Thailand Beaches Ranked: The Route I’ve Researched After Basing in Khao Lak
Keep Reading
- Bangkok Street Food vs Restaurants — Where to Eat and How Much It Costs
- Two Weeks in Thailand: Krabi, Koh Lipe, and Bangkok
Koh Lanta is the island most trip reports say everyone skips on the way to Phi Phi — and that travelers who do stop rate above all of them.
In This Post
- Bangkok: Two Days Is Enough, But Do Them Right
- Krabi: The Right Base for Everything That Follows
- Koh Lanta: The One You’ll Actually Want to Come Back To
- The Phi Phi Day Trip: Skip It
- Koh Samui and Koh Phangan: Depends What You’re After
- Island Hopping Logistics
- Where to Stay and What to Eat
- What Made This Trip Different
- What Thailand Cost (Two People, 14 Days)
- Gear and Guides We Recommend
- Book Your Thailand Activities
- Related Reading
- Book Tours and Activities
- Find Flights to Krabi
- Frequently Asked Questions
I’ll be honest: Thailand almost didn’t make the list. It felt too obvious, too well-trodden, the kind of place that shows up on every travel blog with the same photos of longtail boats and pad thai. Then a friend got back from Krabi and sent me a voice memo that was basically twelve minutes of her saying “just go.” So Thailand jumped the queue — we ended up in Khao Lak that January, on the Andaman coast a couple hours north of where she’d been. She was right about the coast, if not the exact spot.
This is not a post about finding Thailand’s “quieter side.” The beaches are busy. The islands are developed. The infrastructure exists because millions of people have decided this is worth visiting, and most of them are correct. What follows ranks the islands on this coast using what we saw firsthand at Khao Lak and the Similan Islands, plus what repeated traveler reports say about the spots we haven’t reached yet. See our ranking of the best beach destinations.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the best time to visit Thailand beaches?
November through March is the dry season on the Andaman coast (Krabi, Koh Lanta). Avoid June-October for Krabi as many boats stop running. The Gulf islands (Koh Samui) are better in July-August when the Andaman side is rainy.
How much does a week in Thailand cost?
Budget $50-70 per day for two people including beach bungalow accommodation, street food, and activities. Flights from the US run $900-1,200 round trip. Thailand is one of the most affordable beach destinations in Asia.
Is Phi Phi Island worth visiting?
The main Phi Phi island is overcrowded and has lost much of its appeal. If you go, take a sunrise tour to avoid the day-tripper crowds. Koh Lanta is a much better base for a relaxed beach experience.
What Thailand Cost (Two People, 14 Days)
Here is a realistic budget for this route, based on current listings and what other travelers report spending (our own trip was Khao Lak-only, so the island-hopping costs below are researched, not from our receipts):
| Category | Cost | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Flights (NYC-Bangkok RT) | $900-1,200 | Best on ANA or EVA via Tokyo |
| Hotels/Airbnb | $40-80/night | Beach bungalows in Krabi, guesthouses in Bangkok |
| Food | $15-25/day | Street food $2-4, sit-down $8-15 |
| Internal flights | $50-80 each | Bangkok to Krabi, inter-island ferries $15-30 |
| Activities | $100-200 total | Island hopping, snorkeling, temple entry |
| Transport (tuk-tuks, taxis) | $5-15/day | Grab app is cheaper than negotiating |
| eSIM data | $8-15 | Airalo Thailand 5GB plan |
| Total | $1,800-2,800 | Per person, 14 days. Budget end very achievable. |
Prices are approximate and based on 2024-2025 travel. Book flights 2-3 months ahead for the best rates.
Bangkok: Two Days Is Enough, But Do Them Right
Most itineraries fly into Bangkok first. Give it two days before heading south — not three, not four. Bangkok rewards specificity, according to nearly every trip report on this: try to see everything and you’ll spend your time in traffic and come away with blurry impressions of gold and chaos. Pick your targets and commit.
The temples that show up on every must-see list: Wat Pho for the reclining Buddha (worth the entry fee, impressive in scale, go early before the tour groups land), Wat Arun across the river (the ceramic tile facade reportedly looks better in person than in photos, which is rare), and the Grand Palace complex if you have patience for lines and want the historical context. Skip Wat Traimit unless you’re specifically interested in the solid gold Buddha — fine, but out of the way.
Chatuchak Weekend Market is worth a Saturday or Sunday morning. It’s 15,000 stalls and you will not see all of it, so don’t try. Walk in, get a fresh coconut, find the section that interests you — the vintage clothing area and the ceramics section both come recommended — and leave when you’re tired. Two hours is the amount of time most people settle on.
For street food, the recurring advice is to skip the well-photographed night markets and eat where the office workers eat at lunch. Khao man gai (poached chicken over rice) from a cart on Silom runs about 50 baht and is rated above most sit-down meals. Jay Fai, the Michelin-starred street stall, has a two-hour wait and tourist pricing — reviews call it excellent but not dramatically better than what you’ll eat for a tenth of the cost elsewhere. Your call.
