One of the Best Beaches in Thailand is Railay Beach Krabi
Thailand is one of the best family vacation spots in the world. While relatively safe and affordable, what truly sets Thailand apart are the exquisite beaches that make you want to book a flight today! There are soooo many ‘must visit places in Thailand’ to choose from, but after living in the Land of Smiles for the past 16 years, you can trust me when I say that one of the best beaches in Thailand is Railay Beach Krabi. So I put together this Krabi Travel Guide for families. Feel free to comment or send me a DM if you have more questions!
Table of Contents
Why choose Railay Beach Krabi in Thailand for your family holiday?
Out of the thousands of beautiful beaches in Thailand, like Phuket vs Phi Phi vs Koh Samui and many others, why should you choose Railay Beach Krabi as your family vacation destination?
- The stunning limestone cliffs jutting out of the emerald blue sea make this place magical.
- The pristine white sand beaches that are powdery soft unlike some other beaches in Thailand that might be pebbly, rocky or even muddy.
- Part of the charm is being a walkable beach town that has many restaurants, ice cream shops, cafes, massages, souvenirs, tours and activities located all within walking distance from your family friendly resort in Krabi.
- Did I mention Railay Beach is only accessible by boat? Can you imagine how exciting it would be for your kids to jump into a wooden long-tail boat that glides calmly across the emerald blue waters while passing towering limestone cliffs all along the way?
- Railay Beach is one of the most kid-friendly beaches in Thailand due to its long stretch of white sand and also how the shallow, calm waters gradually get deep.
- Lots of fun activities on Railay Beach Krabi such as kayaking, exploring caves, hiking to viewpoints, snorkeling, diving, long-tail boat tours, and much more!
- Krabi has an international airport with many daily flights from Bangkok, or if you’re already in Phuket, it’s just a 2 hour taxi ride (about $50 USD).
Where's the best beaches in Thailand to stay on in Krabi?
First off, let me explain that Krabi is a large province in Thailand. With Krabi’s International Airport (KBV), it is pretty convenient to get here and has daily flights from Bangkok for as low as 599 THB (~$18 USD). Crazy cheap y’all! (Here’s my Southern girl accent coming out haha!)
There are actually quite a few kid-friendly beaches in Krabi.
Some of the best beaches in Thailand for families to visit are actually on the mainland of Krabi Province :
- Ao Nang Beach (see below for why I don’t recommend staying at Ao Nang though)
- Railay Beach West
- Railay Beach East
- Phra Nang Beach
- Long Beach
While some of the best beaches in Thailand for families are on islands in Krabi Province such as:
- Koh Phi Phi Islands
- Ko Lanta Island
- Ko Pu Island
- Koh Jum Island
Other must visit islands in Krabi Province that have no overnight accommodations are :
- Maya Bay
- Ko Hong Island
- Ko Poda Island
- Ko Phi Phi Lee
- Monkey Bay
- Bamboo Island
Now that you have a good overview of the Krabi Province. Let’s narrow it down even further.
I have personally been to 9 of the above kid-friendly beaches in Krabi Province. Below are 4 of my absolute must-visit beaches in Thailand that I would go to over and over again (and normally I’m the kind of gal that likes to go to new places, but trust me when I say these are exceptional!):
KRABI TRAVEL GUIDE
Phra Nang Beach in Krabi, Thailand
Positives about Phra Nang Beach:
- Only accessible by long-tail boat or speed boat — we highly recommend the long-tail boat for the quintessential Thai charm!
- powdery white soft sand perfect for building sand castles
- a wide and long beach area where you can spread out away from the crowds
- Some areas have shallow water that’s great for toddlers to play in, but there are also deeper areas good for swimming on Phra Nang Beach. Win Win for all ages!
- Such a lovely stroll from Railay East through the limestone caves with the stalactite formations dripping down from the cave ceiling above your head. We also encountered the cutest Spot Dusky Leaf monkeys on our walk as well as a large Komodo dragon. That was exciting!
- This could be a plus or minus: there is only one place to stay on Phra Nang Beach — a 5 star luxury beach resort that would make for the best family vacation destination in Thailand, possibly the world, if you could afford it (our family could not — boo!)
- Also, maybe a positive or a negative: Phra Nang Beach has one of the most unique restaurants in the world to eat : The Grotto (Supposedly for hotel guests only, but I recently heard others can make a reservation even if you aren’t a hotel guest. I’m going to try and find out on our next trip to Railay Beach Krabi — stay tuned!).
