Krabi 5D4N Itinerary & Budget

Assalamualaikum & hi!

Our 5 days in Krabi were amazing! But I wish we could stay longer there. I would suggest a full 6-7 days in Krabi if you really wanna get the best of Krabi. Now let's get to the point. This is our itinerary and some daily remarks I made throughout the trip.

Where we stay: The Nine Thipthara Klongson Resort

Read the review here.

 Air Asia flight: JHB to KUL (11.10am to 12.00pm) – RM162.24

Return flight by Air Asia: Kuala Lumpur (KUL) to Krabi (KBV) – RM193.40 (200 BIG points)

Air Asia flight: KUL to JHB – RM35.12 (200 BIG points)

Hujan rahmat :)

Day 1

• Arrival at Krabi airport 6.10pm
• Depart to hotel 6.45pm by joined minivan – (200baht/person)
• Arrival at hotel 8.00pm – (4950baht/4-nights)
• Rent a motorbike directly from the hotel – (350baht/24 hours)
• Find packages nearby Ao Nang beach – bought a Hong island + kayaking package at (800baht/person)
• Dinner at Jame Food Center (near Ao Nang mosque)
• Back to hotel

Remarks for day 1

The weather wasn’t good so our flight can’t landed when it’s supposed to. Landed at 6.10pm which is 30 minutes later then the scheduled arrival time.

It’s still raining when we arrive.

Jame Food Center is like a food court with variety of Thai foods you can choose from.

Motorbike rental actually costs around 200baht per day but we don’t have any other choice because we need to find a package for the next day.

Registration before the trip

Day 2

• Van pickup at the hotel 8.00am
• Registration at Ao Nang Beach 8.15am
• Phak Bia island– 45 minutes for pictures
• Lading island – 1 hour + lunch
• Hong Lagoon – stopped for about 30 minutes for pictures, swimming
• Hong island – stopped for 2 hours, we did snorkelling & but not kayaking because the weather isn’t suitable so we didn’t do kayaking. T_T
• Back to Ao Nang, van sent to hotel.
• Go to Ao Nang to rent a bike.
• Dinner at Jame Food Center.
• Shop for snacks at Tesco Lotus.
• Back to hotel.

Amazing view at Hong Lagoon

Supposed to take the long-tailed boat but we took the speed boat

Remarks for day 2.

• The water at Phak Bia island wasn’t that clean so we didn’t swim there but took lots of pictures especially at the swing.
• Our agent didn't even tell us they changed our package to speed boat but we accepted it happily anyway because speed boat package is more expensive haha.
• It started raining heavily 30 minutes before our leaving time at Hong island.
• After taking a shower and resting for a while, we departed to Ao Nang to get refund for kayaking and rent a bike for the next 2 days. 400baht refund was exchanged to bike rental.
• Tesco Lotus that we went to isn’t that big but we still manage to spend 500baht there. Lol

Nak ambil gambar dengan sunglass rasa lagi cool kata Kim >.<

Day 3

• Emerald Pool – entrance fee (200baht/person), bike parking (10baht)
• Lunch at Adila Delicious
• Krabi Town night market – dinner and shopping
• Stop at Ao Nang to get Thai cooking class package
• Back to hotel and rest

Kematu punggok XD

Remarks day 3

 Go to Emerald Pool by bike took us almost 2 hours. We stopped whenever we wanted and took pictures. Followed Waze & Google Maps. The road was good until the last 2km where it’s a bit rough.

 We overlooked the statement that the Blue Pool is closed from April to October for an unknown reason. T_T

Bought souvenirs at Krabi Town, caricature and sent postcards as well. :) 

Wanna go to the Hot Springs and Tiger Cave but we were afraid it’s gonna rain (it looked like it will at that time and we’ve got like 2 hours journey back to Ao Nang). Changed of plan, went straight to Krabi Town night market instead.

