Review: Pleasant Stay at Railay Bay Resort & Spa

There's only one word to describe Railay: AWESOME!

One of the reason the holiday was awesome was because of Railay Bay Resort & Spa.

I chose the resort simply because Groupon had an offer. Costs only RM798 for a 4D/3N stay for 2 in the Privacy Cottage with daily breakfast.

My first encounters with Railay Bay Resort & Spa were not great. First of all, our reservation was not in the system despite me making the reservation 3 months in advance via email. A few days before our trip, I called up the resort just to be sure, and that was when I found out they screwed up our reservation. Thankfully it was the low season and we were travelling on a weekday, so the Privacy Cottages were still available.

Secondly, I read many negative comments about the resort and the Privacy Cottage on Tripadvisor - that it's dirty and not well maintained, etc. So I discussed with TC and said that we would inspect the cottage first upon checking in. If it's not up to our expectation, we would ask to change cottage. Thankfully, our cottage was fine, although it's a bit rundown and could do with a refurbishment.

The Privacy Cottage certainly lives up to its name. There's a high wall surrounding each cottage that you could run around naked and no one would know :-)

Each cottage has its own jacuzzi, which is on the right of this pic. When I got home I realised I didn't take any pic of it :-(

The interior of the Privacy Cottage is spacious and woody:

I love the king sized bed!

The bathroom is big ...

 ... the shower cubicle looks rundown (which could have contributed to the negative comments on Tripadvisor):

Can sit and let the water fall on your head. Pity it was not a rainshower, or else I would have sat there for hours. And what a waste of water that would have been :-)

 This is the lane that leads to the Privacy Cottage:

Reminded me of Bali.

And this is the doorway to our Privacy Cottage:

Housekeeping would ring the doorbell every morning at around 9.30am to clean the room. We would tell them to come back later because we're on holiday and we want to sleep in, but not late enough to miss breakfast lah.

On our second night there, we couldn't get into the Privacy Cottage after dinner because the latch had accidentally fallen and bolted the door from the inside.

So me being the heroine climbed over the high walls to save the day :-)

Thank heavens my parents allowed me to climb trees when I was growing up in Port Klang. Never knew it would come in handy later on in life, hahaha.

TC pointed out that Railay Bay Resort & Spa needs to be commended for their attention to detail.

Ready in the room are a plastic mat for lazing on the beach and a torchlight which came in handy since we lazed on the beach till late and needed light to make our way back to the cottage. A rattan beach bag was also provided to carry our stuff like beach towel, camera and our other companions - Gin & Vodka, hahaha.

Who would think of bringing such stuff on a beach holiday? Moreover it would take up luggage space. But Railay Bay Resort & Spa certainly remembered to provide for their guests.

Just outside the row of Privacy Cottage is a lovely pool where we spent our afternoons lazing and reading before heading to the beach towards the evening to indulge in nude sunbathing :-)

This is the other pool at the entrance of the resort:

This pool is perpetually crowded probably because it's facing the beach.

Breakfast is served in the coffee house. The spread is good with a mixture of Asian and Western food to cater to their guests from both sides of the world.

It was nice having sea breeze in my hair while I enjoyed my breakfast.

Tables are also placed on the beach for those who want to feel the sand in their feet as they have their breakfast.

Despite the negative experiences before the trip, Railay Bay Resort & Spa turned out better than expected, which was a pleasant surprise.

We had originally planned to head back to Krabi and spend our last day (4th night) there before flying back to KL. But since we were so cosy at the resort, we decided to extend our stay. We had to pay normal prices for that extra night since the Groupon voucher was only valid for 3 nights.

Railay Bay Resort & Spa will always hold fond memories for me :-)

Krabi Airport to Railay Beach by Public Transport

Travelling to Railay Beach by public transport is a piece of cake.

TC and I decided to DIY for the sake of a challenge (we love challenges!) and also to save money :-)

Upon arrival at Krabi airport, we took the shuttle bus to Ao Nang Pier (THB 150 per person) where boats leave for Railay Beach.

The shuttle bus journey from Krabi airport to Ao Nang Pier took about an hour. Along the way, the driver would make a few stops to drop off passengers. Ao Nang Pier is the last stop.

 If you're travelling in a group or prefer to be pampered, here is the price list to book a van/taxi:

This is the Ao Nang Pier:

Wang Sai Travel seems to be the only agent selling tickets to Railay Beach:

As you can see from the price list, the cost is only THB 100 per person. However, a minimum of 8 pax is needed before the boat moves. We only waited about 20 minutes for another 6 people to come. 

Here is the timetable and ticket price for various destinations from Krabi that was on displayed at the pier:

 Proud to see Langkawi on the list (second from bottom). 

I dread to think how long the journey must take to reach Singapore. You'll be cutting across the whole of Peninsular Malaysia, man ...

When there was enough 8 people, the boat operator called for us to board the boat.

Tip: Wear shorts and slippers since you'll be wading in thigh high water to get on and off the boat.

After about 30 minutes, we arrived on Railay Beach:

The boat guy dropped us off at the end of the beach, which was perfect since we were staying at Railay Bay Resort & Spa. So we only had to walk 2 minutes to check-in. But alas, we didn't see the sign (which was at an angle) and we walked to the other end of the beach, luggage and all. Thankfully we were travelling light.

Next: Review on Railay Bay Resort & Spa.

Muddy, Tough Climb to The Lagoon

The Lagoon is a hidden gem that you must explore when you're in Railay, especially if you like a good physical challenge.

Can you spot The Lagoon on the map? 

Now ... getting to The Lagoon is no joke. The climb involves getting on all fours in a rough and tumble muddy situation. At certain points, you'd need to use ropes (ready there) to haul yourself up the rocks.

Definitely not for weaklings.

Most people turn back because the climb is tough. With my phobia of ropes, especially after a bad experience in Bukit Tabur that left my elbow bleeding and confidence shaken, I kept telling myself that it's all in the mind. As what Franklin Roosevelt said, "The only thing we have to fear is fear itself".

After huffing, puffing and getting myself dirty, we finally reached The Lagoon. 

We removed our socks and shoes and left them together with our camera on the rocks and started wading across the lagoon. 

The water was muddy and my feet kept sinking in the mud. Half swimming and half wading did the trick for me. TC was wondering whether there were quicksands or not. 

Halfway across the lagoon, I realised that we didn't research whether the waters had snakes in it, hahaha. This is what I call kamikaze exploring. But none of us remembered reading about snakes in the blogs. 

After exploring the caves on the other side, we decided it was time to head back. 

While wading back, I realised that the water was getting deeper and my feet gradually couldn't touch the bottom. Panic set in and I quickly floated on my back - it's the easiest way to avoid drowning for a weak swimmer like me. 

So while floating on my back, I paddled my way back to the other side and realised that the water had indeed risen. Thankfully our stuff were not swept away as well. This means The Lagoon is connected to the sea and its waters rise and subside in tandem with the sea tide. It's definitely not stagnant water as what I had initially thought.

While heading back, there was a signboard that says Viewpoint. Since we came this far, why not explore this too.

So after a short walk which lacked proper signboards, we reached the Viewpoint:

Railay East and Railay West in one photo.

Despite the cuts and bruises, I was proud of myself for making it to The Lagoon, a place where most people couldn't because of its rocky terrain.

And here are my marks of achievements :-) :

I did it!