Hello and happy new year, everyone! I have spent the last six nights on Railay Beach, which has been nothing short of paradise. Between monkeys, hornbills, beach time, and beautiful karst cliffs enveloping the beach, Railay was a very special place.

A few housekeeping things:

1) If you’re interested in my art, have a look at my merchandise on RedBubble!
2) If wanting to read my first novel, Eclipse Me, you can find the link here.

Koh Phi Phi to Railay

Getting from Koh Phi Phi to Railay was a very smooth journey. It was only about an hour on a ferry and this time, it wasn’t a speedboat. As we’ve learned… I am not a big fan of speedboats.

We passed by various islands on the way to Railay but when we arrived… wow. Everyone was scrambling to get a half decent photo. The area was gorgeous! Railay isn’t an island but rather a tucked away peninsula off the mainland. It is, however, only accessible by boat, so it may as well be an island.

We transferred to a smaller longtail boat and were brought to the floating pier. I took my time walking to my accommodation which was only a ten minute walk away. I could tell immediately… this is a very small town. What the HELL was I going to do here for the next six nights?

But, somehow, it felt more tranquil than Koh Lipe. There weren’t droves of motorbikes riding around. No cars, either. It was largely pedestrian.

I was able to drop off my luggage at the hostel while I waited for check in. Immediately, I thought, FUCK. This hostel is 1,000% a party hostel. What have I gotten myself into? People were rolling joints in the reception area, drinking, and playing pool. Very “bro-y” vibes. Yikes. Unfortunately, private accommodation on Railay was way too expensive for me and this was the only available hostel.

As I dropped off my things, someone asked if I wanted to play a game of pool. I used to play pretty regularly with my college friend Amanda. So, sure! I was extremely rusty. There did come a point back in the day where I was getting somewhat decent but I was never great.

Unsurprisingly, I lost the game. He and his friends ended up being in the same dorm room as me for the next two nights. They were from India and very friendly. One of his buddies was always complimenting me – my earring, my shirt, etc. haha. I was like, you hittin’ on me, bro?

With some time to kill yet, I grabbed brunch next door and then went for a walk. My accommodation was on the southern side of the island and, with only one main sidewalk, I decided to venture to the east to see what was there. The path runs next to the water. At low tide, it’s exposed mud, where cranes come and hunt for crabs. At high tide, the waves occasionally lap onto the path.

I took the path to the end, which was a resort and what I assume is their private beach. No one questioned me being there, and in fact the employees greeted me in Thai. I walked down to the beach to get a look – deserted – and then headed back to the hostel.

I didn’t do much that first day. Eventually, I was able to check in to my accommodation. Arielle led me to my room, a fellow Midwesterner. She was doing a work exchange at the hostel for a few months. We talked about that and her potential plans to go to Australia on a working holiday visa. There were a couple others from the US working at the hostel, too. Funny.

I figured I would check out sunset. Around 5pm, I left my accommodation and wandered back towards the pier. The pier acts as the main junction in town. From there, you can walk north towards Railay West beach, walk east to my accommodation, or walk west to go to Phra Nang beach. Resorts line these paths.

As I reached the junction, I was delighted to find a few pied hornbills hanging out in the trees. What a great way to start the day! It was a good omen for my time in Railay – these beautiful birds were residents here! I already wished I had brought my camera on the walk.

Heading north, I passed through the main “walking street” – similar to many other Thai walking streets. Bars, restaurants, souvenir and weed shops, small stands to buy roti and ice cream, etc. I came to the end of the walking street and stepped onto the sand and… wow.

I’d had two friends from my travels post photos from Railay Beach – Eden and Hulya. I knew I had to get there. And truly, it did not disappoint. What an incredible view.

Karst cliffs bookended the long strip of beach. In the fading light, it was a sight to behold. I think Railay Beach is maybe the most beautiful beach I’ve ever seen in my life.

At the edge of the beach, I watched the sun set, snapping photos along the way.

Imagine how delighted I was when, on top of it, I noticed bats were flying overhead, departing from a faraway cave atop one of the karst cliffs. It was awesome to see them flying around and around the top of the cliff then taking off into the night. It was almost as cool as the bat exodus in Khao Yai.

I walked along the beach, head up to the sky, admiring the flying foxes as they flapped their massive wings overhead. On other evenings, I did have my camera with me and took photos of them.

As the sky darkened, the bats had all scattered and I was hungry. I grabbed dinner and returned to the accommodation for the night. I chatted a bit with the Indian fellows but largely just wanted to relax in bed. And so that’s what I did!

