TONSAI BEACH

Walled by dramatic cliffs, Tonsai is a quiet beach not far from AO Nang and next to Railay Beach. A rock climbers paradise where you can spend the hot hours of the day in the cooling ocean.

We are specifically talking about Tonsai in the Krabi area next to Railay beach. A true paradise with dramatic cliffs and rocks towing above.

To reach Tonsai take a boat from AO Nang and you will be dropped off on the beach itself. After jumping off your longtail boat you will notice there are little to no builders on the beach itself which is perfect. There is a road that leads away behind the beach and that's where you will find places to stay and eat. Both can be found at a budget price and the cost of staying a few nights on Tonsai is incredibly cheap! We are warning you now that you might never want to leave this slice of paradise.

We stayed at the Mountain View Resort which was fairly basic but clean and comfortable. We also spent everymoment we could on the beaches so it was perfect for us. We paid £17.74 per night for the two of us. The room was a standard room with a fan and no A/C.

Although Tonsai is next door to Railay beach which is very busy, a small rocky section that splits the beach keeps Tonsai quiet. You either have to walk a long way around through the jungle or at low tide climb over the rocks which can be slippy and hard work.

We hope that planned building projects on the beach remain unbuilt as the beauty of this backpackers beach would be lost if a large resort opens.

Our top tip would be to stay in one of the smaller guesthouses behind Tonsai beach. Spend most of your time there rather than crowded Railay. You can then hike to Railay and check it out as well as other locations on that side as we mentioned in our guide here. We do think though that you will be itching to get back to Tonsai and away from the crowds.