I treat this place as the perfect recovery location. Look at this scenic beauty and tell me you won't agree?
I missed the entire drive there as I fell asleep when I got into the car as Bob drove us out of Krabi. I woke up somewhere in Phang-Nga about two hours later and I said we needed to stop as I really needed to lie down.
Next thing I knew we were in Khao Lak. Barely saw the town as we drove by, half my eyes were closed. It looks a little like Krabi, dotted with internet cafes, laundry houses, cafes, bistros and little novelty shops. But the streets are broader and you can see it is still a development site. The sea is a gorgeous blue as far as the horizon can see, definitely a must visit for any beach lover.
We stayed at the Khao Lak Resort, it was nestled within the forest and like most Thai resorts, they build around the trees instead if chopping them down to make way for the concrete buildings.
This is the verandah from our room overlooking the sea, the breeze was really nice. It was so cool I slept with the fan only and left the sliding doors open. There was a mosquitoe net and this helped keep the insects at bay.
Bob and the kids disappeared soon enough to the pool while I got my much needed rest. After all this was recovery zone rite! Oh yes, we paid 4300Baht, not bad for what we got. For this price at this time, we couldn't find anything reasonable in Krabi. Must say Krabi is getting a little overpriced.
The beach view from the coffee house ...
There is a buggy to take you to your rooms which are nestled among the trees but the walk alone is really nice and cool. The trees whispering in the wind, the leaves rustling. Wish I was well to enjoy it as much as the rest did but I did get half of it when I woke up the next day
The kids really enjoyed the beach. It was not crowded at all and exceptionally clean. There were little crabs crawling in and out of the holes which Ali loved chasing
The waves were really nice to place with. Even Ali braved the waves and enjoyed the salty water. Check out the view of the hills in the horizon
This is a perfect postcard picture isn't it?!?
Another nice view of the resort. We were the only Asians there by the way. A nice place for the family. There were many swimming pools too. All were hidden behind the trees. The concept would be you don't have to walk for to get to a pool
One of the many pools the kids had their share of
That night Bob went to the night market to check out dinner. It was really happening and lively. Almost like a funfair. There was so much food to choose from. Bob came back with many sticky rice dishes including our favourite mango sticky rice! The night life is definitely for the lively and young. Give it a few years time and I am sure Khao Lak will boom like Krabi now and perhaps Phuket someday
Khao Lak was also hit by the Tsunami in 2004 but it recovered just as fast. There are shops all along the beach and some resort owners have been brave enough to even build off the beach. There are many beach resorts/hotels and bed and breakfast options to choose from. It being peak season, the prices are very reasonable.
This is Ali trying to befriend this little girl on the beach ...
I missed the entire drive there as I fell asleep when I got into the car as Bob drove us out of Krabi. I woke up somewhere in Phang-Nga about two hours later and I said we needed to stop as I really needed to lie down.Next thing I knew we were in Khao Lak. Barely saw the town as we drove by, half my eyes were closed. It looks a little like Krabi, dotted with internet cafes, laundry houses, cafes, bistros and little novelty shops. But the streets are broader and you can see it is still a development site. The sea is a gorgeous blue as far as the horizon can see, definitely a must visit for any beach lover.
We stayed at the Khao Lak Resort, it was nestled within the forest and like most Thai resorts, they build around the trees instead if chopping them down to make way for the concrete buildings.
This is the verandah from our room overlooking the sea, the breeze was really nice. It was so cool I slept with the fan only and left the sliding doors open. There was a mosquitoe net and this helped keep the insects at bay. Bob and the kids disappeared soon enough to the pool while I got my much needed rest. After all this was recovery zone rite! Oh yes, we paid 4300Baht, not bad for what we got. For this price at this time, we couldn't find anything reasonable in Krabi. Must say Krabi is getting a little overpriced. The beach view from the coffee house ...
There is a buggy to take you to your rooms which are nestled among the trees but the walk alone is really nice and cool. The trees whispering in the wind, the leaves rustling. Wish I was well to enjoy it as much as the rest did but I did get half of it when I woke up the next day The kids really enjoyed the beach. It was not crowded at all and exceptionally clean. There were little crabs crawling in and out of the holes which Ali loved chasing
The waves were really nice to place with. Even Ali braved the waves and enjoyed the salty water. Check out the view of the hills in the horizon
This is a perfect postcard picture isn't it?!? Another nice view of the resort. We were the only Asians there by the way. A nice place for the family. There were many swimming pools too. All were hidden behind the trees. The concept would be you don't have to walk for to get to a pool
One of the many pools the kids had their share of
That night Bob went to the night market to check out dinner. It was really happening and lively. Almost like a funfair. There was so much food to choose from. Bob came back with many sticky rice dishes including our favourite mango sticky rice! The night life is definitely for the lively and young. Give it a few years time and I am sure Khao Lak will boom like Krabi now and perhaps Phuket someday Khao Lak was also hit by the Tsunami in 2004 but it recovered just as fast. There are shops all along the beach and some resort owners have been brave enough to even build off the beach. There are many beach resorts/hotels and bed and breakfast options to choose from. It being peak season, the prices are very reasonable. This is Ali trying to befriend this little girl on the beach ...
We even stopped at the Le Meridien to ask for the price and was expecting 1000RM a night or something but was surpriced when they said 6000Baht. About the same price of a not so many star resort in Krabi. It was about three hours off Krabi but from the map its very near Phuket.
I think this will definitely be a favourite destination of ours in future. We can fly to Phuket and take public transport there. RATING ****
2 comments:
khao lak is lovely facing the andaman sea. this place is a favourite amongst the germans and is very clean. we stayed at khao lak bandhari about 6 months before the tsunami devastated it.
the property operated by le meridien is owned by a malay woman whose husband is a thai national. the wife is a cousin of my friend, my classmate from mckk. their eldest daughter (if i'm not wrong), 21 at that time, was standing on the beach right in the path of the tsunami when it struck. other family members made it to safety. their father managed to save the other 2 daughters. she is buried close to the entrance of the resort.
uncle sam
khao lak didn't recover from the tsunami "just as fast". in fact it was one of the last, despite losing more people (est 4,000 locals, and another 5,000 illegal myanmar and vietnamese workers) than the whole of the rest of thailand put together..
and the "recovery" was done with zero govt help, since the international media were all focused on phuket and phi-phi, zero police assistance who actually just stood by as the mafia took over dead people's homes and lands within 24 hours of the first wave. as they were still looking for their dead children, and bodies floating up the beach and families dying on the tree branches.
how do i know? ... sigh..
the good news is a lot of good people worked their asses off and with the local people helped rebuild their lives.. but it took really really long, and that is why to the newcomer, it looks like its "not as commercialised" and behind krabi. but it was well on its way, before the waves came..
the way bangkok handled (or didn't handle) it will, with the extrajudicial killings i saw in 2003, remain one of the main proofs of why i'll NEVER support thaksin or buy his BS, regardless of how he spins it.
saw it with my own eyes, sis..
sorry.. but if its gonna be written, might as well have this perspective, right? .. *sad sighs..*
keep safe, you..
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