This, was an amazing day. We were nearing the end of our two week trip to Cambodia and Thailand, at our last Thai beach destination before heading to Bangkok and then home. We had spent the previous 3 hours on a boat getting ferried from Koh Pi Pi island to Railay Beach in Krabi. The ferry ride alone was spectacular…the turquoise blue sea streched out as far as the eye reached, dotted with craggily formations and clusters of islands. This is what you see in the movies…and I sat like a child for 3 straight hours soaking it all in. Legs hanging off the side of the top deck, face resting on the railing, and a huge grin plastered to my face.
Just as we started to see the towering cliffs of Railay Beach that make it such a famed rock-climber destination, the ferry’s motor turned off. Time to transfer onto Longtail Boats for the rest of the journey…or not. After only about 10 minutes on the Longtail Boat and still about 100 yards offshore, the motor for this boat stopped. Apparrently we had to wade through the ocean the rest of the way to the beach…with our huge backpacks. So we all took off our shoes, jumped overboard, tried our best to hold our bags high and dry and waded into shore. A surprisingly fun entry to a new destination.
After checking into our hotel on the beach (which had an adorable “Welcome Henricksens!” sign out front) and freshening up a bit we walked back out to start exploring. This photo is what we encountered. The most brilliant sunset either of us had ever seen. Not only because of the striking colors in the sky, but because of everything else unfolding in the glow. The tide pulling out to sea leaving a bubbling, rippled sandy surface. Longtail Bots rocking in the distance. Epic cliffs, seemingly born of the sea, framing the entire view. We stood, awestruck at the beauty of this place for a good 10 minutes…feeling a pang of sadness as the last glimpse of the sun finally dipped into the sea. Lucky for us, we would experience a sunset view just like this every single night of our stay at Railay Beach. The best sunset viewing location in the world, I’m sure of it.
Hello! My husband and I will be traveling to railay beach and Koh phi phi after we visit Bangkok and Cambodia for our honeymoon. Where would you suggest we stay,eat and see?
Thank you!
Hi there! Thanks for checking in…what an exciting trip, you’ll have a blast. First let me direct you to a few of my other Thailand/Cambodia posts if you haven’t already found them:
https://savorygirl.com/travel/savorygirl-is-off-exploring-eating-her-way-through-thailand-cambodia/
https://savorygirl.com/recipes/thai-food-photo-party/
https://savorygirl.com/local-cuisine/sgvideo_crickets_thailand/
https://savorygirl.com/travel/savorygirls-first-ever-video-cambodian-fruit/
https://savorygirl.com/travel/chiang-mai-thailand/
https://savorygirl.com/travel/cambodian-foodie-photos/
Some of our favorite finds are included there, but honestly my best advice to you is to eat as much street food as you possibly can in Bangkok and eat as much Mango with Sticky Rice as you can on Railay Beach (there’s a great little restaurant facing the beach right on the front of the walkway for this)! On Raiay Beach do the 1/2 day snorkel island tour that ends with night swimming with phosphorescence. If you do you’ll be treated to the most amazing freshly caught, deserted island cooked meal at sunset you’ve ever had! Such a great experience.
In Cambodia try as much of the fruit as you can and make sure to get a local recommendation for where to go get Kuy Teau and Cambodian Coffee for breakfast. Yes, it’s a noodle soup with coffee for breakfast…but it’s so good and you’ll be surrounded by locals so you know you’re doing something right! Oh, and in the main market in Siem Reap (if you’re there) make sure to venture deep inside where the food market and all of the yummy cooking is going on. You’d never know it from the outside but some great eats there!
Let me know how it goes! Congrats on the upcoming wedding…and happy eating!