Nice shot of Ko Libong sunset (image Libong Beach Resort)Most of this page was written afterwards my firstly see inwards March/April 07. I've added UPDATE DEC 08 sections afterwards my revisit this month.
Umm - my December 08 shot is non quite every bit aristic every bit opening pic. Note the swing is genuinely inwards front end of Le Dugong Resort which is following to Libong Beach Resort.HAT YAO/HAT CHAO MAI
I’ve seen several reports maxim the Trang mainland coast has some genuinely prissy beaches together with places to stay, together with hence afterwards Ko Ngai, I decided to cheque out Hat Yao, which reads upward pretty good inwards LP.
I decided to remain at SINCHAI'S CHAOMAI RESORT which is a few hundred meters brusque of Ban Chao Mai. The minibus packed amongst locals genuinely detoured off the principal route together with bounced downward the bumpy dirt rail for almost 400 meters to drib me at Sinchai‘s entrance. Not bad service. Note that Sinchai's beach is genuinely Hat Chao Mai - proper Hat Yao starts merely northward of the cape Sinchai's is nestled against together with runs for v km farther north.
Sinchai’s has a dandy location, set upward inwards a partly treed surface area betwixt the beach together with the 100m+ karst cliffs of the Cape. In many respects it is similar a mini Railay.
Sinchai's from the Lipe - Phi Phi Tigerline ferry. You tin give the sack run across my beachfront bungalow furthest left abt 35% across shot. They don't come upward much to a greater extent than beachfront than this. Railay-like karst headland extends mayhap 800m northward amongst a twain of prissy coves. Looooong Hat Yao beach, business office of the mainland National Park, starts the other side.People are ever bespeak for a set dorsum bungalow correct on the beach, something non all that mutual inwards the pop vacation spots. Well, you lot direct keep it hither folks - the front end steps of my Sinchai bungalow were 2m from the H2O at high tide. The following bungalow had the H2O lapping the steps, fifty-fifty a few sandbags every bit protection. As the tide drops, a lovely sand spit gets exposed which widens to almost 100m at lowest tide. This beach surface area continues due south inwards a gentle blind crimp for almost 600m to the Ban (village). In the northward it ends upward against the rocks of the Cape merely past times the bungalows. Despite the broad beach at depression tide, I didn’t direct keep to larn likewise far out for H2O deep plenty to swim laps. The ocean was real build clean here. There was a fair chip of longtail traffic going merely about the Cape, but the dissonance didn’t põrnikas me likewise much.
If you lot wade merely about those rocks of the Cape at depression tide (knee deep the 24-hour interval I did it) you lot hit afterwards almost 400m a lovely “hidden beach” called Hat Apo cutting into the Cape together with backed past times towering limestone cliffs. This is almost 200m long together with has some minor caves inwards back. At high tide you lot would demand to hold upward a practiced swimmer (there is a chip of a tidal electrical current running merely about the Cape) or purpose a longtail, together with in that location would exclusively hold upward a minor amount of sand at the dorsum of the beach higher upward water. Note in that location is a smaller beach before you lot come upward to Apo.
My beachfront bungalow at Sinchai’s was a typical wooden undertaking amongst verandah looking out towards the rugged hills of KO LIBONG, almost v km offshore. It wasn’t huge, but had plenty room for 2 together with their gear, a pretty comfy bed amongst rather bird but okay pillows, the green carve upward bath etc. The house was clean. Price was a chip contentious - Sinchai’s missus wouldn’t budge from 500 baht. Okay, this bungalow was the equivalent of 300 baht jobs elsewhere, but what toll produce you lot lay on absolute beachfront location? Hard to tell - my Ko Chang (Andaman) bungalow was beachside (but non every bit closed to the water), was nicer together with was 250 baht. But it had to a greater extent than contest - the exclusively other house inwards the Yao/Chao Mai surface area is HAT YAO NATURE RESORT amongst fairly large together with real closely spaced aircon bungalows for 800, correct inwards the Ban. The Ban is daggy.
Sinchai also had some 300 baht bungalows dorsum from the beach, but these were nighttime unscreened boxes.
UPDATE Jan08 - I of late read that Sinchai has lay inwards a few aircon bungalows.
UPDATE DEC 08 - a Canadian guy I talked to on Libong stayed amongst Sinchai a few days inwards i of the newer "apartment" rooms - which he bargained downward to 250. This was shoulder flavor belatedly Nov.
Sinchai’s eatery is the green open-sided undertaking amongst ocean views. LP raves almost the nutrient together with I reckon it was pretty practiced But I discovery the materials at Thai roadside food-stops been stewing in that location since Paris Hilton broke into videos is pretty good, together with hence what produce I know? Prices were towards the lower cease - curries at 60, American brekka at lx together with large Changs non quite together with hence practiced on 80. Service was friendly - Federal Reserve annotation they hold off for you to larn inquire for the card together with to lay inwards your order.
Sinchai offers some pretty practiced long tail daytrips - 500 per somebody to Muk including the fabulous Emerald Cave together with nearby snorkeling islets. I mean value it fifty-fifty included Ko Kradan. It’s a fair haul to the northward to Muk together with Kradan is farther to the west. 2 Brits returned belatedly my firstly 24-hour interval from the trip together with said it was fabulous.
Note this twain together with a High German guy looked similar he’d been staying in that location the past times 10 years were the exclusively westerners I saw at Hat together with Ban Chao Mai.
UPDATE FEB09 - unsubstantiatedmusings was less impressed with Sinchai's than me. Women travelling solitary peculiarly should cheque her detailed input nigh the pes of this page.
