Muang Boran, translated "Ancient City", is a museum park in Thailand located in Samut Prakan, just outside of Bangkok. This is not an amusement park, but instead is a real-life open-air museum where the most famous monuments of the country are replicated.
Thailand: Ao Phang-Nga National Park
Ao Phang Nga National Park is situated along the coast of Phang-Nga Province south of Thailand in the Andaman Sea. The park encompasses an area of 400 km², including the biggest native mangrove forests in Thailand along the mainland and many islands.
Declared a marine national park in 1981, this park is situated along the coast of Phang Nga Province south of Thailand in the Andaman Sea. The popular attractions are James Bond Island, other picturesque limestone karst islands, several white sandy beaches and a few caves. The turquoise waters surrounding the islands are consistently calm, very ideal for canoeing. There are interesting canoeing spots that are sea-level caves, leading to inland lagoons.
Besides the natural beauties, the park also has a few archaeological sites that date back more than 1,000 years as well as some prehistoric paintings on the cliffs. Stone tools and pottery items have been found in some sites.
We spent a day on a tour exploring the Ao Phang Nga National Park on a small boat visiting some of the more popular tourist sites.
1. ROCK PAINTINGS
On our we passed several rock formations. The rocks are made from limestone which is soft and porous and erodes very easily.
In the undercuts of the cliffs, several caves can easily be reached by small boats. Here there are rock paintings of various animals believed to have been painted by sailors who moored their boats here to take shelter from the monsoon. According to Thailand’s Fine Arts Department, the paintings are at least 3,000 years old.
2. JAMES BOND ISLAND
Our first stop was Khao Phing Kan (‘Leaning on Itself Island’), more commonly known as James Bond Island. In 1975 this small, limestone rock appeared as the backdrop in scenes near the end of the James Bond film, ‘The Man With The Golden Gun’, when James Bond played by Roger Moore confronts baddie, Francisco Scaramanga (Christopher Lee).
The island is only about 20 meters high and is part of the island of Khao Phing Kan roughly 50 metres behind. The whole karst landscape of Khao Phing Kan is densely covered with forests and its steep shores make it almost inaccessible, excepting a little bay with a sandy shore. The number of tourists visiting the area endangers the fragile tower, so no boats are allowed in that bay or anywhere too close to James Bond Island.
Like all visiting tourist boats, we made our landing on a shallow beach close by. From the beach, we took the steep rock path which led to the rock needle and down into the bay. Along the path, there were a couple of nice places to stop and take some photos. James Bond Island is very small, so after about 20 minutes of exploring we were all done and back on our long-tailed boat heading to our second destination
3. SEA CAVES
Our boat detoured from the main bay into some quieter backwaters. There were three floating platforms operated by tour companies that provided kayak tours of the sea caves. This was not a self-paddling tour, so we both climbed onto an inflatable kayak with a local man on the back who paddled us along.
We followed the line of the limestone karst rocks. In these rocks were some small openings, that were probably only 75cm high. Our guide told us to lie back, which we did, and he guided us inside the opening. Once through we found ourselves in a near circular space, that rose around us upwards about 50 metres to the open sky above. This was once a cave, but the ceiling had collapsed in. We followed the same process to get out. We did this a couple more times.
As we paddled around our guide started to make coarse jokes about the shapes of some of the rocks have the shape of human genitalia. Very odd! He did this quietly so Karen couldn’t hear – just as well for him.
From these caves, we started down some channels lined by mangrove trees. Our guide took a break from his toilet humour routine to point out some air-breathing lungfish lurking in the bush.
The tour finished by passing through a massive tunnel in a limestone karst rock. On the way back to the jetty our kayak guide started with the family stories, how Americans are the best tippers and how little he earned. Anyway, once he dropped us off, we gave him a fair tip and re-joined our long-tailed boat.
4. FLOATING VILLAGE
Our next stop was Koh Panyee, a floating village in Phang Nga Bay. The village is not quite floating as it sits on stilts driven into the seafloor. It was built by Malay fishermen in the late 18th century. The population consists of 360 families or 1,685 people descended from two seafaring Muslim families from Kedah.
The first order of business was lunch. The village nowadays still operates as a fishing village but most of the economy is based on tourism, so there are a few places to eat in the village, including one large restaurant which is where we were headed.
After lunch we had a few minutes to look around, so we decided to head for the village’s most famous attraction, its floating football pitch.
Inspired by the 1986 FIFA World Cup, children built the pitch from old scraps of wood and fishing rafts. The boys decided to form a football team and compete in the Southern Thai School Championships. After making it to the semi-finals in an inland tournament, achieving second place in a strange situation (in the second half they decided to play barefoot since they were used to that), all the village was inspired to take up the sport. So, a brand-new pitch was built, although the wooden one remains popular among tourists.
When we visited the pitch didn’t have any fencing set up around it to stop the balls from flying into the sea, which would have been interesting.
It was now time to leave Phang Nha and head back to the pier.
4. WAT SUWAN KHUHA
Before heading back, we had one more stop at Wat Suwan Khuha, a Buddhist temple inside a cave complex.
There were many Buddha images inside the cave, but the most impressive was a large reclining, gold Buddha. We walked through the main cave, which is open at the back end, where there we many tourists feeding wild monkeys, which we hate to see as this makes the monkeys dependent on the visitors. Anyway, we bypassed the tourists and headed into another smaller cave, which wasn’t decorated with any Buddhist paraphernalia – it was just a good old, regular cave. There were some sketchy steps inside the cave, so Karen ever wary about my predilection for falling and breaking parts of my body was very happy when we did our business and had left the cave with me unscathed.