Phra Nang Beach

The next morning, I was up by 10am and had a loose plan of what I wanted to do – which was, largely, to try and spot the dusky langurs. While I’ve seen them before in Malaysia, I had overheard people talking the day before about the langurs’ baby. That was one of my disappointments in Penang – the langurs I saw didn’t have a baby with them.

Well, as I walked to the west and near to the entrance of the Phra Nang trailhead, I noticed a couple tourists peering up into the trees. Sure enough, there they were, close enough that I could just climb up the tree and pull on their tails if I so chose.

I noticed there were some in the tree behind me as well and… OH! They had a baby with them!

My excitement grew tenfold. I could not believe the striking contrast between the adults and the babies. While adults don black fur with the white spectacles eye/mouth patterns, the babies are bright orange – even more so than the Sumatran orangutans I’d seen. They were the color of a dreamsicle.

I watched them for probably 30min, taking photos. Unfortunately, the angle at which the baby was hanging out made it difficult for me to get the photograph I was hoping for. After a while, its chaperone tucked it deeper into the foliage and then I wasn’t able to get any more photos. I hoped I would be able to see them once more before leaving Railay but was truly thrilled I got the sighting to begin with.

I continued the trail to Phra Nang Beach, which only took another five minutes. Railay is small – it doesn’t take long to get anywhere. The only inconvenience is dodging the hordes of day trippers. The trail to Phra Nang passes a steep trailhead that leads up to a viewpoint, something I made note of for later. It also passes a small series of shallow caves, which was cool. Everyone was stopping to take photos of the area.

I stepped out to Phra Nang Beach and walked along the length of it. On the far side of the beach, there was a karst formation that was able to be walked out to during low tide.

I explored the area, but then decided to head back to drop off my camera. I told myself I’d stop by again after lunch. My plans for the day weren’t concrete and since I’d already seen the dusky langurs, I had plenty of time to do as I pleased.

Later, I returned, beach towel in hand, and set down my belongings in the shade. At the southern edge of the beach there were a few small caves that had shrines and… well, a bunch of PENIS-SHAPED WOOD CARVINGS! What the hell? Hahaha. Too funny.

Laying down on my little towel, I looked off to the sea. A day later and I was still feeling in awe of Railay. How lucky that I was able to get here! An absolute dream.

As I laid down, reading my book, I noticed a group of people taking photos of something. Sure enough, a massive monitor lizard was terrorizing the beach. People would spot it and jolt up, grabbing their belongings and then pulling out their phones to get a photo or video. Some people were getting too close to it, holding their phones in front of its face/blocking its path, which annoyed me.

I am not particularly scared of monitor lizards but they can get realllllly big – like the size of juvenile Komodo dragons. So when one was coming right towards me, I waited as long as I could but then stood up. I didn’t want it to bite me, although I doubted it would. It walked over my towel, flicking its tongue out to pick up any scents of food. And then it wandered along.

Later, the lizard returned, this time behind me. I stayed on my towel, watching it as it walked by, completely unbothered. It made its way to the shrine, climbed atop the shrine, tried to crawl down it and then ended up falling a few feet. DERP! Shortly after, it made its way to the sea and started swimming away. Godzilla returning to the ocean. The people swimming/snorkeling were certainly in for a fright!

After a few hours at the beach, I returned to my accommodation to shower. In the evening, I went to Railay Beach for sunset again. Like clockwork, as the sun dipped below the horizon, the bats began their nightly excursion.

Once I’d finished dinner, I returned to Phra Nang Beach to try and check out the bioluminescent plankton. There is supposedly an area at the far end of the beach. However, with a nearly full moon I wasn’t able to see any. I also didn’t venture far enough in the water because I wasn’t wearing my swimsuit at the time. I intended to return another night to try and see it, but I never got around to it. I’ve seen some fantastic displays of bioluminescence in Tasmania, and with the brightness of the moon, I didn’t think it would quite compare anyway. BUT I did spot a tokay gecko during my walk. I’ve seen them plenty of times but never one with colors like this! Very cool.

New Year’s Eve

The final day of 2025 was upon me. I grabbed a delicious Thai pancake for brunch – egg, onion, and tomato. YUM. I also slathered in chili sauce post-photo, a sauce I have come to adore since my time in Indonesia.

Stopping at my dorm room, I ended up meeting Kadyn and Amira. Kadyn was from the UK and Amira was from Egypt. I don’t think I’ve ever (knowingly) met an Egyptian before. Later, we talked in depth about her experiences in Egypt. Kadyn and I spoke for some time. He asked if I was traveling solo and he said, “maybe we’ll be the three amigos.” He and Amira were both solo travelers but had met up about a week ago. “Maybe,” I half-heartedly agreed, but doubted it. Sometimes, I’d rather stew in my isolation!