Stay somewhere with a rooftop. Not for Instagram reasons — the city reportedly reads differently from above, and it helps you understand the geography before you start navigating it on the ground.
Krabi: The Right Base for Everything That Follows
Take the overnight train from Bangkok to Surat Thani and then a bus, or fly directly to Krabi — flying wins on comfort, the train wins if you want to save money and don’t mind arriving a bit stiff. The base-camp debate favors Krabi Town over Ao Nang: Ao Nang is a strip of tour operators and restaurants aimed at tourists, while Krabi Town has a night market, more local life, and cheaper guesthouses. It’s a ten-minute drive to the boat launches either way.
Railay Beach is the reason most people come to Krabi, and by every account it earns the attention. Longtail boats run from Ao Nang (about 100 baht each way, constantly during daylight). The beach is hemmed in by limestone karsts on three sides — the same kind of formation we saw at Phang Nga Bay out of Khao Lak, just without a road anywhere near it, which is what keeps this one from getting fully overrun. The standard plan is to rent a kayak, paddle to Phra Nang Cave Beach, and be back before the afternoon tour boats arrive; morning is reportedly the better half of the day here.
The Four Islands tour leaves from Krabi Town and costs around 600-800 baht depending on who you book with. It hits Koh Mor, Koh Chueak, Koh Mah, and Tup — the last one has a sandbar connecting two islands at low tide, which reviewers say is worth seeing. The tour is described as organized and efficient, with snorkeling ranging from decent to excellent depending on the island. Packing your own lunch is the common tip, since the tour lunch is forgettable, along with a waterproof phone pouch for the constant in-and-out of boats.
What to skip from Krabi, per the recurring complaint across trip reports: the Phi Phi day trip. It gets its own section below because it deserves it.
Koh Lanta: The One You’ll Actually Want to Come Back To
Koh Lanta doesn’t get written about as much as Phi Phi or even Koh Samui, and that’s part of what makes it work, according to the people who write it up. It’s accessible by ferry from Krabi (about 1.5 hours), it has a long west coast road with beaches backed by jungle, and the pace is described as slower without being dead.
The beaches on Koh Lanta’s west coast run roughly north to south from most to least developed. Klong Dao in the north has the biggest resort concentration. Klong Nin in the middle is the consensus sweet spot — some restaurants, some guesthouses, not overwhelming. Bamboo Bay and Kantiang Bay in the south are quieter still, and Kantiang is reportedly where people extend their stays because they can’t make themselves leave.
The east coast of the island is where Lanta Old Town sits — wooden shophouses on stilts over the water, a handful of coffee shops and galleries, the original fishing community. It doesn’t take more than two hours to walk through, and it’s the closest thing on the island to a picture of what it was before the tourist infrastructure arrived. Worth an afternoon.
Koh Lanta is the honest alternative to Phi Phi for people who want a beach week rather than a party week, by consensus among the people who’ve done both. The diving here is also well-regarded — Ko Haa and Hin Daeng are both accessible as day trips and reportedly have clearer water and less boat traffic than the Phi Phi dive sites.
The Phi Phi Day Trip: Skip It
Phi Phi Don as a place to stay for two or three days is rated as perfectly fine — busy, loud nightlife, but beautiful beaches and good diving. The Phi Phi day trip from Krabi or Koh Lanta, however, is the most consistently complained-about logistics problem on this coast: it ends with several hundred people on Maya Bay, a beach famously damaged by exactly this kind of overtourism and only partially recovered. Forty minutes on the beach, back on a boat with fifty other people, then another stop with eighty. The appeal is obvious on paper; the reviews describe the reality as exhausting, with water visibility compromised by boat traffic.
If Phi Phi is calling you specifically, the better plan by most accounts is to take the ferry and stay overnight rather than day-trip it.
Koh Samui and Koh Phangan: Depends What You’re After
Koh Samui is the adult option — more developed, has an airport, the northeast coast around Chaweng Beach has real restaurants and hotels with amenities, and it functions well as a week-long base. It’s not as raw as Koh Lanta but it’s more comfortable. Bo Phut on the north coast has a walking street that’s worth an evening. The interior has a handful of waterfalls and temples that break up beach days well.
Koh Phangan is known for the Full Moon Party, which takes place on Haad Rin Beach once a month and draws ten to fifteen thousand people. If a massive beach party is the reason you’re traveling to Thailand, book around the full moon, stay on the south end of the island near Haad Rin, and lean into it. If that’s not your thing, Koh Phangan has a surprisingly good yoga and wellness scene on the west coast around Srithanu that has nothing to do with the party. The two versions of the island barely overlap.
Island Hopping Logistics
The ferry system in southern Thailand is well-organized and cheaper than flying. The main hubs are Krabi, Surat Thani, and Donsak (the ferry pier for Koh Samui and Koh Phangan). Buy tickets the day before or on the morning of travel — walk-up is usually fine except during Thai holidays and peak December-January weeks.
