Krabi, Thailand

I would recommend taking the first class room if you are traveling as a couple by train because you don't have to worry about your bags and can just relax in a nice space. BUT I wouldn't recommend taking the train if you have to go all the way down to Krabi or Phuket - Just fly! The train was fine but the transfer from train, bus and shuttle was an absolute pain and the wait time between each is terrible but you are not in a location where you can actually do anything with this time and everything arrives early or late so the schedule is a bit flexible and I wouldn't risk wandering much.

The one thing that was a bit disappointing was that with traveling at night you really only have a view of the city as you leave before it gets dark and you have no scenery to look at. Still we ended up getting to Krabi for the morning and without losing any daytime to travel so there was a plus side to the train.

Krabi Town, Thailand

River in Krabi near Khanab Num Pier

Krabi is very nice city and staying near the markets, pier and temples was a very good choice. A restaurant near Khanab Num Pier served amazing food for lunch that was extremely affordable! 50TB for a meal and 20TB for a nice cold drink. The Thai iced tea is extremely good!

Restaurant near Khanab Num Pier

At low tide the areas near the river are full of Mudskippers and you can watch these goofy fish flop themselves all over the muddy banks. They actually can move surprisingly fast when they want to and frequently fight each other.

Boddart's Blue-spotted Mudskipper Fish (Boleophthalmus boddarti)

The markets in Krabi have mostly food but you can great a great freshly made smoothie for 30TB in the afternoon when its hot and you need a break from walking and seeing so many birds. Throughout the day of just walking around the city we saw Zebra Dove, Common Myna, Asian Glossy Starling, House Sparrow, Eurasian Tree Sparrow, Scaly Breasted Munia, Great Egret, Whimbrel, Rock Pigeon, Brahminy Kite, Pied Fantrail, Pacific Swallow, Sunbird sp., Oriential Magpie Robin, Chinese Pond Heron, Brown Shrike and Large-billed Crow.

Asian Glossy Starling nesting in camera box

Great Egret

Brahminy Kite

Oriental Magpie Robin

The pier and Wat Kaew Korawarm were the best birding I found within the city. Although the temple is not as decorated as temples in Bangkok it has a very simplistic and natural beauty to it through the contrasting blue and white colours and forested areas nearby. In a few places trails appeared to go into the forested area but I wasn't able to figure out from any locals if you can walk on these.

Wat Kaew Korawarm, Krabi, Thailand

Wat Kaew Korawarm, Krabi, Thailand

The night market was a lot of food stalls set up around the pier. They served food and there was a large area of tables. All the food was served on reusable plates that were washed on site after they were used but if you asked for food to go you got it in a tiny bag. This tiny market had the best food I had in Thailand! It was also incredibly affordably.

In a grassy area within the middle of the city I found two Malay Pit Vipers near a garbage pile. A Changeable Lizard was also around. The Changeable Lizard actually changed colour in front of my eyes as I watched it for a few minutes. It got so much more pink! It is amazing how much wildlife can be seen in the middle of cities in Thailand.

Malayan Pit Viper (Calloselasma rhodostoma)

Changeable Lizard (Calotes versicolor)

Changeable Lizard (Calotes versicolor)