And later, in the afternoon, I climbed about 1,000,000 stairs to get to the hostel pool. With me, I was armed with my markers and sketchbook. As I’ve done for the past… 7 years? I like to draw my “final drawing of the year”. Usually, it encapsulates the various themes I’ve explored throughout the year. This has been a strange year for me, artistically, so I didn’t even really know what the themes were haha. I just tried my best.

Once I’d finished my drawing, I returned to the dorm room. Amira asked me if she could have a look at the finished piece. I showed her. Later, I ended up gifting it to her.

While on a short walk looking for langurs, I managed to find them steps from my dorm room. I couldn’t believe it! Again, foliage made it a little tricky to photograph the baby, but I managed to get better shots than the first time I’d seen them. I was really happy about that! I was able to watch them for probably 20min before they started climbing higher.

I managed to see the langurs pretty much every day in Railay.

They would even hop onto the roof of the hostel at times, using roofs as a means of avoiding the ground/predators.

I went to the beach for sunset, hoping to spot hornbills or langurs along the way. And sure enough, I spotted some of the dusky langurs about a block from my accommodation. Incredible! I couldn’t believe I was able to see these beautiful creatures so closely and with such consistency. I think I may have spotted the baby again briefly, but with the angle of the sun combined with the foliage, I wasn’t able to get a good shot. Damn.

Sunset was, again, lovely. And, again, the bats. I even saw a hornbill perched on a tree near one of the cliff faces. RAILAY!!!!!!

After dinner, I went to my room to shower and relax for a while. I knew I wouldn’t be “partying,” but I did intend to go to the beach to check out the fireworks. At one point, Kadyn and Amira returned to the room. Because he invited me earlier, I decided to join them on whatever adventure they had planned for the night. We went down to the reception area to hang out.

Around 11pm, we began walking towards the beach to watch the fireworks. However, our plans got slightly delayed when Amira spotted two of her friends. The boyfriend was a total wreck – absolutely wasted. We had seen him earlier in the night and he was in somewhat bad shape then, but not this bad. Earlier, he was just calling everyone a “gay cunt,” (which is funny, because he’s from California – he has certainly adopted Australian slang). Later, Kadyn was trying to help move him and got vomit on his arm and shoes. Gross.

Anyway.

We made it to the beach before midnight. Just off the shore, a boat was lit up with a sign that said RAILAY BEACH. I thought that was cute.

Locals took turns fire spinning. They had unusual fire poi – one local had fire that fled the poi like warm embers from a fire. It had me in a trance – it was incredibly captivating. Another local had poi that seemed to shoot off roman candles – it was pretty intense haha.

Someone came over a loudspeaker, announcing the impending new year in mere moments.

And then it was time. 20, 19, 18… 3, 2, 1! Sky lanterns were released and from the RAILAY BEACH boat, fireworks were launched into the sky right above us. Suddenly, chaos ensued. There were so many things happening at once, it was hard to pay attention to any one thing. What I can only assume is a flamethrower went off, spewing fire up to the sky. Various locals lined up, spinning fire poi adorned in firecrackers. More sky lanterns. More fireworks. Roman candles INSANITY! I kept laughing – the whole thing was so absurd and amazing.

As things calmed down, Amira, Kadyn, and I left the beach. We were all impressed by the display. Amira was a bit stunned by it. It was pretty awesome!

We stopped back at our hostel to grab something (I can’t remember who forgot what) and then continued on with our night. Amira visited her friends again – the boyfriend was in really bad shape. We had seen him earlier that night but now we went to check on him again. He had been brought up the 1,000 flights of steps near the pool and had been tucked between bean bags. He and his girlfriend didn’t even have a room booked for the night. They were just… sleeping out in the open, under our hostel roof.

The three of us hung out at the water’s edge for a time. Kadyn, randomly, asked me what my philosophy of life is. I felt very put on the spot! But after a think, I said, “I think it’s just… ‘get through it.’ The good, the bad, etc.” Sort of the same sentiment my dad shared with me many moons ago – grab the bull by the horns.

From there, we went to a nearby bar to play pool. Somehow, it was already 2am by this point. I stayed out until almost 4pm but by then, I was nearly expiring. Get me in bed NOW. Kadyn and Amira stayed out until 5am.

In the end, Kadyn was right. We were the three amigos, at least for a night.