 

At the Krabi Town night market

Day 4

• Thai cooking class – we waited for more than an hour but nobody picked us up T^T
• Changed of plan - strolling down Ao Nang beach side and book a massage
• Lunch otw to hotel
• Rest and relax at the hotel, swimming pool
• Aromatherapy massage and Thai traditional massage at Attarak (800baht)
• Go to Ao Nang to extend bike rental and get refund from the Thai cooking class
• Dinner nearby Ao Nang
• Shopping at Big C
• Return bike and take a tuk-tuk to hotel (200baht)
• Packing

Us with the Krabi landmark 

Remarks day 4

Big C isn’t as big as we expected. We thought the whole building is a supermarket like Tesco Lotus we went to on the second day but instead it’s like AEON in Malaysia, with many other shops inside it. I bought cute cosmetics from Cute Press here <3

We thought 200 baht to our hotel is expensive (read on some blogs you can get it for 50baht per head, one way) but because it was already 10pm, we were tired and so lazy to find other tuk-tuk, plus our hotel is quite far, we just agreed to the agent. In fact, it was a whole tuk-tuk for the two of us (meant to be shared for up to 8 people I guess) and it’s just less than RM25, we don’t wanna think more but just accept it’s their rezeki in ours. Letting you know here so that those on budget are aware of the actual rate.   

Day 5

• Taxi pickup to airport – 500baht
• Flight back to KUL
• Flight back to JHB

At Ao Nang beach

Few things I learnt about Krabi:

• Most people are friendly. Even though many didn’t speak English fluently but they are helpful when we ask for help.
• Choose a nice hotel with good facilities as you needed even if it’s a bit far from the main road.
• Riding a motorbike is actually pretty fun in Krabi especially done with the ‘one’. Lol
• Locals don’t wear helmets in Ao Nang area because it’s a small town, sometimes we see 3 people riding 1 bike. Haha
• It’s safe in Krabi. Even at night so, I don’t think girls-only-trip to Krabi will be a problem.
• Don't buy fruit soaps here because they are more expensive compared to Bangkok.
• There are so many mosques in Krabi as well so finding halal foods aren't a problem.

Alright. That's all I can share for now. Thanks for reading! ^_^

Review Hotel: The Nine Thipthara Klongson Resort, Krabi

We stayed in The Nine Thipthara Klongson Resort during our trip in Krabi. We went there during a raining & low season so we thought, if it's raining we could just relax at the good hotel. 

Entrance of the resort.

Room:

Garden Villa Room (#901)

In front of our door is this view <3

Suitable for: 

Couples on honeymoon, the have-have (rich) people haha. Ok, we’re far from being the have-have people but without the Genius discounts I got on Booking.com, we wouldn’t even dream of staying at a place like this.

Value for money: 

This is a 5-star resort. We got to book it for 4950baht (4 nights = definitely worth it) without having to rob a bank. I might exaggerate but if you think paying RM2000+ for 4-night stay at a resort isn’t a problem, I would highly suggest this resort.

Love the view from the pool <3

Location: 

I have to say that the location of this resort is actually the strength and weakness of this hotel at the same time. It’s quite far (15 to 20 minutes bike ride) from the main Ao Nang road and if you don’t have a transportation, you won’t be able to go anywhere. At the same time, it’s what we’re looking for - a hotel which is far from the bustling Ao Nang street, calm and perfect for a relaxing and romantic getaway.

The view otw to the resort.

Cleanliness:

The room and resort is very clean. They did room cleaning and towel changing every day without being asked to.

Comfort: 

Room is comfortable with a king-size bed and ours is specifically near the reception (first room from the entrance)

*sing Psy's song I LUV IT*

Facilities:

Breakfast selection isn’t that wide but it doesn’t really matter to us since we’re not used to have breakfast lol. The swimming pool is quite deep (for a person of 158cm height like me) so we enjoyed the swimming there. We LOVE the Jacuzzi bathtub they have! Tbh, we chose this room specifically for the Jacuzzi.

