Krabi is a south eastern state of Thailand, two hour from the Malaysian border. Once you reach the town of Krabi, book a boat to Railey beach, the place where you should head for.

Railey beach is strategically located, but is accessible only by boat. It is a narrow bund strip, with beaches facing the east and the west. It takes 5 minutes to walk from one side to the other.

The 3 day island hopping camp can be booked from East Railey beach, at the YaYa Beach resort. Look for Boy at the service counter.

To get there:

From Singapore

Book a coach ticket to Hatyai from Singapore. A $35 ticket overnight ticket can be bought easily from most Golden Mile tour offices at ground floor, Golden Mile complex, Beach Road. The journey is 15 hours long. Alternatively, you can get there by Train from Tanjong Pagar's train station.

Once you reach Hatyai around 7 am, go hunt for Cathay GuestHouse,a pretty well-run hostel. This is where you get your ticket to the ride to Krabi, ~3 hours away. Or you can go hunting around for cheaper coaches/vans to Krabi.

Once you reach Krabi, go check out the tourist offices lined up along the pier. You will realize that there are plenty of islands, boats and island accomodations to choose from. These offices are well packed with pictures, room rates and booking services. Now get a ticket to East Railey Beach. You will arrive in Railey in 45 minutes.

From Bangkok

Book a coach ticket from any tourist offices to Krabi, if you can find one. If not, try booking a trip to Hatyai, then change to another vehicle heading for Krabi. Once you hit Krabi, get the boat ticket to Railey beach.

Railey has one of the finest selections of limestone climbs. With numerous climbs of varied difficulty, you can never get tired of climbing, even if you a hardcore climber. Most climbs have screwed in joints and carabinas. Make sure you check that they're secure. And be wary of rusty screws.

Besides climbing, Railey boasts of one of the best beaches in Asia : the Phra-nang beach. I will leave it to you to find out how to get there.

Most chalets in Railey have all the basic tourist facility. But no credits cards entertained (Not that I know of). It would also be advisible to change your money/traveller's cheques at Hatyai, Bangkok or Singapore. They usually charge a higher premium when you change your cheques in the island, and there's no guarantee that they would not run out of cash.

Most Railey's chalets offer island hopping trips, snokelling, diving or climbing trips. Certified PADI courses are available in many chalets. It costs about 200 US$ for a 4 days 3 nights PADI course.

Of course, if you are looking for Boy, head straight for YaYa chalets on the east coast. He organizes camping trips for groups of 8-10 or even climbing-trips for climbers who want to climb Pee Pee's cliffs.

Have fun!

Any other queries? E-mail me!