Tonsai Beach

The next morning, I slept in and had a very lazy day. I had a few potential objectives while on Railay before leaving – I still wanted to: hike up to the viewpoint, maybe visit one of the paid cave attractions, and check out Tonsai Beach. While initially I planned to hike the viewpoint the day after new years… I was too lazy. Instead, I went to Tonsai Beach.

Getting there is easy enough. All I had to do was walk along to the northern point of Railay Beach, then wander through a jungle trail for maybe all of ten minutes. It’s a bit up and down but nothing too steep. Before long, I’d arrived at Tonsai – palm trees and all.

I set down my towel next to the cliff face. Nearby, climbers were scaling the rock wall. It was cool to watch them assessing the climb and then trying to navigate it.

Because it is – surprise! – hot in Thailand, I periodically went into the water to cool down. I did not expect the water to be the temperature of bath water, though. In all my travels thus far, I haven’t experienced this. I suppose the bay at Tonsai is rather shallow and so the water heats up near the shore quickly. It was such a pleasant experience!

I stayed at Tonsai for the remainder of the day, heading back only at sunset. Whenever I am facing west over water, I try to make an effort to watch the sunsets. I suppose that all started back in Coral Bay, Australia.

When I got back to the hostel, Kadyn met up with me and told me Amira was in the nearby medical clinic because she wasn’t feeling well. Shame! He and I grabbed dinner together at a restaurant on the main walking street. We gorged. I got fresh spring rolls, pad thai, thai tea, and for dessert a Nutella pancake haha. I LOVE FOOD!

After dinner (and before), Kadyn stopped at the clinic to make sure Amira was okay. She was still sleeping and had an IV drip going. Hearing that reminded me of my eye injury in Indonesia. Ugh.

We played a couple games of pool. He won first, then I won (miraculously) and then he won the final game. Once finished, we went to check on Amira. This time, she was out of the bed and trying to sort out her payment. I came inside to join her. She was not doing well – very disoriented and at times she would start crying. She, unfortunately, didn’t have travel insurance (A MUST, PEOPLE!) and was trying to pay her bill, which ended up being around USD $700. Medication, observation, the IV drip, etc. Yikes. BUT her bank has a limit per daily transactions and she was really struggling to pay it. After a lot of back and forth and even chaperoning Amira to the ATM two times, we were able to get the bill paid. Kadyn and I walked her to a nearby burger joint to eat food and drink water. She hadn’t yet eaten that day. And then we set her off to bed.

It’s such a scary nightmare to be alone while having medical issues so I was really sympathizing with Amira.

Kadyn and I hung out for a while longer and then went to bed for the night. Kadyn would leave the next morning but Amira stayed on another night.

Railay Viewpoint

The next morning, I headed up to the pool to lay in the sun and read for a while. During my time in Railay, I decided to finally give in and truly soak up the sun. Thus far on my nearly 12 month adventure in Asia (crazy!), I have been pretty covered up. But I have to admit, it felt really lovely to lay in the sun and dip into the water to cool myself off. I could do it all day long, with a book to keep me company. In hindsight, I probably should have shed my skin cancer fears and done this a lot more during my adventures in Asia. Surely, I would have enjoyed my time on Koh Lipe more!

I met up with Amira for brunch. She was better but still pretty emotional from her previous day’s chaos. I really felt for her. She didn’t remember everything, so she asked if I could help her fill in the gaps. After brunch, she went to rest and I decided to finally hike to the viewpoint.

I left the hostel but then… OH, MY GOD! I was graced with the best langur sighting I’ve had on Railay yet. They just kept getting better. Again, steps from my hostel, there they were – the whole group of them, including the baby.

And they were low in the trees, lower than I’d ever seen. They were pretty much eye level and only a few meters away, perched on the roots of the mangrove trees. I was able to get the best shots of the baby thus far. SWEET SUCCESS! I thought the baby was with its momma, but at a certain point another langur came by and carried it away. I suppose it takes a village.

Really, really happy about that. Something in me knew that would be my final sighting of the langurs and sure enough, it was. (Although, I think I will probably see them again at Khao Sok in a few days.)

I was a little apprehensive about the hike because I’d heard it’s pretty steep. Reviews cautioned people with bad knees not to attempt it and since I’ve had knee issues before… eek! I made sure to stretch my legs thoroughly before beginning. Hiking to the top took maybe five minutes, which was easy peasy. Not bad at all. The viewpoint was another five minutes from there, on flat ground for the most part.

The view was outstanding. Almost everywhere you look on Railay, you’re going to be faced with beauty. Such a gem of a place.

