Krabi - General Info
Where is Krabi?
Krabi lies on the southwest coast of mainland Thailand, about 30 nm east of Phuket.
Krabi is part of the Phang Nga Bay that features one of the most interesting ocean landscapes with many limestone karts towering over the sea and many archipelagos to explore.
Entrance Notes and Cautions:
- The approach channel to Krabi starts in the deeper water well south of the river. There is a safe water mark (Hin Ruru) here.
- When heading for Krabi Marina, be aware that the current is very strong, especially the ebb current when combined with the river flow. Only come in at slack water and be sure to stem any current there still is.
- If visiting here and exploring ashore, it may be wise to leave someone on board, as there have been reports of break-ins and thefts from unattended boats in the upper Phang Nga Bay.
Cruiser Highlights for Krabi:
This is a convenient port for clearing into, or out of Thailand, with 3 marinas to choose from and boatyard facilities. Some main attractions here include Koh Hong, Koh Lanta, and Reiley.
Position:
08° 02.77′ N, 98° 54.15′ E (channel entrance)
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Reported by Noonsite Ambassador Anthony Swanston, SV Wild Fox:
KRABI BOAT LAGOON
A quick update on some points about Krabi Boat Lagoon which I have just left after a haul out and five week stay. Jack the manager and his staff are to be commended for their helpfulness. Nothing is too much trouble. The marina is currently being dredged to a MLWS of 2 metres; work estimated to be finished by end January 2023.
The laundry service is no longer available and fuel has been temporarily suspended for technical reasons. Fuel by jerry can will be arranged. Also restaurants are down to one, but hostess Garn is wonderful and provides great Thai and western food at affordable prices. All served by attentive and friendly staff.
There is a cleaning and painting service, but extremely limited and needs close supervision; almost no repair service except electrical which is top class and run by Sombat and his brother. Wonderful work and great to have them on the boat. Jack will make the contact arrangements for you.
Reported by Bob Mott: For Phuket, Krabi and Phang Nga provinces.
This happened a few days back. The yacht I helped deliver from Seychelles to Phuket recently checked out of Phuket and moved to Krabi – Port Takola Marina.
The owner was advised he needed to check out of Phuket and that he could do it online. He tried and his Thai wife tried with no success. He then went to the relevant office on the pier Chalong and did the form on their computer with assistance. All well he thought. BUT the girl either didnt know or forgot to tell him he needed to go upstairs to the harbour master’s office and confirm there as well. Filling out the official form was not enough.
He went to Krabi to the marina and tried to check in and found out the error and was fined 5000B.
Same applies the other way around and for Phang Nga Province who are even worse with this rule. They have been playing this game for many years where Krabi were much more relaxed. Now money is short they are falling back on ways of extracting money from yachts.
So yachts have to fill out a form in Phuket and also see the harbour master to clear to go to any other province.
A message from Bob Mott, Thailand:
WARNING TO YACHTS IN KRABI PROVINCE. Please be aware that Krabi Harbour officials are fining yachts that have not checked into the province from their previous Thailand port. They have been to Port Takola Marina and fined boats 5,000B. This is a existing rule that if you leave one province you need to check out of that province with the harbour department and report on arrival in the new province. Krabi in the past have not imposed this rule but tough times and the virus and lack of income would have given them a nudge to do so. Phang Nga province has been enforcing this rule for some time and I believe the fines are even higher possibly double. The issue there is that the office to report to is in Phang Nga Town many kilometres from the anchorages by road transport. All Thailand provinces can apply this rule if they want to.
Port Takola- I like to commend the Management and Staff at Port Takola for the wonderful service and assistance they gave me recently when I had engine problems on passage from Langkawi to Krabi. Matthew is the GM and Sebastian is the Ops Manager. Both are English speaking which is, of course, most helpful to me.
Thank you, Sebastian, for putting me in touch with Mr (Khun) Arm, Krabi Engineering. Mr. Arm, a dynamic young man US-educated, rebuilt and reinstalled my cooling water pump within 24 hrs. He is also building up a SS fabrication side to the business.
Port Takola is set in a rural area and yet very close to Ao Nang and Old Krabi Town only 2 nm away, a better option by the long tail or if you have a fast dinghy. I’ll definitely be coming back to Port Takola and use Krabi Engineering for engine servicing and repairs.
Feedback from Marc and Claire Arav (France):
Dears Sirs,
I would like to acknowledge you about the Krabi Marina Andaman sea, Thailand, That we had a very positive experience during our visit.
The installation and equipment are at a high level, services perfect, price cheap.
There is a large concrete yard too long term layout with the various subcontractor for normal maintenance.
They welcome us warmly and everything is new and very clean, see: http://www.krabiboatlagoon.com
The marina is 15 minutes from Tesco and 30 minutes from downtown which is worthwhile to visit, far from the touristic hot place.
We really enjoy our time there and would be ready to leave our boat for a long term period.