Bathtub inside, shower booth outside

Staff and Services:

The staffs are nice and helpful. When we arrived on the first night, the staff who greeted us didn’t brief (we forgot to ask too! -.-“) or know how to operate the jaccuzi bathtub in our room, so we can’t use it on the first night which is quite disappointing as I said earlier, we chose this room for the bathtub. So, my suggestion for the resort – the details of things should be known by ALL staffs to put guests more in comfort. 

As for the service, I wish the hotel could offer more shuttle service at least to and fro Ao Nang. The only shuttle time (forgot the exact time) they had was one in the afternoon (going to Ao Nang) and one in the evening (back to resort from Ao Nang). The last night when we need to return the bike and get back to hotel, we asked the reception about the shuttle service early in the morning but they said we have to book first and if less than 5 people booking, there won’t be any shuttle (where we ended up taking a tuk-tuk back to hotel).

Reception

Overall, we enjoyed our stay in the resort and would recommend it to couples who come here for a honeymoon. 4 out of 5 stars for this resort. Would have given 5 if they improve their shuttle service. Hope this info helps! 

Just me and the Thai pants trying to blend in.

Krabi Trip: Tips and Things to Do Before Going

Planning a Krabi trip? Read some of these tips, things to do and what you should know before going.

1. Exchange money

From my readings, I found out that it’s cheaper to exchange money in Malaysia instead of in Krabi itself. So, we did exchange the money first and just activate Korean and Malaysian bank cards just in case we need more money (for my impulse buying disease lol) later.

When we exchanged the money in JB, we got 12,000THB for RM1524 (rate 0.127). I think it’s quite good as the XE currency shows almost the same amount at that time. And I was right. When we arrived at Krabi, the lowest rate was 0.128+ where we saw at the Krabi airport and near Ao Nang area is more expensive.

2. Buy necessities (mosquitos repellent, aqua shoes, sun block, waterproof bag, swimwear)

Lucky for me, my friend just got back from her Krabi trip like few months before our last minute Krabi plan. So, I asked her things we might need especially suitable clothes and packages there. One of the best tips I got from her is the aqua shoes. I saw her IG post on one of the shoes she was wearing so she said it was aqua shoes from Sportsdirect. Buying the aqua shoes a day before our flight was the most brilliant thing I’ve ever done for this trip. We use the shoes most of the time we were there. 

Promotion at Sportsdirect: 2 pairs for RM79, that's a bargain!

Tbh, I kinda have this geli-geli feeling in water like I’m not sure what I will step on later so I’m like maaann I love these shoes. Mind you, if it’s raining season in Krabi, you wouldn’t wanna get your sneakers or sandals wet making that pechek-pechek sound. 

That pink waterproof bag is from Ogival, RM63 

Not to forget the waterproof bag. It’s really helpful to have this with us along the trip. We bought 15liter waterproof bag and it can fit a thick towel (that we kidnapped from the hotel), your camera and phones etc etc during your island hopping trip.

As for the mosquitoes repellent and sun block, you can get it there but it’s slightly more expensive in case Watsons have got some special discount during your visit. We forgot to buy a sun block before the trip and bough 199baht (after like 50% discount) Nivea sunblock in one of the Watsons branch in Ao Nang which is a good thing for typical Asians like us who didn’t wanna get natural skin-tanned there. And thanks to this Nivea sunblock, our skin was hardly got tanned (even though my skin jenis yang cepat terbakar. Kim lain lah terbakar pun nampak macam kulit tipikal meleis cisss).

Around RM150 after sale.

I bought this pair of burkini (muslimah-kinda-swimwear) by Ogival from AEON when it was on sale like long time ago. It has a hoodie but my head is smaller so it's not tight I have to use a brooch, simply put, no thanks. And I don't like how my face looks like in the hoodie (dah macam rupa cendawan butang) so I wear normal shawl with it. You can actually find cheaper swimwear nearby Ao Nang beach but for Muslims like me, I'm afraid they don't sell a proper kinda swimwear there so I just brought what I have.

