These are the two long beaches, both in Ao Nang. The first is the Main Beach, reached by taking the 4203 Road down the hill through the main tourist area until you reach the sea. The beach stretches for about 800 m on the southwest side of the road, while the northeast side is lined with shops and restaurants, massage and tattoo parlours, and many tour guide booths. This beach is very popular, and has long tail boats waiting to take passengers to islands and beaches not reachable from the land, such as Tonsai and Railay. The sand slopes very gently, such that at high tide you can walk out a long way, but at low tide you may have to walk a long way to reach the water! During northeast monsoons the seas are generally calm and should be safe for swimming, but always check the local conditions on the day.

The second beach is Haad Nopparat Tara (Haad is Thai for beach, as in Haad Yai), which is just around the headland accommodating the Krabi Resort from Ao Nang Main Beach. It is nearly 2 km of sand (see photo below), hooking round at its northeastern end to Ko Khao Sam Nuai, a small island to which you can walk at low tide. It is generally much quieter than the Main Beach, with the same clean sea and sand, which will suit some better. There are several resorts and some shops and restaurants along the road, but the main feature is probably the Ao Nang Landmark Night Market, listed among our places to eat. There are a number of fixed shops and parlours, but the extensive night market opens at about 5 pm and serves food and drink, and is easily accessible when you have finished on the beach and seen the sunset!