I thought I was being clever heading all the way up to the top of Phang Nga bay. I knew there were boat tours offered from both Phuket and Krabi, but since they started 45 miles south of the bay, I figured they’d cost more than one starting from the top of the bay. While I suspect my intimate long-tail boat tour experience was more pleasant than I would have had on the huge party boats that came up from the south, I doubt I saved any money, and I certainly stayed in a less desirable area.

Phang Nga bay contains some of the most amazing karst stone formations I’ve ever seen. To be fair, you can probably skip Phang Nga if you’ve already been to Halong bay in Vietnam or Coron in the Philippines, but still Phang Nga has some of the most unique stand alone rocks, including one referred to as James Bond Island.

Probably the most important detail is knowing how to tell the station agent at the bus terminal where you want to go. Pronounced “pang ah” by the locals, it should not be confused with an island of very similar name on the other coast of the Thai peninsula. The name of the island will be preceded by the word “Koh”, meaning island in Thai. So, be sure to ask for a ticket to Phang nga and not Koh Pha Ngan since both destinations are served from bus stations in Phuket and Krabi.

The bus station in Phang Nga is located about 3 km south of town. Depending on which hotel you choose, you may be able to walk from the station, but if you don’t feel like it, you can take one of the collective mini pickups, called a songteow. The pick up trucks stop inside the terminal near platform one. They are either blue or blue and yellow in color. Just tell the driver Phang Nga town, and it should cost you about 20 baht. Tap on the hood of the cab when you want him to pull over and drop you off.

I’ve read in a few places that motor bike taxis are the only way to get around town. This is not true. The songteow can be found running regularly through town and as far south as the long boat pier at Ta Dan. Just make sure you get an affirmative nod from the driver when you tell him your destination.

When you arrive at the bus station, you will likely be approached by a ticket vendor trying to sell you a tour of Phang Nga bay. The reference sites I used said there would be more than one vendor, but in the three different times I visited the station, I only met Mr. Kean.

I was shocked that the boat tour prices from Phang Nga were about the same as coming from Phuket or Krabi. Any money I might save on a tour from here was wasted on getting here and the more expensive accommodations. Since it is not a tourist town, there are not many places to stay and, as a result, no need for competition.

I arrived a day ealy since I was unable to find much information online about Phang Nga bay tours from the town of Phang Nga. In my day of exploring Phang Nga, I wasn’t able to find a price to beat Mr. Kean. I even went directly to the boat pier at Ta Dan. True, if I was more than one person, renting a boat from the pier would have made sense. Boats rent for about 1500 baht, but you can split that as many ways as you have friends. As a single person, I was better off signing up for a group tour.

Mr Kean offers an assortment of options: half-day tours, full day tours, overnight tours where you can spend the night at the Muslim fishing village. I’d read horrible reviews about Mr Kean’s tour practices, but overall, I really enjoyed it.

You can easily hit the highlights (Khao Phing Kan, Koh Panyi, Cave paintings) on a half day tour, but I recommend the full day tour because you get to have lunch on a beach overlooking this magnificent bay. I even had time to swim into one of the karst caves. If you opt for the half day tour, do it in the morning before the big boats arrive from Phuket and Krabi.

I would loved to have had more than the 40 minutes we got at the fishing village, but I’m a photographer, and there is plenty of material to keep you busy including a mosque and a floating football pitch. Overnight is probably too long, unless you’re one of those who enjoys fully immersing yourself in a place. Two hours would have been ideal for me. Maybe you can work out with Mr. Kean to be dropped off at the island after the morning half day tour and picked up by the afternoon half day tour.

I think there are more places to eat at the fishing village than there are in town. Huge dining rooms cater to the larger boats that drop off tourists hordes. The other nice thing about spending the night is the opportunity to see the village without tourists.

Be sure to negotiate price with Mr. Kean. He will naturally start with what he thinks he can get away with from tourists uncomfortable with haggling. As when I’m in other places in Thailand, I usually reply, “is that your best price?” Inevitably, he’ll drop 200-300 baht immediately. I was satisfied and took his offer. I don’t tend to haggle too hard in a place where people barely scrape by a living. It’s my chance to give back to someone born in circumstances that are not as economically favorable as my own.

Mr. Kean will take your money or a deposit, if you don’t have the full amount. You’ll get a receipt, and he’ll send a songteow to pick you up at the agreed upon time. Simple as that. Your experience on the longtail boat may be different than mine since you never know who your driver is going to be, but I lucked out and got a very easy going older Thai. He gave us plenty of time at each of the stops (except the Muslim village).

An additional option I requested, but would not recommend, was the kayak experience. Instead of getting time to paddle around the karst caves on my own, I was loaded onto an inflatable kayak with three other people, including a guide who paddled us around while constantly reminding us to tip him 100 baht.

We were brought back to our hotels around 4pm as promised. Depending on how much time you allotted in Phang Nga, you can call it a day or explore the town. The most interesting spots I found was a cave park on the south end of the town and a mysterious wat, with grotesque scenes as part of the heaven and hell garden, at the north end of town. Both are free.

There are a few restaurants in the center of the main street in town, near the hospital, but I found the best ones in town to be in the southwest corner near the T.P. Place hotel. From the intersection of Charoenrat and Thetsaban Bamrung, walk south, and you will see some good places on either side of the street.

For a hidden surprise, head east on Charoenrat and look for the green restaurant sign pointing you down a single lane paved street. About 100 meters on the left is a place Google maps calls Storewater Views. Arriving there is like stumbling across a gleaming piece of art in the middle of a swamp. The restaurant is set along the river, and both the food and atmosphere are exceptional.

Keep in mind that here, as in most places in Phang Nga, there are no English menus, only pictures of some of the entrees. Hopefully you see something that looks good, and you can point to that. Otherwise, most restaurants have someone in the back they call to deal with their English speaking customers, but don’t expect much beyond a fourth grade level of English. It’s on you to figure out the Thai words for what you want. After all, it was your decision to head up to this town, well off the tourist trodden path.