02-05-2025
3 ways to escape the crowds in Thailand's Phang Nga
From 1,000 feet in the air I could see where the sea shallowed, allowing the white sand to shine through the water around Thailand's Panak Island, east of
Phuket . That would be a good place to anchor a boat for a swim, I pointed out to the pilot.
Koh Yao Yai's serpentine sand spit changes shape with every tide. Photo: Shutterstock
Then, as he banked the small aircraft into a right-hand turn, I saw the serrated outline of the Phang Nga mountains poking through the haze to the north. A good place to go exploring with a 4x4 truck, we agreed.
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And that was how my friend Torben Kristensen and I decided on three modes of transport as ways in which to explore this corner of southern
Thailand . Each, in its own way, would allow us to escape from the crowds of tourists that claim the area's more accessible spots.
By air
Torben Kristensen, a newly minted private pilot, checking up the Zenith 701 STOL plane for take off. Photo: Cameron Dueck
Exploring by air requires very little of me. Kristensen, a newly minted private pilot, was keen to take me up in the tiny ultralight he flies out of the Phuket Flying Club. Although the club offers joyrides to paying tourists in its four-seater Piper aircraft, the two-seater Zenith STOL CH 701 plane provides a more intense experience of
Phang Nga Bay from the air.
The sun beats down on the Plexiglas windscreen filling the cramped cockpit with a stifling tropical heat as we prepare for departure. Each movement we make rocks the aircraft as Kristensen completes his preflight checks.
Exploring Phang Nga Bay in the STOL plane. Photo: Cameron Dueck
Clearance for take-off comes over a scratchy radio transmission and we start to wobble down the grass runway. The aeroplane bumps once, twice – a little more throttle – three times, and then we climb into the air with the scream of an overworked engine.