Getting to Ao Phang Nga National Park
By public transportation
Bus and minivans from Phuket to Krabi, Phuket to Surat Thani or Khao Lak to Krabi all stop at the main bus station in central Phang Nga. From there, it is easy to change to a songthaew to Tha Dan which is the small village where the national park headquarters is located along the coast, only around 6 km from the city center.
It is very easy to arrange a bus or minivan from hotels. Most hotels help arrange various transportation, some operators do pickup directly from the hotel.
By car/motorcycle
While driving north from Phuket, driving south from Bangkok or driving north/west from Krabi, take Highway 4 (Petchkasem Road) between Phuket and Krabi. About 3.5 km west from Phang-Nga, take the route 4144 south and follow the signs for about 2.5 km until getting to the park headquarters.
Join a tour
It is easy to join group tours to the park from all nearby touristic destinations like Phuket, Khao Lak, Krabi, Phi Phi and Ko Lanta. Tours can be arranged on arrival from most hotels reception or from travel agencies in nearby towns.
A typical tour to the islands include visiting James Bond- , Hong- and Phanak Islands. Activities offered in these tours are normally cave exploring, canoeing, visiting beaches, swimming and snorkelling.
The best time to visit Ao Phang Nga National Park
The climate of Phuket
Phuket, Thailand falls under the tropical monsoon climate zone, according to the Köppen climate classification, due to its geographical position near the equator. This classification, labelled as ‘Am’, indicates a weather system dominated by monsoon, characterized by high temperatures and heavy rainfall.
Covering the entire year, Phuket experiences virtually constant temperatures in both highs and lows. High temperatures fluctuate marginally from 31.5°C during September and October, rising gradually to 34°C in March. Low temperatures show a similar lack of variation, as they sway from 24.4°C in December to 25.8°C in April. Humidity levels also sustain a fairly equal range around the year, touching a lower limit at 69% in February, and a higher limit at 82% in both September and October.
Rainfall displays a contrasting pattern, varying considerably with two distinct phases in the year. The dry period sees a minimum of 24mm in February and the intense monsoon season, starting in June and ending in November, receives the highest volume of rainfall, peaking at 361mm in September. The count of rainfall days follows a corresponding pattern, with the highest days in September i.e., 23 days and the lowest in February i.e., 3 days.
Sunshine hours vary, with January and February seeing the most sunshine, averaging around 9.2 hours and 9.7 hours respectively, and reducing to the lowest at 4.7 hours in June. The UV Index retains a high range from 10 to 12 throughout the year. These parameters depict a typical tropical monsoon climate, marked by persistent warmth and high moisture, along with a sizeable rainfall during the monsoon.
The best time to visit Phuket
The most favourable time to visit Phuket holds a direct relation to the climate conditions. The prime time to visit would be from December to March, as this period experiences less rainfall, ranging between 30mm to 74mm. The temperature stays warm, hovering between 31.7°C and 34°C and lower temperature ranges from 24.4°C to 25.4°C. Relative humidity levels are also lower compared to other months, with a range of 70% to 75%. Longer daylight durations add to the convenience, granting generous time for sightseeing and exploration.
The worst time to visit Phuket
Planning a visit during the monsoon season, from June to November, could obstruct outdoor activities. This period receives the heaviest rainfall, with rainfall days reaching a peak of 23 days in September. Relative humidity escalates, creating an oppressive environment with levels reaching as high as 82% during September and October. Moreover, daily sunshine hours drop to as low as 4.7 hours in June.
Other places to visit near Khao Lak Village
We stayed in Khao Lak outside the main town near Khuk Kak beach. It was lovely area and there were some interesting places to view close-by.
1. WAT KOM NAI KHET
2. KHUK KAK BEACH
Where to stay in Khao Lak
1. MID RANGE – THE RETREAT KHAOLAK RESORT
We spent a few nights at the Retreat Khaolak resort, using it as a base to explore the Surin Islands and Ao Phang Na National Park.
The hotel is away from the main city of Khao Lak, in a very sleeping village setting. It is so quiet here.
Close by are some shops, including a couple of supermarkets, and some local restaurants, which we loved.
The owner could not have been more friendly and helpful. He helped organize tours and gave us some great advice on where to visit and where to eat.
There are also some bicycles you can borrow or mopeds for rent. The bicycles are a bit old and not well maintained, but they did their job.
2. LUXURY – JW MARRIOTT KHAO LAK RESORT SUITES
Located in Khao Lak, 600 metres from Khuk Khak Beach, JW Marriott Khao Lak Resort Suites provides accommodation with free bikes, free private parking, an outdoor swimming pool and a fitness centre. The accommodation offers a range of water sports facilities and a private beach area, as well as a garden and a shared lounge. The hotel has a terrace and city views, and guests can enjoy a meal at the restaurant or a drink at the bar.
3. BUDGET – MJ BOUTIQUE HOTEL
Located in a peaceful area on Khao Lak South Beach, MJ Boutique Hotel Khao Lak is just a 328 foot from the beach. The property offers accommodations the on-site restaurant. Each room at this hostel is air conditioned and has a flat-screen TV. You will find a kettle in the room. Every room has a private bathroom equipped with a bath or shower.
More to Explore
