Railay Beach

Why Railay

Railay Beach, Krabi, is famous for its huge limestone cliffs, clear water and the fact that no road reaches it. You arrive by boat, and four very different beaches sit a short walk from each other.

Railay isn't an island, but it feels like one. It's a small peninsula in Krabi between Ao Nang and Krabi Town, cut off from the mainland by the cliffs.

It's also one of Asia's great climbing spots: Railay and Tonsai have more than 700 bolted routes.

Ask Tanner to plan the day around the tide and the crowds.

How to get to Railay Beach

Here's how to get to Railay Beach: by longtail boat. You can't walk or drive, because there are no roads over the cliffs.

Photo: Marco Nürnberger from Nuremberg, Germany, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons, edited

• Shared longtails from Ao Nang beach run from about 8am to 6pm and leave once about eight people are on board. The boat to Railay West takes 10 to 15 minutes.
• From Ao Nam Mao, speedboats run to Railay East every 30 minutes; from Krabi Town's Chao Fah pier, a longtail takes about 45 minutes.
• There's no pier on Railay West. The boat runs up onto the sand, so wear sandals you can get wet and keep phones in a dry bag.
• From May to October, swell on the Ao Nang side can delay or cancel the longtails.

With a group, a private longtail is better: it leaves when you're ready, waits for you, and brings you back after the shared boats stop.

Coming from Phuket? A private speedboat or yacht gets you there in a day, with Phang Nga Bay on the way.

Ask Tanner to book the boats both ways.

Pick your beach

Phra Nang Cave Beach is the best for swimming and scenery, and Railay West is the best for sunset. Railay East turns to mudflat at low tide, and Tonsai is the laid-back climbers' beach.

Photo: kallerna, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons, edited

Railay West: the sunset beach

A wide, soft, west-facing beach with cliffs at both ends. The Ao Nang boats land here, so it's busy by day. At sunset the sun drops straight into the Andaman Sea, and the beach bars fill up.

Phra Nang Cave Beach: the showpiece

The bluest water and the tallest cliffs, ten minutes' walk from Railay East. It's busiest from about 11am to 3pm, when the day boats from Ao Nang and Phi Phi arrive. The cave at the end holds a shrine where fishermen leave offerings to a princess spirit for safe voyages, so treat it with respect. The beach and shrine are free.

Railay East: the working side

It faces the mangroves and turns to mud at low tide, so nobody swims here. It has the cheaper food, a strip of bars, the climbing shops and the Ao Nam Mao boats.

Tonsai: the climbers' beach

Around the headland north of Railay West, with bamboo bars and hammocks. Reach it in 15 to 20 minutes on a jungle path, or along the rocks at low tide.

Insider tip: the 8am longtail from Ao Nang carries far fewer people than the late-morning boats, for the same ride and the same fare.

Ask Tanner which beach suits your group, and when.

Was a film shot here?

No big film was shot on Railay itself. The famous one, The Beach (2000), was filmed at Maya Bay on Koh Phi Phi Leh, which is a day trip by boat from Railay or Phuket.

Maya Bay reopened in January 2022 after nearly four years closed to let it recover.

A private boat can do Railay and Phi Phi in one long day, with Maya Bay early before the crowds.

Ask Tanner to fit both into one day on your own boat.

What to do on Railay

Swim at Phra Nang, climb the cliffs, kayak round the headland, hike to the viewpoint, and take a boat to the islands.

Photo: Caitriana Nicholson from 北京 ~ Beijing, 中国 ~ China, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons, edited

• The viewpoint: 10 to 20 minutes up a steep scramble with fixed ropes. The lagoon route past it has a narrow squeeze and a near-vertical rope section, so do it only in dry weather and in proper shoes.
• Rock climbing: half-day beginner courses at the Railay East and Tonsai schools, about ฿1,500 with gear (checked October 2026).
• Diamond Cave: open 8am to 5:30pm, ฿200 to enter, and 15 to 20 minutes inside.
• Kayaking: an early paddle toward Phra Nang, before the boats.
• The Four Islands: Chicken Island, Koh Tup, Koh Poda and Phra Nang in half a day, on a shared longtail or your own boat.