The route that avoids backtracking: Bangkok (2 nights) — Krabi (3 nights) — Koh Lanta (4 nights) — Koh Samui or Koh Phangan (3-4 nights) — fly home from Samui. That’s roughly twelve days and covers the geography in one direction. Compress or expand any leg depending on your timeline.
SIM cards are cheap and fast at the Bangkok airport — buy one before leaving arrivals. A 30-day unlimited data SIM from AIS or DTAC runs about 300-400 baht and works across the ferries and most islands. Doing this trip offline isn’t realistic; Google Maps and ferry schedules are load-bearing.
Where to Stay and What to Eat
Book hotels: Search Booking.com hotels
Rough accommodation budget, per current listings: Bangkok 800-1500 baht per night for a solid mid-range room, Krabi Town 600-1000 baht, Koh Lanta 800-1500 baht depending on beach proximity, Koh Samui 1200-2000 baht for something with a pool. Not budget-backpacker numbers, not luxury either. Going cheaper in each location tends to cost you air conditioning reliability and hot water consistency.
The standard advice: eat at restaurants with plastic chairs and laminated menus. Order the green papaya salad (som tam) and the pad see ew over the pad thai, since everyone orders pad thai and kitchens reportedly put more attention into the other dishes, and the massaman curry whenever you see it because it varies by region. Fresh mango sticky rice from a cart runs 40-60 baht. Spend the money on experiences, not restaurants dressed up for tourists.
What Comes Up Again and Again in Trip Reports
- Thailand has a functional train system connecting Bangkok to the south — comfortable, air-conditioned, and reportedly more reliable than most European rail.
- Longtail boats have no suspension and a lot of wake. Expect a sore back after a full day of island-hopping; a quick-dry towel that actually dries on the boat is the recurring packing tip.
- 7-Eleven in Thailand is genuinely useful: cold Chang beer, fresh-made sandwiches, SIM top-ups, ATM access. Most travelers end up in one daily, and nobody seems embarrassed about it.
- The rainy season runs roughly May through October. The west coast of the Andaman (Krabi, Koh Lanta, Phi Phi) gets hit harder than the Gulf side (Koh Samui, Koh Phangan) — the Gulf side is the safer shoulder-season bet.
- Bargaining is appropriate at markets and with tuk-tuks, not at restaurants with menus or shops with price tags.
- The water is warm enough to swim comfortably year-round — worth noting if you’re coming from somewhere the ocean is cold half the year. That much we can confirm from the Andaman in January: the water at Khao Lak and the Similan Islands never needed a wetsuit.
- Bangkok Street Food Guide
Gear and Guides We Recommend
These are the things that actually made the trip easier, not filler recommendations. Affiliate disclosure: if you buy through these links, we earn a small commission at no cost to you.
- Waterproof Phone Pouch — Non-negotiable for longtail boats and island hopping. Salt water and phones do not coexist. Get it on Amazon.
- Quick-Dry Towel — Hotel towels are fine for the room. You want something that dries on the boat between swims and weighs nothing in your bag. Get it on Amazon.
- Lonely Planet Thailand — I use this for historical context more than logistics now that everything is Google-able, but the regional breakdowns are still the most efficient way to understand the geography before you arrive. Get it on Amazon.
Book Your Thailand Activities
- Krabi 4-Island Tour by Longtail Boat — the classic, and still the best way to see the karsts
- Phi Phi Islands Day Trip — book in advance, these sell out in high season
- Phuket Snorkeling and Day Trips — the Similan Islands day trip is worth the early wake-up
- Koh Samui Water Activities — kayaking, snorkeling, and sunset cruises
Related Reading
- Beach Destinations Ranked
- Japan: What the Trip Actually Looks Like
- Bali: Where to Stay and What to Skip
- South Korea: Seoul, Busan, and the Train Between Them
- How We Plan Long Trips Without Overplanning Them
- Using Credit Card Points for International Flights
- Bali Warung Guide — Where to Eat Like a Local for Under $3
Book Tours and Activities
Find Flights to Krabi
Klook for island-hopping tours and ferry bookings in Krabi and Koh Lanta | Book snorkeling and diving tours through Klook
Tours: Thailand tours on Viator
eSIM: Get an Airalo eSIM for Thailand before you land. Data works immediately at the airport.
Travel Insurance: We use SafetyWing for travel insurance on every international trip. It covers medical emergencies, trip interruptions, and lost luggage starting at $45/month with no fixed end date — perfect for multi-country itineraries.
Related: Southeast Asia Tours Worth Booking
Flights: Compare flight prices to Thailand on Skyscanner.
Need a car? RentCars compares rental agencies to find the best price at your destination.
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Related: Two Weeks in Thailand | Bangkok Street Food Guide | Solo in Bali | Singapore Hawker Centers
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Written by Jenna Fattah
I have visited 25+ countries across 6 continents, attended 7 Formula 1 races, and spent 4 years writing about what actually works and what I would do differently. Every recommendation on this site comes from trips I planned and paid for myself. Read more about me