Best regards
Marc and Claire Arav
We have spent 1 night on November 16th, 2017 at Krabi Boat Lagoon. Fuel, water, and small stores are available The staff was very helpful on the phone and after our arrival.
The marina is easy to find, the waypoints are available on their site.
Warm welcome by Ben, Marina’s manager. The newly built place is very quiet & clean with a nice pool, clean toilets + showers, exercising room. The restaurant “Captain Galley” offers very good Thai cuisine at fair prices.
We had no security problem, everything was OK
Dear Sailors,
I met with the Krabi Customs Office today. Foreign visiting boats will receive a 6 months stay with additional extensions, the same as in Phuket. So I hope this clarifies some concern about checking in here. Then a further 6 months extension for repairs and maintenance is possible – proof will be required that work is being carried out.
Please note that the Thai Customs will implement new rules & regulations on 13th November as part of the referendum. Please watch this space for updates
If you any question, feel free to contact me at matthew@porttakola.com
Matthew Na Nagara.
This may be posted already elsewhere, but in case not I have just checked into Thailand at Krabi and Krabi Customs provided a 6 month stay permit for my Malaysia-flagged vessel, renewable 4x for a total of 2 1/2 years that the vessel can remain in Thailand without import duty.
Posted by MikeH on the main Thailand page:
Port Takola, near Krabi, is one of Thailand’s newest Marinas. I have been based there for the last six months and have been delighted with the setup. The staff is very friendly and helpful. It is possible to hire a motorbike very cheaply from the locals, no need to go to town. Ao Nang is just a few minutes up the road with excellent shops, and the traffic is fairly light.
Immigration folks are very friendly and helpful, as have been customs and the port authority, though there is a bit of distance between customers and the rest. About a 20 minute walk between. The hardstand has just become operational an I have never seen a more conscientious team, lifting my boat with great care. There is a very good restaurant and bar about 10 minutes easy walk away.
The marina has all new facilities, is open and lets a breeze through. Access to Krabi is straight forward with a minimum depth of 4.0 meters in the channel. Entrance to the marina is probably the top two-thirds of the tide. A good guide is the height of tide=depth at the entrance. 2 meters of tide = 2 meters minimum depth at the entrance. Krabi town is just a dinghy ride away. A very peaceful place, easy access to town and tourist activities, but also a great experience with the Thai locals.
We have spent 2 nights at Krabi Boat Lagoon. As it was our first time there, we were not sure about navigating the entrance channel to the marina, so the staff were very helpful and came to pick us up from the entrance of the channel and showed us the way with their dinghy to our berth in the marina.
There was a warm welcome by Ben – the sympathetic Operations Service Manager who informed us about all the facilities on site. Furthermore, the place is very quiet & clean with superb toilets + showers. The friendly staff of the little marina restaurant also offer good and authentic Thai food at fair prices.
Massage is also available and you can rent a car or motorbike if you want to go to Krabi Town for sight-seeing.
It is a good place to make a stopover or to leave your boat for an extended period. There are no more gaps in the pontoons and correct lighting.
Posted on behalf of Michael Blowes (who posted this on the main Thailand page):
Krabi customs is challenging again. Only give 2-month extensions, 3 if you push. Was told I could only have 3 months because my visa (a renewal marriage visa) fell due in Oct.
But next day guy with 7 months left on his visa only got a 3-month extension also. So its all a bit of a mystery. There seem to be fewer boats around this year.
Safety is much improved at KBL with floodlights around. My experience here has been very good and on par with other marinas. Drunken sailors stumbling home to their boats always face some risks.
Services have been the weak link but Des Kearns from Satun has just appeared in the disguise of Popeye Marine Services and the boats have started arriving from all over the world for repair. Prices are fair and quality is, well its Des Kearns.
As for my latest check-in in Krabi, I had more of a hiccup with immigration than customs – which was a surprise with the news out of Thailand over the last 6 months. The bond (THB20000) was unavoidable.. all the other boats coming in now suffered the same thing.
Even when the amount is not a big deal it is still a huge administrative workload. Was told by immigration that the way to circumvent is simply applied and get a 60-day tourist visa before coming to Thailand (e.g. Penang or Singapore). Apparently, there is some linkage between the normal 30-day visa-on-arrival and the need for a bond for the skipper (to leave). I will try this next trip in.
Posted on behalf of Richard Hoare re. Krabi Boat Lagoon
The marina has been open for about two years now to yachts and is still very much incomplete with safety being a concern. There are gaps in the pontoons and access ramps and no direct lighting at night.
The marina pontoons have always been like this. Its the only marina I know that floods on a regular basis – another safety hazard. The water and electricity supply are next to each other so if you spray water from the tap, watch out you will get the electricity supply. For retirees like myself, the marina at night is not safe. There are steps everywhere.
A new marina will open at Port Takola (near Ao Nang ) later this year. It will be more convenient and hopefully better managed.