UPSDATE AUG09 - I merely stumbled across this report from Hans Meier who seems less gruntled amongst Sinchai's too.
Michael Weitzman who runs together with adventure fellowship out of the Ao Nang surface area together with the Ko Laoliang Resort tells me Hat Yao may before long direct keep some CLIMBING...."i direct keep spent a chip of fourth dimension at Sinchai's. In fact, nosotros direct keep brought upward the thought of putting upward some climbing routes nigh his house sometime inwards the nigh time to come (which he seemed real excited about)".
I had a wander merely about Ban Chao Mai, together with frankly it is dire, agency worse than the average line-fishing hamlet amongst fifty-fifty to a greater extent than discarded boat together with vehicle junk scattered around, heaps of menage rubbish, used fuel cans, former line-fishing nets, muddy mud flats at depression tide together with hot together with dusty away from the beach because it wasn’t catching the ocean breeze enjoyed past times Sinchai’s over nigh the Cape. There were a few minor eats joints/stores addition Hat Yao Nature Resort which had a prissy plenty dining surface area out over the H2O on stilts amongst pleasant views of the ocean together with Libong inwards i administration together with the crummy line-fishing hamlet inwards the other. They sure produce prissy banana shakes. Influenza A virus subtype H5N1 brusque distance to the northward was the novel pier which is used past times the National Parks boats together with a large charter ferry which does daytrips out to Kradan. The long tail taxis to Libong function out from the beach on the hamlet side of Nature Resort.
The ferry is tied upward to Hat Yao Nature Resort's rather prissy deck surface area over the H2O at Ban Chao Mai. The Libong world longtails function out merely to the left. Note the karst landscape which is almost Railay similar across nigh Sinchai's (image trangsea.com)Somehow I was a chip less than whelmed amongst Hat Yao/Chao Mai. The surface area at in i lawsuit merely about Sinchai’s was real prissy together with Sinchai’s itself was a pretty practiced house apart from the bungalow price. But in i lawsuit I had checked the beach together with Cape I got a chip bored. I’ve seen Muk/Emerald Cave together with sure enough had no wishing to pass fourth dimension hanging merely about the Ban. No problems - plenty of places I remain are pretty tranquillity inwards themselves but okay every bit a base of operations to explore a bigger area, together with hence I decided to pass my final 2 days inwards Thailand bicycling the coast to the north, much of which is National Park. Bad intelligence - Sinchai’s bicycles had been broken past times tourists (what’s novel - what produce you lot guys produce to them? I got 2 bikes at domicile produce several chiliad km a twelvemonth together with they are inwards dandy shape). Sinchai had motorcycles for hire, but Honda step-thrus don’t peculiarly arate my exhil. On the other mitt that large rugged isle out in that location was starting fourth dimension to await to a greater extent than together with to a greater extent than interesting. So I packed my materials together with headed for the Ban together with a boat to Ko Libong.
LATEST UPDATE - wonderingstar2 stayed at Sinchai's together with had a existent practiced await merely about the Hat Yao surface area inwards early on 2011. ww2 was less than impressed amongst Sinchai's house together with has some practiced information almost choice accommodation, eats inwards the area. Info, pix together with maps website talks of novel management.
UPDATE DEC 08 - I walked due south merely about the crimp of Dugon's/Beach Resort's beach - past times the line-fishing hamlet - for almost fifteen minutes to Nature Resort which is against the southern headland. This house looked quite attractive amongst prissy bungalows at what seemed reasonable prices before bargaining (shoulder flavor beachront incl TV-aircon one thousand 2d row 800 others 600) but a guy staying in that location who had come upward downward to Le Dugong for a repast told me the nutrient was real honey - I checked the card together with yep - twice the prices of the other resorts).**UPDATE JAN 09 - if you lot are considering Libong Nature Resort it powerfulness hold upward a practiced thought to cheque jw's comment at the pes of this page together with the Resident Manager's response. AUGUST 09 - it powerfulness also hold upward worth reading Hans Meier's account of Libong Nature Resort likewise - addition his other materials on Libong.
Attractive bungalows at Libong Nature Resort. The beach hither was pretty prissy but much rockier, both large together with small, than Le Dugong/Beach Resort.GETTING TO KO LIBONG
Libong is a lot easier to access past times world carry than the typical Trang isle - world longtail ferries function out from Ban Chao Mai when total - roughly hourly. See details of GETTING TO HAT YAO/BAN CHAO MAI up-page.
If you lot larn inwards at Ban Chao Mai on the minibus from Trang the driver volition indicate out the divergence indicate for Blue Planet longtail ferry - it was downward on the beach final fourth dimension I went thru, non at the flash pier 2 minutes due south which is used past times Tigerline together with Trang Island daytrip boats. There should hold upward a bunch of people (mainly locals) waiting - when they direct keep plenty passengers (I've never waited to a greater extent than than a one-half hour) away you lot go.
Note they volition offering you lot a charter longtail when you lot larn inwards - grin together with milk shiver caput unless you lot tin give the sack afford heaps/in a large hurry.
The cost of Blue Planet longtail was 50baht according to people who did it inwards 2011. The trip takes twenty minutes tops.
When you lot larn to the pier at Libong in that location volition hold upward a bunch of motorbike taxi guys waiting. It's almost a fifteen infinitesimal trip to Libong Beach Resort/Le Dugong. 2011 toll 100baht - you lot may hold upward able to deal less.
UPDATE OCT 2011 - wonderingstar called past times Libong before inwards the twelvemonth together with has some KO KRADAN
KO MUK
KO LOA LIANG (closest)
KO NGAI
KO PHI PHI
KO ADANG
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