Although technically on the Phra Nang peninsula, Tonsai and Railey beaches are in effect islands, cut off from the mainland by the huge limestone karst formations that make this such a good place for climbing. Electricity is powered by generators and food and drink are twice as expensive (though that’s still cheap by western standards).
To get to the beaches, you must take a long tail boat from either Krabi town or the beach town of Ao Nang. The boats are so named because they have externally mounted vintage car engines with no mufflers (ie they’re very loud) welded to an exceedingly long propeller which allows the boat to be propelled and turned in extremely shallow tides and shoals.
Usually you can fit eight or ten or twelve passengers in these smaller longtails and during normal hours with the nominal six riders it’s 80 Baht per person. We paid 100 TB each our first night when arriving after sunset as it does become more troublesome at night with no lights or channel markers.
Tonight getting back from Ao Nang (the only ATM on the peninsula was out of service and we needed more cash, plus we were taking a rest day from climbing after too many pumpy overhanging routes) just before sunset it was low tide, so we had an epic 400 meter wade out into the Andaman Sea, well over knee high, before flinging ourselves into the low bottomed boat while the Thai operator pulled anchor. Pulling into Tonsai beach, the low tide exposed hundreds of meters of rocky bottom jutting up. The boat operators had dredged a channel but it was still a long muddy walk to get to shore. The Australian in our boat with the rollig suitcase did not look pleased; nor did the couple with a giant baby stroller getting out of another boat. Given that there are no paved roads or sidewalks on Tonsai, it will likely prove less than useful.
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