF and 90ºF (20ºC to 33ºC). During September and early October there are still long intervals of sunshine between the heavy showers.