Boats to Ao Nang and Railay: where the speedboats actually drop you

Ao Nang is the mainland. It is a beach town on the Krabi coast with a road behind it, a long strip of sand in front, and a pier at one end from which small boats run along the shore. If your hotel is in Ao Nang, a car can reach its door.

Railay is twenty minutes away by water and unreachable by car. It is a peninsula walled off from the mainland by limestone, with beaches on both sides and nothing but cliff in between. There is no road onto it, which is why the boats matter here more than anywhere else on this coast: arriving at Railay is arriving by sea, whether you come from Phuket or from the pier at Ao Nang.

For booking purposes, the practical difference is the last leg. A speedboat that lands at Ao Nang leaves you a short walk or a taxi from most hotels in town. A speedboat that lands at Railay leaves you on the sand. Ao Nang and Railay are close enough to be sold together on the same listing, and far enough apart that the wrong one costs you a longtail fare and half an hour with your bags.

The good news is that the listings on this site treat the pair as one destination. The direct crossing names Krabi, Railay and Ao Nang in its own title, and the Koh Yao route names Ao Nang and Railay. You choose the drop-off when you book, which is the moment to know which of the two your hotel is on.

The direct run is the simplest journey in this niche, and it is worth knowing how the hours divide.

Pick-up. From your hotel or, on the private service, from the airport. The transfer listing states a 90-minute wait at the airport and 15 minutes at a hotel, with staff on duty around the clock, which is the sort of detail that matters on a travel day.

The pier. Bags on board, a briefing, and the boat away. This is where a shared crossing and a private one part company: the shared boat leaves when it is due, the private one when you asked for it.

The hour on the water. Open sea at speed, with the limestone of the bay off the port side. The operator describes the whole journey as taking place within one hour and forty-five minutes door to door, which is about an hour of it afloat.

The Koh Yao stop. Only on the three-hour route, which threads between Koh Yao Yai and Koh Yao Noi in the middle of the channel. It is a longer journey with more to look at, and it exists because the islands are on the line between the two coasts.

The landing. Ao Nang beach or Railay, depending on what you chose. Both are beach landings rather than dock arrivals, so pack with wet feet in mind.

The rest of your day. This is the argument for the morning boat. A crossing that lands before lunch leaves the afternoon for the beach; one that lands at six leaves you unpacking in the dark.

For most travellers, book $32. One hour on the water, 4.6 across 374 reviews, and the lowest price on this site. The listing names Krabi, Railay and Ao Nang as destinations, which means you can be delivered to the headland itself rather than to a pier and a taxi. For a travel day, nothing here is simpler.

If you are a family with luggage, book $141. A private transfer with airport or hotel pick-up, a time you choose the day before, 90 minutes of waiting time built in at the airport and a desk you can call around the clock. It holds 4.9 across 31 reviews, the highest score of any transfer on this site.

If you want the islands on the way, book $46. Three hours instead of one, routed between Koh Yao Yai and Koh Yao Noi, available shared or as a private boat, with hotel pick-up on the Ao Nang side. It is the middle ground between a transfer and a tour.

If you want the journey to be the day, book $423. Eleven and a half hours from Phuket to the Krabi side, with private hotel transfers at both ends, luggage storage while you are out, and a four-hour private boat tour at the islands in the middle of the channel. It is the highest price for the crossing and the only one that turns it into a day out.

One thing to plan for. Ao Nang and Railay are twenty minutes apart by water and a headland apart by land. Decide which one you are sleeping on before you choose your drop-off, and tell the operator when you book.