Khao Lak
Once a popular playground for families and avid scuba divers, this stretch of fabulous beach is now down in the history books as the area in Thailand most devastated by the 26 December 2004 tsunami. Today, many of the resorts and businesses have rebuilt and re-opened, and are struggling to bring back visitors. The beaches here remain pristine and it will only be a matter of time until the area is once again thriving.
Khao Lak is a one-hour drive north from Phuket International Airport. It is much closer to the Similan Islands than Phuket, making it an optimal base for a scuba diving holiday. And, since scuba divers are on boats or under the water for most of the day, the beaches are quiet and clean for non-divers and for the days in between diving.
Khao Lak beach is the most popular among foreign visitors and is good for swimming and near all the tourist amenities and hotels. Bang Niang beach is not far away and is good for those looking for a bit more privacy. Bang Sak beach is where local Thais go for picnicking, and you’ll find some charming little beachside stalls here. Thai Muang beach, about half an hour away, is located inside a national park and is nicknamed Turtle beach for the sea turtles that lay their eggs here from November to February.
The Similan Islands are rated one of the top diving destinations in the world, and this marine park is home to vibrant hard and soft corals, unique underwater boulder formations, and an assortment of marine life including whale sharks. Khao Lak is also home to a few pretty waterfalls, as well as the Khao Lak Lamru National Park with its lush vegetation and variety of wild animals.
This offers a wonderful appendage to the beach area which is enjoyed by few other resort locations in Thailand. The park is typified by lofty hills, waterfalls and soaring cliffs, with gorges that can be explored by canoe. The mangroves are also pretty, particularly the Klong Thap Liang estaury which can be explored with the longtail boats on offer. There are a few coastal trails and some bird and occassional wildlife can be spotted if you are lucky. Bungalows are also offered in the park headquarters.
There is plenty of accommodation in Khao Lak ranging from inexpensive bungalows to five-star luxury resorts and most are offering discounted rates, especially during the low season (approximately May to November). The main stretch in Khao Lak offers plenty of dive shops providing speedboat daytrips and liveaboard trips to the Similans. Here, you’ll also find accommodation, restaurants, and quiet bars.
Most facilities cater to foreign tourists and you’ll find shopkeepers can speak English and sometimes German and Swedish as well. Many people find Khao Lak to be a superb getaway from the bustle of Phuket and the area is definitely worth a visit.
Tsunami recovery update 2007
Of all the resort areas along Thailand’s Andaman coast, Khao Lak perhaps suffered the most, and has the dubious dishonour of suffering the largest number of fatalities. With its shallow sea bed off-shore and lowland stretching for more than a kilometer inland, the area was absolutely devastated in the Tsunami and became the focus of the international relief centre and body identification point in the weeks after the tragedy. Even His Majesty the King lost a grandson here on December 26th 2004.
Regrettably this once thriving dive centre and nature alternative to Phuket has struggled to get back on its feet. Without exception every resort and business in the waterfront vicinity was destroyed and the area reduced to rubble. Only the commercial centres along the main road inland were spared, but the aftermath has not been kind to the people of Khao Lak.
We visited during the off season of 2006 when many of the business typically close and we were taken aback by the utter air of abandon. Khao Lak effectively missed the entire 2005 season, its businesses simply couldn’t raise the capital or will to rebuild. We can report that about 80 per cent of them have rebuilt lovely new resorts in better planned circumstances, the transplanted coconut palms might still be ‘filling out’ and there will no doubt still be some construction, otherwise it’s finally business as usual.
However, Khao Lak remains a lovely, unspoilt Andaman paradise with miles of natural beaches that are largely empty and in a pristine state. The nearby national park offers some wonderful eco-systems with waterfalls and hiking trails. It’s also the best place from which to launch dive trips to the rewarding Similan Islands offshore from here.
In short the locals are struggling and desperately need you to come back. One stark reminder of the awesome force of nature that devastated the lives of those who shared the horrific experience is a bulky (multi-tonne) 30m long police patrol boat, which lies beached on the side of the main road more than a kilometer inland. You can’t miss it and the sight of this huge vessel, dumped there by the tsunami, lies as a permanent reminder of the sheer force of the ‘great wave’.
Getting to Khao Lak
From Phuket airport you can get a taxi or shuttle directly to Khao Lak but this is likely to be quite expensive unless can full the vehicle. If you are staying in a decent hotel they will likely provide a free shuttle. If however, you are on a budget you will need to find your way to the central bus station in Phuket and catch one of the regular (almost hourly) buses north to Takua Pa which stop in Bang Niang. The driving time is about one hour and the scenery is quite pretty.
