DESTINATIONS SOUTHERN THAILAND ASIA
LEFT: Lang Suan River
RIGHT: Raksawarin Public Park
BELOW: Ranong lighthouse
HOTELS
On Thung Wua Laen Beach, Chumphon Cabana Resort’s
dive centre prides itself on its green credentials.
Surrounded by mountains and forest, Numsai Khaosuay
Resort offers air-conditioned villas and
an excellent restaurant.
The family- friendly Sara Resort is the only hotel on this stretch of beach.
Tusita Wellness Resort
encourages a sense of balance by following traditional
Thai beliefs in its approach to food and design.
Quirky Loft Mania is a boutique hotel with individually designed
rooms, a spa and pool.
the golden era of mining that made Ranong wealthy, and each guest is given a traditional Baba-Nyonya costume to wear for the evening cruise and sunset dinner. The evening ends with a Loy Prok
Prao ceremony, a tradition among the local sea gypsies to thank the water goddess for good fortune. As each guest floats a coconut shell filled with marigold petals and lit with a candle, we watch them bob into the distance and reflect on this magical sight. The cruise can be organised through the Royal Andaman Facebook page, and costs about £29 per person. Play: Head east towards Chumphon on a road that follows the gentle curves of the Lang Suan River. It’s testament to the chilled nature of life here that we simply pull up on the side of the road and clamber down to the waiting rafts
As guests float coconut shells filled with marigold petals and lit with a candle, we watch them bob into the distance
below. This isn’t white-water rafting by any stretch of the imagination, but rather a gentle 90-minute drift downstream, with a stop halfway for a cooling dip in the milky, mineral-rich water. The journey ends at the home of P’lek, a woman whose delicate beauty belies her age. She’s been running the rafting trips for five years, and also offers guests the chance to learn how
to cook local dishes in her kitchen – all made with ingredients from her garden. We eat vegetable fern with coconut
cream, omelette cooked in banana leaves, and crispy mackerel straight from the river. It’s a simple meal, but among the best we had. Rafting plus lunch costs £14 per person, and can be arranged through Malin Rafting.
w TREKKING AND HOT SPRINGS Pause: Research has found that the water bubbling up from the ground in Raksawarin Public Park in Thailand contains more minerals than any other hot spring so the government plans to turn this in to the country’s top wellness destination. For now, it’s a sleepy town on the outskirts of Ranong. Outside there’s a free hot spring set among landscaped gardens, and across the road is
OF THE BEST
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travelweekly.co.uk 2 August 2018
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