Last night we had done some last minute research (which is starting to become a trend, unfortunately) and decided to hang out in Ao Nang for 3 nights. Information about how to get there and around was a bit sparse (Wikivoyage being out of date) so we went with the flow, which kind of put us in danger of being rorted. Not that it would be the first time.

I messaged the Ao Nang accommodation to ask them how to get to their property as it was some distance from the pier (Nopparat Thara Pier). They messaged back saying that the ferry service we book with will provide transfers. Uh, suuuuureeeee….

We checked out of our room and made our way to reception, where the bloke was asking us if we had tickets to Ao Nang. He knew this as we had enquired yesterday. We replied in the negative and he said that it would be 500 baht (each) and he would throw in a ride to Saladan pier. Well I guess we’ll have to take that offer then. A later said that he had told us that a ticket would cost 650 baht but from what I remember, we were quoted 550. He sounded more sure than I was. So we “saved” 300 baht (total) right there. It was still bloody expensive, don’t get me wrong. If we had gotten our shit together and ordered online (more than 24hrs from departure), it would be 450 baht (but no ride to pier, so I suppose it worked out in the end).

Before taking the ferry, we got an early lunch at Safety Stop, which looked like they were a SCUBA diving shop as well as a cafe/restaurant. We ordered the most typical farang meal ever - pad thai chicken (THB 120), som tum (THB 100), mango shake (THB 80), cha yen (THB 40). It wasn’t a bad meal.

To Ao Nang

At the pier, we were given stickers with our destination on them to wear again. It turned out that the ferry company (Aonang Princess), did provide transfers to accommodation. How kind of them; I don’t feel so ripped off this time. Sorry for my cynicism.

The ferry was quite small again. There was no room to spread out but at least it was air conditioned. The ride was mostly uneventful until we arrived at Railay Beach, where A prompted me to go out and take photos of the landscape (krasts and limestone cliffs, which had vegetation growing on them) and I was glad I did. It was truly postcard material.

Here is a pano showing the Railay peninsula, with Railay beach west on the left and Phra Nang beach on the right.

(Best viewed on desktop and in full screen mode)

Half the boat disembarked for Railay Beach. Damn, so you could get off at Railay beach and head for your accommodation directly. It wasn’t super obvious during our research whch is why we settled for staying in Ao Nang. Oh well, at least it will be a little cheaper on the main mainland (whilst the Railay Peninsula is on the mainland, it is inaccessible via car).

We continued on to Ao Nang Nopparat Thara Pier where we got into a huge truck to be dropped off to our accommodation. On the way, we went by the main road of Ao Nang where I spotted a Maccas, Burger King and not one but TWO Coffee Clubs. The very same from back home. Uh oh. Where have we ended up?!

We were the last to be dropped off at our accommodation, The Morning Minihouse, which didn’t surprise me at all as it was some distance away from the main beach front.

Ao Nang

After checking in, we went and talked to the owner at reception, who gave us some pointers. A was interested in the night market and the guy told us the one facing Nopparat Thara beach was “the best” one, but he wouldn’t really recommend it as it was a little pricey. He then gave us a list of restaurants to eat at. I later noticed that most of them were very close to his property; maybe he was just looking out for his neighbours?

We walked to Nopparat Thara beach to enjoy another sunset. It was quite a walk, about 15 mins and there wasn’t much of a footpath on the road.

At Nopparat Thara beach, it looked like the tide was out. It was quite a distance before there was any water, so there were a few people walking about on the now large beach. We sat at Frog Beach Bar, which was the most casual looking bar (basically a hut with some crude wooden seating right on the beach) but the prices were not that friendly. A enjoyed a mango mojito whilst I held on to a cha yen.

The sunset was nice enough, but there was a headland blocking the horizon.

After sitting a while, we left to take a look at the night market that was sort of recommended to us. It seemed superficially clean but food handling and storage was not the best. Raw squid was simply placed out and not refrigerated. I get they want to show off their goods but that’s no way to store seafood. A was happy to eat here but I said we would just end up spending a tonne of money buying a lot of little nibbles.

For dinner we headed back towards where our accommodation was. I had decided we would eat at one of the recommended places, may as well give it a try and it had lots of good reviews online anyhow.

Kodam Kitchen

Approaching Kodam Kitchen, I could see the place was filled with farangs. But of course, why else would there be so many reviews? Of course they came from Westerners. Here begins my healthy skepticism. After this meal, I finally ditch TripAdvisor for good (not that I really used it) and take Google Maps with a grain of salt. The more English reviews, the more touristy the place must be. And Kodam Kitchen certainly was, along with prices to match.

A got the Gaeng Kua Goong Sapparot (creamy red curry with prawn and pineapple). He asked for spicy but it wasn’t very spicy, which was kind of silly as there were pineapple bits to help sweeten it.

I got the Seafood Jan Ron (combination of seafood with chilli paste and herbs on a hot pan). It was tasty enough and nice enough but not spectacular.

The bill was quite expensive at 530 baht. There were many reviews saying that the restaurant gave out free desserts but we experienced no such hospitality :( 6/10 #ipinions