Khao Lak Travel Guide

Yes, if you want long, uncrowded beaches, a resort with a big pool, and the Similan Islands and Khao Sok within reach. It's one of the easiest places in Thailand for a family beach vacation, and divers base themselves here for the Similans and Richelieu Rock. It's not the place for nightlife, shopping or a lively beach town, and the beaches face open sea, so they're only good for swimming in the dry season.

Compared with Phuket, you trade choice and nightlife for space and quiet, and you add the Similans as an easy day trip. My side-by-side answer is in Phuket or Khao Lak.

On 26 December 2004 the Indian Ocean tsunami struck this coast harder than anywhere else in Thailand. More than 4,000 people died in Khao Lak, and local estimates put the true number far higher. Princess Ubolratana was staying at a resort here that morning, and her son was among those killed. The resorts and villages were rebuilt in the years after.

The memorials are low-key and worth an hour of your trip. Police Boat 813 in Bang Niang shows how far the water came, and the International Tsunami Museum beside it tells the story in more detail. Ban Nam Khem, the fishing village to the north that lost so many of its people, has the memorial wall of names. They're places of mourning first, so dress and behave as you would at any memorial, and leave a donation if you can.

Khao Lak is the base for both national marine parks. The Similans are the closer and the easier day, from Thap Lamu pier 15 km south of Nang Thong, with a hotel pickup between about 06:30 and 07:30 and back by about 16:30 to 17:30. Most tours land at Donald Duck Bay and the park headquarters on Koh Miang and snorkel at two more islands. Take a catamaran if you get seasick, and check that the ฿500 fee is included before you compare prices.

The Surin Islands have the best shallow-water snorkeling in Thailand and a Moken village on Koh Surin Tai, but they're further away. The boats leave from Khuraburi, about 85 km and an hour and a half north of Khao Lak, and the day runs about 12 hours. If you can, spend a night on the island instead. My Surin Islands guide has the overnight options and the season.

Fly to Phuket. Khao Lak is about 75 km from the terminal to Nang Thong and 81 km to Khuk Khak, 80 to 100 minutes by car. The official taxi counter in arrivals charges a fixed ฿1,800 for a car for up to three people, ฿2,000 to Khuk Khak, and a pre-booked transfer costs about ฿1,500–2,500. Shared vans with hotel drop-off cost ฿550–750 a seat. The cheap option is the bus north from Phuket Bus Terminal 2 in Phuket Town, ฿130–250 for about two hours, but it doesn't go to the airport. My Phuket to Khao Lak guide has every fare, and Khao Lak to Phuket has the trip back for your flight.

Krabi airport is about 140 km away, a drive of more than two hours, so it only makes sense if the flights are much cheaper.

The whole strip runs along Highway 4, with the beaches a short road off it, so the distances are long for walking but short by car. In Bang Niang and Nang Thong you can walk to dinner. Further north, most resorts arrange taxis, and every Similan, Surin, Khao Sok and elephant tour includes a hotel pickup.

For the waterfalls, Ban Nam Khem and the quieter beaches, I'd hire a car or a driver for a day. The buses up and down the highway stop at roadside shelters and are useful for Takua Pa or Phuket, not for getting around the beaches.

December to March is the best time, when the sea is flat, the boats run to the Similans, and rain falls on only 4 to 9 days a month. February is the driest month, with 45 mm. December to February is also the busiest and most expensive, with a strong European family crowd at Christmas and New Year, so book the beachfront resorts early. April and November are the edges of the season.

May to October is the rainy season, and in Khao Lak it's a serious one. The local station records 3,873 mm of rain a year, about 70% more than Phuket, with 636 mm in September, and the Similans close from 16 May to 14 October. My Khao Lak weather by month has every month.