Krabi has a charming local town and is the provincial capital,
Krabi town still manages to retain its identity in the face of developing
tourism. As the main commercial and transit point for the province,
the town plays less attention to tourism. Just as in years gone
by, the river still provides the hub of activity with fishing boats
and river taxis ferrying both locals and visitors to the coast and
islands.
Using Krabi as a central base is a good idea as there are dozens of interesting places
to visit. It's the place to catch your taxi boat for beaches around
Railay or Ao Nang to the west and for islands further away like
Ko Lanta and Koh Phi Phi.
|
 |
Things to Do
It's an interesting place to get a glimpse of local life and as
a base for visiting the outlying areas, but there's not too much
to do in the town itself. Wander around, visit the market, sample
some local food and take a boat out around the surrounding places
of interest. Across the river from town are extensive mangrove forests
that draw birdwatchers from all over the world.
You can hire a longtail boat to explore some of the mangrove canals,
or visit Khao Kanab Nam. Rising from the water,
this 100 metre high limestone tower formation, is regarded as the
symbol of the town. Inside is a huge cave. A staircase leads to
the caves which, as well as stalactites and stalagmites, also contain
prehistoric paintings (human skeletal remains have been recovered
here) Take a boat from the town pier - approximately a 15 minute
trip.
|
|
Nightlife & Eating Out
Krabi town is still a scenic little backwater town but what it lacks
in size it makes up for in the number of great places to eat. The
night market in Krabi, with its great seafood at low prices and
a host of Thai dessert venders, has a great selection of fresh and
well cooked food.
Local vendors seem to pop out of nowhere with mobile kitchens serving
excellent noodles, chicken and rice accompanied by lime juice shakes
or local beer. Krabi's speciality - fresh seafood is also evident.
Lobster, crab, squid and a variety of fish come straight from the
Andaman and on to your plate.
Nightlife, is pretty low key and geared to the local clientele,
with a few bars, Thai style nightclubs and Karaoke bars. Ao-nang
is more western. |
|
Around the river area, there are a number of cafes
and restaurants catering to western palates and serving remarkably
good sandwiches and western fast food as well as Thai. Some cafes
also double as tour agencies and are good places to meet other travellers.
As Krabi continues to grow, steak houses, pizza places and burger
bars are beginning to emerge around the area close to the piers.
In the town, head for the market area, where most eating places
(indoor and outdoor) are to be found.
- Crazy Pub & Restaurant: 98/4 Maharaj Road Muang Krabi
- Mixer Pub : 102 Sudmongkon Road Muang Krabi
- Good Days Pub
- Ruen Mai, about 2km north of the town centre on thanon maharat. Popular with locals and well regarded, this typical garden restaurant.
- Blue Boy Bar, Soi 4 Thanon Maharat Downtown bar staging live music to help wash down the beer.
- Smoody Bar, Thanon Kong Ka. Nightly live music and reasonably priced beer on the waterfront at the edge of the night market.
Krabi Town Map
|
|
|