How it looks like :)

3. Plan your itinerary  

I belive, not just Krabi, wherever you’re going for a trip, it’s actually important to have your itinerary planned. In my case, instead of having a 9am-9pm planned itinerary, I listed a to-do-list so that I wouldn’t get stressed out if things aren’t going as planned. If you have like more than a week in Krabi, I would suggest to take it slow but a mere 3-full-day-trip? We’ve got to manage our time well for a maximised experience. Gituuu.

What we did was reading from various blogs and planned the itinerary according to our interest. Good thing for a multiracial couple like us, I’ll do English and Malays blogwalking (omg been forever to use this jargon haha) while Kim will always refer to Naver blogs (Korean kinda Google - search engine) and such. Believe it or not, it’s so different..like what Malays do when they travel and what Koreans do. Sometimes what’s popular among Malay travellers might not be the same among Koreans. Anyways, now I get used to it and enjoy having different kinds of traveling experience with him. 

Will update more on our itinerary later.

4. Photocopy important documents 

Since we planned to rent a motorbike in Krabi, we photocopied our passports and my international driving license. I saw on a blog saying that giving original passport is illegal so I did it just in case. But actually, later in Krabi, they still asked for original passport only. EVERYWHERE. And license isn’t that important there so don’t worry :p

Things you should know before going and some tips:

1. Seasons – peak season (mid October to late March). It’s important to know the seasons in Krabi before going as packages offered depends on the season at the moment. Low season means lower price. But high season means more things to be explored! However, we actually bought the flight tickets less than 2 weeks before going because of the Air Asia BIG promotion. I learnt that it was currently low season in July after we bought the tickets lol. Read more about Krabi’s weather here. 

2. Plan your itinerary so that you can choose your hotel based on activities you wanna do. If you want to stay nearby the beach and near other attractions, Ao Nang is the best place but hotels close to the beach can be quite expensive.

3. Keep checking on the weather forecast. Again, it’s rainy season when we went there and most packages need to be booked at least a day earlier. So if it seems like it’s gonna rain the next day, these are my suggestions :

4. To-do-list in Krabi when it’s raining:

a)       Go groceries shopping. One thing you must do when you’re in Thailand is to try their snacks. You can get all kinds of snacks in Tesco Lotus or Big C. I will blog/vlog more about this soon.

b)       Get Thai massage. Never, I mean NEVER leave Krabi or Thailand in general without trying their massage (I know this is unpopular advice because it’s already well-known). But be careful when you choose the types of massage and massage spa. If you’re not familiar with massaging, don’t go for the traditional Thai massage. Kim had it and said “I thought I almost died.” LOL. Ask for a more relaxing massage instead. I tried the aromatherapy massage and goshh it was amazing. As for the massage spa, sometimes small ones by the Ao Nang road isn’t hygienic enough because they use the same towel over and over again without washing it so we were careful when choosing the spa there. Let me know in the comment section if you’re interested to know which massage spa I went to.

c)       Learn to cook Thai foods. Read my next post on why I didn’t get to do this at the end T_T  

d)       Go rock climbing. We didn’t have enough time to do this but if I could come back to Krabi again next time, I’ll definitely put this on my to-do-list.

e)       Eat at seafood restaurants by the beach or at the cliff restaurant. It would be nice for me to stay indoor as much as possible when it’s raining ‘cause it can get really windy. A romantic windy dinner by the beach? Oh yes! Also, when we were on the way to Krabi town from Ao Nang, we saw this beautiful restaurant right under a big cliff by the road. I forgot to take a picture of it but just so you, the view from afar is uh-may-zengg at night.

f)         Attractions and activities you can still do even if it’s raining included kayaking in Bor Thor, hiking Tiger Temple/Cave, go to Emerald Pool & Hot Spring.

I guess that’s all for now. I hope this helps to plan your Krabi Trip. Please share this if you think it’s helpful. Or leave comments on what else you wanna know about our Krabi trip. 

Thanks for reading! ^_^