I briefly spoke with a fellow from Poland, and then a Thai couple who were visiting Railay for a few nights.

I began hiking the only other path up there, one that leads down to a secluded lagoon. After scoping out the area, I decided that was NOT happening. I think this is where the “bad knees” comment was coming into play. There were ropes leading along the cliff wall. To descend to the lagoon would take a mix of rock scrambling and clinging to ropes while scaling the walls. No fucking thank you. If I was traveling with friends, maybe, but not by myself. There were others attempting the hike but I did doubt the integrity of my knees and so I decided to skip it. I’m sure it was really beautiful, though! I was happy enough with the viewpoint so I decided to call it at that.

Afterwards, I revisited Tonsai Beach, reading and laying in the sun until it set.

Amira and I went for dinner together. I got pad thai wrapped in an omelette – yum! The restaurant we were at had a resident blue macaw. Too cute! I should have taken a photo but didn’t manage.

After dinner, Amira and I spent much of the night together. We walked along the beach, talked in our room for a while, and then decided to go up to the pool to get a change of scenery and chat more. I had a lot of questions about Egypt, of which she shared her knowledge. One day, I’m sure I’ll get there!

Amira is a digital nomad so while traveling, she is also working. I went to bed around midnight and that’s when she started work. She had probably just gotten to sleep by the time I woke up.

Final Moments in Railay

On my final day in Railay, I hung out by the pool all day, finishing a book. I had a shower, then went to Phra Nang for sunset.

On the way, I spotted the hornbills again. Yay! I didn’t manage to get a good photo of the hornbills up close because every time I saw them, I wasn’t carrying my camera. However, there was one time where I saw one up in a cliff face. He was actually bringing food for his baby momma. Hornbills will basically pack themselves into crevices (holes in trees, cliff walls, etc.). While incubating eggs, the females pretty much seal the entrance of these crevices save for a narrow slit. The slit is used as a means for their mate to bring them food. Wild, right? So, the only photo I managed to get was one of these hornbills at the crevice, bringing food to his mate.

Sunset was amazing. Probably the best one since being in Railay. And to complement it, a full moon rose over the horizon on the other side of the island.

(P.S. bottom left photo shows the little island you can walk to at low tide.)

I’d had a taste for a burger ever since I saw the one Amira had gotten after her medical crisis, so I went to get one of my own. And let me tell you, it was probably Top 5 Random Burger Experiences of My Life. The other two notable burgers would be the ones served at the beach in the Dominican Republic, and one at a random festival in Quincy, Illinois. YUM! I should’ve taken a picture, damn it!

I bumped into Amira later that night and we grabbed dessert together. I wasn’t feeling particularly sociable, so afterwards I just hung out in the room and watched a couple shows.

The next morning, I was leaving Railay. What an incredible place. If I could marry Koh Lipe’s snorkeling with Railay’s beauty and wildlife, it would be maybe the best place ever.

Art of the Week

As mentioned briefly in the earlier sections… my final drawing of 2025! I am looking forward to recommitting to my art in 2026. It has been difficult this past year, moving around as much as I have. Australia and New Zealand were much easier, especially since I kind of had a homebase for many months in each place. I’m looking forward to having more stability in the coming months and reconnecting with my routines.

Reflections

I easily could have stayed another week on Railay but I was also ready to be heading to a PRIVATE ROOM for the first time in over three weeks. To be fair, the hostels have been very easy. No one has snored excessively, or misbehaved. The only annoyance was back in Koh Lipe, with the people banging in the top bunk. But even that was just in the afternoon, not waking me up in the middle of the night (and they were gay, so I was like – get it, bitch!!). I’m grateful to have had relatively pleasant hostel experiences this time! I now will have private rooms up until the time I leave Thailand, sans for the week-long diving liveaboard I’ll be doing.

So, what’s next? I am now in Krabi Town for about four nights. Doing… well, not much, to be honest. I booked this spot a few weeks ago, knowing it would be a “reset” base for me. A place to just chill in a private room, watch shows, blog, etc. Not much sightseeing planned here. I am meeting up with Selma, one of the friends I made during the slow boat from Laos to Thailand. It will be cool to catch up with her!

After Krabi Town, I head to Khao Sok which is a village fringing a national park and is essentially SNAKE CITY. Looking forward to that. I am not sure I will do a blog post on Krabi Town – depends on if I get up to much here. Something tells me I will not.

It’s hard to believe I now have less than a month left in Asia. February 2nd, I’ll be heading back to the States. Crazy.

Happy 2026, everyone!

Until next time, sending you all my love. x