The Magnificent Place - Krabi

Krabi Province is a popular beach destination at the Andaman Sea in Southern Thailand. Krabi, a coastal province, abounds with countless natural attractions that never fail to impress tourists. Such attractions include white sandy beaches, crystal clear water, fascinating coral reefs, caves and waterfalls, as well as numerous islands. The distinguishing feature of both Krabi and neighboring Phang Nga is the massive limestone karsts, rising vertiginously out of the flat rice paddies on land and as islands from the sea. Add in some gorgeous beaches and excellent scuba diving and rock climbing, and it's little wonder that tourism in the area has been booming. While less commercialized than neighboring Phuket, Krabi Province cannot be described as undiscovered. 

Krabi is mostly coast and islands, so you'll be spending quite some time on boats when getting around. The most common boat type for shorter hops is the long-tail boat (reua hang yao), which true to the name has the propeller at the end of a long 'tail' stretching from the boat. This makes them supremely manoeuvrable even in shallow waters, but they're a little underpowered for longer trips and you'll get wet if it's even a little choppy.

Rock climbing. Krabi is a world class rock-climbing destination, with the distinctive limestone karst formations offer a wide variety of climbs

Diving. Krabi rivals Ko Tao on Thailand's east coast as a centre for diving, with a number of renowned dive sites in the Andaman sea, with many dive shops in Ko Phi Phi and Ko Lanta in particular set up to cater for them. Krabi Province was badly hit by the Indian Ocean tsunami of December 2004. Several years later, signs of the damage are now hard to find in any places.

Ao Nang has no shopping malls or supermarkets, but there are plenty of convenience stores and souvenir shops. The vast majority of shops are lined nicely along the beachfront road. There are also a few side roads (Soi's) that branch off into the cluster of crowded shops found elsewhere in Asia. The regular tourist fare (e.g. postcards, magnets, trinkets, etc.) are plentiful as are clothes, shoes, and pretty much anything else you'll find elsewhere in Thailand.

Perhaps unsurprisingly for a coastal region, seafood features prominently on the menu. Traditional southern Thai food includes milder coconut-milk based curries popularly associated with Thailand: the dry, Malaysian-influenced Penang curry and Indian-influenced Massaman (Muslim) curry with potatoes and nuts. A wide variety of international cuisines is available in the many resort towns, visited by millions of overseas tourists every year and home to many expats. Tourism has also brought migrants from other parts of Thailand, and their food with them.