The trick for the islands: leave at 8am on a private boat and do the loop backwards, so you reach each island ahead of the tour boats.

Ask Tanner to book the 8am boat, and the sandbar is yours.

What a day costs

A day on Railay is the boat over plus whatever you do there, and most of it is paid on the spot in cash.

• The islands: the national park fee is ฿400 for foreign adults and ฿200 for children, the Tourism Authority of Thailand and the Department of National Parks say, usually collected on landing or included in the tour.
• Toilets at Phra Nang: ฿10.
• Food and drink: dearer than the mainland, because everything comes in by boat.

For the group, the biggest cost is the base. Eight of you in a private pool villa near Krabi, from ฿18,500 a day, is ฿55,500 for three days, before the boats.

Plan it with Tanner, and he'll put the villa, the boats and the day in one price.

Is there nightlife?

A little. Railay has sunset bars on the west side, a short bar strip on Railay East and bamboo bars on Tonsai, but no big clubs.

Photo: René Ehrhardt, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons, edited

For a bigger evening, most groups head back to Ao Nang or Krabi. The shared boats stop at about 6pm, so keep a private longtail waiting.

Since 12 May 2026, alcohol is banned at public piers and on public passenger boats, under the Alcoholic Beverage Control Committee's notice (checked November 2026). The rule names public boats, not private charters.

Ask Tanner to keep the boat waiting, and the night ends when you say.

When to go and what to bring

Railay Beach weather is at its best from November to April, the dry season, with January and February the driest.

November to February is the busiest, so book boats and beds early.

• Sandals you can wet, a dry bag, reef-safe sunscreen, water, a hat and water shoes for the rocks near the cave.
• Check the tide. Low tide widens the sand at Phra Nang and opens the rock route to Tonsai; high tide can mean wading to the shrine.
• The paths to Tonsai and the viewpoint get slippery after rain; skip them when wet or after dark.

Most groups base themselves in Ao Nang or at a villa near Krabi, and do Railay as a day trip.

Ask Tanner to set the boat day for the best tide.

Where to stay

Railay has its own resorts, led by Rayavadee, with villas set into the cliffs between Railay East and Phra Nang. You arrive by longtail with your bags.

Staying on Railay Beach means the sand is yours at 8am, before the day boats arrive. Most groups stay in Ao Nang or a pool villa near Krabi instead, closer to the bars.

Insider tip: pack a soft bag. The longtail runs up onto the sand at Railay West, so you wade the last few metres with your luggage.

Tanner's pick: a couple takes Rayavadee; a group of eight takes the villa near Ao Nang and a private longtail for the Railay day. See where to stay in Krabi and luxury hotels in Thailand.

Ask Tanner to hold the villa and the boat together.

A Railay day with the group

We start early: a private longtail at 8am, the Four Islands loop backwards, Phra Nang before 11am, and sunset on Railay West.

AI

Photo: AI-generated image

• Morning: the islands with the sandbar to yourselves, then a swim at Phra Nang.
• Afternoon: climbing, kayaking or a hammock on Tonsai.
• Evening: sunset at a beach bar on Railay West, then the private boat back.

Staying in Phuket instead? A yacht day brings the group across Phang Nga Bay to Railay and back.

Plan it with Tanner, and he'll plan the beach days.

Railay Beach in short

• What it is: a small peninsula in Krabi, cut off by limestone cliffs, so every visitor arrives by boat.
• A longtail from Ao Nang takes 10 to 15 minutes; shared boats run from about 8am to 6pm.
• Phra Nang Cave Beach is the one for swimming; Railay West is the one for sunset.
• Railay East turns to mud at low tide; Tonsai is the climbers' beach, with 700+ bolted routes around it.
• The nightlife is small; for a bigger evening, go back to Ao Nang.
• Best months: November to April, when the sea is calm.

Checked October 2026.