- Many activities to do and many places to explore on Phra Nang Beach in the Railay Beach Krabi area such as:
- the Phra Nang Cave with an amazing viewpoint (see below for why it was my favorite activity on Krabi)
- During low tide, you can walk ‘across the sea’ to access a hidden gem called Ko Rang Beach with a very large limestone cliff jutting up out of the Andaman Sea
- Beautiful sunsets
- the Princess Cave (not kid-friendly in my opinion due to the large amounts of penis idols set up for the ‘princess spirit’)
- You can snorkel around the coral reefs right off the beach
- A lot of people were kayaking here from Railay West Beach (we actually tried to kayak here before our 8 year old started melting down about the deep water — so we had to turn our kayak around and went to Ton Sai Beach instead. It was still a great kayaking trip!)
- a great place for rock climbing on the beautiful limestone cliffs — I saw places for beginner climbers all the way to advanced climbers.
- Hike to the Emerald Lagoon — hiking the Emerald Lagoon viewpoint is probably good for middle school and up, but hiking down into the lagoon is for advanced climbers only!)
- Hike to the East Railay Viewpoint
Negatives about Phra Nang Beach in Krabi, Thailand:
- Even though it is a public beach, there are no public bathrooms.
- There are no restaurants or shops selling any food or smoothies or anything.
- Railay Walking Street is about a 20 minute walk.
- Most families, like us, won’t be able to afford the only hotel on Phra Nang Beach, which is a luxury 5 star resort averaging about $500/night.
Railay Beach West in Krabi, Thailand
Positives about Railay Beach West:
- The best beach to stay on in Railay in Krabi Province, Thailand because of easy access to all the restaurants and shops at Railay Walking Street!
- Our family stays on Railay West at a great family resort called Sand Sea Resort, where our kids all stayed free (excluding the breakfast buffet fee of 300 baht (~$10 USD).
- Only accessible via long-tail boat or speed boat
- Also has nice, soft white sand like Phra Nang Beach does
- Fairly long stretch of beach — so you can steer clear of the crowded areas
- Shallow calm water that’s great for kids to play safely while mama sips on a Pina Colada nearby
- Lots of wildlife to see : the friendly Spot Dusky leaf Monkeys, the Komodo dragons, and even exotic birds!
- Access to Railay Walking Street for lots of restaurants, gelato stands, cafes, massage shops, and souvenirs too!
- Our family loves chasing the most beautiful sunsets, and Railay West is in our Top 5 of the world!
- The best thing to do with kids in Krabi at Railay Beach West was kayak!
- Can easily walk to Railay Beach East, the Railay East Viewpoint, the Emerald Lagoon, the Phra Nang Beach, and then the Phra Nang Beach Cave (all within about 15-20 minutes). It’s really an incredible stroll under the limestone rock formations with the stalactite formations dripping down.
Negatives about Railay Beach West in Krabi, Thailand:
- There is no pier on Railay Beach West — although I love this for pictures, this is not great news for having to unload suitcases off a long-tail boat in the middle of the ocean or having to drag luggage on the cobble sidewalks for about 20 minutes from the Railay East Beach Pier. Thankfully the Sand Sea Resort spans from the Railay East Beach (where the pier is) all the way to the Railay West Beach (where the swimming pool and breakfast buffet are located). Another 3 reasons we chose this family friendly resort in Krabi!
- Quite crowded with day tours during the day.
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When is the best time to visit Krabi Thailand?
Thailand has a tropical climate, which means it is mostly hot and humid year round. The temps range from about 75’F (22’C) to 100’F (40’C), but mostly stay in the high 80s-low 90s’F (mid 30’Cs).
Thailand generally has two seasons: wet and dry.
THE WET SEASON
- heavily influenced by the monsoon winds and typically lands between June to September
- However, the rainy season for Krabi is mostly mid-July to October with September and October being the worst
- However, I can say that our most recent trip to Railay Beach Krabi was early October 2024, and we only had rain for one day for about half the day.
TIPS FOR TRAVELING TO THAILAND WITH KIDS DURING RAINY SEASON: Pack shoes that can get wet, quick drying clothes, and a poncho or small travel umbrella.
THE DRY SEASON
- generally is between November to April
- Has mostly clear, sunny days
All this being said, the very best time to visit Railay Beach, Krabi, Thailand with kids is between December to February for mostly sunny days that aren’t unbearably hot. We’ve personally been in March, April, October, and December, and we had an incredible trip each time.
