Where to stay in Krabi: the best areas and resorts

Ao Nang is Krabi's main resort, a single seafront road backed by forested limestone crags. It is not a place of great beauty in itself, but it is cheerful, convenient and ringed by scenery: the beach faces a scatter of islands, sunsets are superb, and longtail boats leave all day for Railay, Poda and Chicken Island. Ferries run from the pier to Phi Phi and Phuket.

Everything a holiday needs is on the main strip: massage shops, tailors, seafood grills, bars. Hotels climb the hillside behind. Families do well here, with resorts offering a kids' club, children's pool and playground; couples can pick a cliffside hotel with a rooftop sunset bar, or one where every room has a private pool. The airport is 30 to 40 minutes away.

Walk west from Ao Nang and within ten minutes the souvenir shops give way to casuarina trees and a long, flat beach that is part of a national park. This is Nopparat Thara, where Thai families come to picnic at weekends and seafood shacks line the road. At low tide you can walk across the sand to the little islands just offshore.

It suits anyone who wants Ao Nang's restaurants within reach but not on the doorstep. Resorts here are low-rise and set in gardens, some a few steps from the sand, others between the two beaches. Krabi Town is about 20 minutes away by car and the airport about 30.

Railay is a peninsula sealed off from the mainland by towering limestone walls, so the only way in is by boat. That short crossing changes everything. There are no cars, the beaches are among the most beautiful in Thailand, and rock climbers dangle from the cliffs above Phra Nang's famous cave. Day-trippers pour in by late morning and leave by late afternoon; stay over and the place is yours.

The peninsula's landmark resort spreads its pavilions and villas through 26 acres of coconut grove. If you like the idea of arriving by water, there are other options: a big beach resort in its own bay beside Ao Nang, reached by scheduled speedboat, and a small collection of villas on the island of Koh Jum, with sunset views towards Phi Phi.

North of Ao Nang the road winds through rubber plantations to Klong Muang and, beyond it, Tubkaek: two quiet beaches facing the jagged outline of the Hong Islands. There is no strip here, just a few local restaurants and a great deal of calm. The sunsets, with the islands turning to silhouettes, are the best on this coast.

This is where Krabi keeps its finest resorts. On Klong Muang, about 10 km from Ao Nang, large beach resorts come with lagoon pools and children's activities. Tubkaek is more intimate, with boutique hideaways aimed squarely at couples and honeymooners, and pool villas backed by jungle-green hills. You will want taxis or a hire car to go anywhere. Many guests never bother.

A kilometre or two inland from the beach road, Ao Nang turns rural: lanes run between palm groves and smallholdings, with limestone cliffs rearing up on every side. It is a different holiday, more birdsong than bar music, and the rates are kinder.

Resorts here trade a sea view for space and greenery. One is an eco-resort tucked among the cliffs and forested valleys, with a wellness focus; another sits in a private tropical garden a five-minute drive from the centre, with a free scheduled shuttle to the beach; a third spreads across acres of botanical gardens. Good for walkers, climbers and anyone who sleeps badly near nightlife.