Two Days in Ao Nang

Tan Hostel x Cafe, Ao Nang

Our first day in Ao Nang was supposed to be a rest and relaxation day but we were so excited we ended up exploring the entire town! We walked the length of Ao Nang beach, then hiked past crazy monkeys through the jungle to nearby Pai Plong beach. I was worried our flip flops would fall through the cracks of the precarious wooden planks we had to climb. This beach had a long floating dock at the end of it that moved with the waves, which was fun to walk on and jump off of. 

Our second day we took a day trip to nearby Railay beach. You can just hop on a taxi boat here to nearby islands and beaches for just 100 Baht (about 3 US dollars)! When the boat pulled in, we jumped right onto the beach because there was no dock. We spent the day here hiking and climbing around the surrounding cliffs, drinking fruit smoothies (I am averaging like 4 a day), exploring the beaches, and walking to a cave full of wooden penises. (The penises in Phra Nang cave are offerings for Phra Nang, the female goddess of fertility.)  

I really liked Ao Nang and Railay Beach because of all the things we could do for free. No need to pay for a 30-40 dollar tour of nearby islands when you can take a $3 taxi boat there and explore yourself. Similarly we chose not to do a 40 dollar rock climbing excursion and instead did a couple intense hikes with ropes and rock scrambling that more than satisfied our urge to boulder.

Day 1 at Ao Nang and Pai Plong Beach

Day 2 at Railay Beach