Note: Please do not take this blog as legal advice or even as fully accurate. These are just my own opinions trying to offer helpful explanations. You can read my full disclosure here.
How to Get to Railay Beach Krabi in Thailand
- The charm of Railay Beach is that it’s unaccessible by car!
- You must take a boat to get to Railay Beach even though it is technically on the mainland.
- I highly recommend taking a long-tail boat over a speedboat.
- To get to Railay Beach, first take a taxi to Ao Nam Mao pier or Ao Nang Longtail Boat Service Club. Both these locations will have long-tail boats readily taking passengers to Railay Beach from 8:00am-6:00pm.
- Long-tail Boat Trips to Railay Beach are 100 baht each way.
- The longtail boat ride is only about 20 minutes, but it is one of the highlights of our family trip to Krabi Thailand!
- When we landed at the Krabi International airport, we booked a van for our family of 7 in the Grab app for about 500 baht (~$18 USD). There were also taxi and van drivers waiting for passengers right outside baggage claim too.
- Thankfully, our super family-friendly hotel on Railay beach had a special promotion with a free long-tail boat transfer from Ao Nam Mao pier to the Railay East pier.
- Then the hotel staff carried our luggage from the pier to the hotel.
TIP: check to see which of the 3 piers on Railay Beach is closer to your hotel’s check-in desk
After you finally make it to your hotel, I recommend you explore around your hotel, take a swim in the pool, then check out Railay Walking Street (in Google maps) to get some yummy Cashew Nut Chicken or Pineapple Fried Rice!
Hey there, we're Brittany and Witt!
Don't stay on Ao Nang Beach and Why
4 reasons to skip staying on Ao Nang Beach in Krabi:
- Overly touristy and has lost the quintessential Thai charm
- The sand is quite pebbly and rocky.
- When the tide is up, there is almost no where to sit or even walk. This means your entire day could have no beach area for your kids to build sand castles.
- 95% of the hotels are located across the street or down the street from the actual beach. AKA no direct beach access from your hotel.
However, Ao Nang Beach has some very awesome family-friendly hotels with incredible facilities for kids. If that is your thing, I’d for sure check out Holiday Ao Nang Beach Resort or the Centara Ao Nang Beach Resort. These are both an amazing family resort in Ao Nang and actually right on the beach, which is rare in the Ao Nang area!
Get an eSIM with Unlimited Data for only $19.95!
You’ll need to stay connected while traveling in Thailand — whether it’s for using GPS to get around, researching the best island hopping tour packages, or letting the kids have some downtime watching Bluey on YouTube.
Don’t do the T-Mobile or AT&T International Roaming plans for about $10 per day — it’s a total rip off!
You can get the same exact service for much cheaper and just as easy with our tips below:
E-SIM: I highly recommend getting an eSIM from Airalo to have great internet service all over Thailand. They are actually using the same local providers that AT&T, T-mobile and Verizon will use.
I have personally used Airalo many times traveling all over the world, and it works great and is SUPER easy to install.
To use your Airalo eSIM, you simply buy a package then scan the QR code they send in an email to install and activate the eSIM.
The packages run from only $9.90 for 50 GB of data to $19.95 USD for Unlimited Data in Thailand.
TIPS FOR TRAVELING AROUND THAILAND WITH KIDS: If you let your kids watch YouTube, Netflix, etc, then I recommend getting the Unlimited Data. But if you’re not video streaming, then 50 GB of data is enough to browse the internet, use Google Maps, and stay in touch with friends back home.
PHYSICAL SIM CARD: You could also pick up a physical SIM card at the airport upon arrival or at any mall, which would have a TRUE shop, DTAC shop, and/or AIS shop. You would need your passport on hand. The physical SIM + a prepaid service card would cost about 350 baht (~$10 USD), but it usually only comes with only 5GB of Data. So Airalo is a much better deal.
TIP: If you plan to use a physical SIM card, then be sure to contact your local phone provider (such as AT&T or Verizon) before traveling overseas to check that your phone is already unlocked. They can usually do this for you over the phone.
The Best Beaches in Thailand for Families (w/ tips from a local)
Thailand has some of the best beaches in the world with pristine white sand coastlines
This family-friendly AirBNB is one of the most charming vacation homes in Bangkok
With a large playroom full of toys, a Master Suite with large soaking tub, and a fun bunk room, this family-friendly AirBNB is one of the most charming vacation homes in Bangkok, Thailand.
