So if you are planning to go to Krabi but not sure what to do and how to go from the airport, this post will share our experience. In summary, as usual, we need to pass immigration, pick up the luggage, buy a sim card and find a transport to our destination.
We flew from Singapore by Scoot. The flight duration is around 1 hour 25 minutes. Thankfully, wifey said the baby cooperates well in the flight. Wifey prepared one pair of long socks, mineral water, and snacks but ended up using the socks only because of it was a bit cold, rather than any other pregnancy symptoms that she worried about.
Onboard, the flight attendant distributed Thai immigration form. It is good that we brought a pen to pre-fill up the form in the air so that we can directly proceed to immigration counter as soon as we landed.
Arrival at Krabi Airport
We walked to the immigration counter after disembarked from the plane. Since the airport is small, we reach immigration only after a very short walk. By the time we arrived, the immigration queue was not long. We just needed a couple of minutes to pass the immigration and got our baggage.
Outside of immigration, there are some counters of telco operators, international car rental companies, travel agents, airport transfer (by bus, taxi, van, ferry), one information counter, and one atm after the luggage pickup area.
First thing first, we went to DTAC counter to get SIM card. They have several packages for tourists. We decided to buy a package with unlimited internet for 8 days and 9 minutes free call only for THB 49 each. Other than DTAC, there was AIS (another telco provider) which located just beside DTAC counter.
Next, off to the hotel we go. For our convenience, we decided to take a taxi to the hotel. It cost us THB 600 for one car to Ao Nang area. I would say airport transfer arrangement in Krabi is good. Ticket purchase is centralized inside the airport, so the price that we get is the official price. After paying the taxi ticket, we got a receipt stating the hotel name and taxi number. One taxi operator lady then took us to airport lobby where we should meet the driver. Although it states taxi when we book, a minivan is what came. Since we paid the price of a private car, only two of us are in the minivan.
Trip from Krabi Airport to Ao Nang
Ao Nang is about 20 KM from Krabi airport, which is approximately a 30 minutes driving. In the middle of our trip, the driver stopped at one tour agency. The travel agency name is Krabi Somporn. It seems, it is a common practice, for a taxi driver to stop by in such tour agency and they can get a commission if the passenger purchases some tour packages. However, rest assured we can decline the offer if we are not interested or if we want to buy ourselves in a different agency in Krabi beach. The detail about tour package we took can be seen in this post.
After a short stop by in the tour agency, we continue the trip to the hotel. Before continuing to drive, the driver passed us his phone number and gave offer the return trip from hotel to Krabi airport for only THB 500. In very short time, we reached the hotel.
Hotel Check-in
The staff welcomed us and helping to bring down our luggage. As usual, wifey is the one who handled the check-in process. We got a welcome drink and a cold towel while the receptionist explains the hotel’s facility. We need to wait about 15 minutes for our room to be ready. Once it is ready, a staff took our bags to our room in level 3 of the lobby building. You can read our review about the hotel here.
To see what other fun activities you can do in Krabi, please see this post.