The Best Place to Stay in Krabi, Thailand!

Krabi is the perfect destination for outdoor lovers and nature enthusiasts alike. Nestled in between the mountains and sea, The Elements Krabi Resort certainly offers a complementary theme to fit its surroundings . The elements of nature (earth, fire, wind and water) have been woven into its architectural design. From the wooden decor to the beautiful tropical flowers and foliage you can enjoy the comforts of a 4+-star resort in amongst quiet, natural surroundings. If you’re looking for the best place to stay in Krabi then The Elements Krabi is well worth considering. Read on to find out how much we enjoyed our time here.

A great location for The Elements Resort Krabi

We stayed in Krabi for a couple of months so we soon enough learned a bit about the area and where we wanted to stay. We’d already had a look around the very well known and touristy beach of Ao Nang. For a few weeks we stayed in Nopparathara, which is a bit more of a locals area. After this point we started looking at Krabi Thailand Resorts. We knew we didn’t want to stay right in Ao Nang as we preferred a quieter spot where we could really fully relax for a week. Being only 37km away from Krabi International airport and 19km from Ao Nang beach but feeling a world away, The Elements Krabi Resort fitted our requirements perfectly.

There are endless outdoor and nature based activities to enjoy in the Krabi province. Some are as little as 10 minutes away from the Elements and others are around 1-1.5 hours. Whatever you decide to see in the Krabi province is at most an easy day trip. The friendly Elements team will be happy to arrange whatever excursions you are interested in.

Surrounding attractions that we found were the best things to do in Krabi

(Note the following are all discussed in more detail in this post).

• The 3-4 hour return hike up Dragon’s crest. This is in the National Park, which is just 10 minutes down the road from The Elements Krabi Resort
• A day of island hopping and snorkelling to and around any of the surrounding islands
• Kayaking and pristine clear water swimming holes at nearby Nong Thale lake
• More beautiful clean swimming holes and nature trails at the Emerald Pool, an easy day trip from The Elements Krabi. It’s easy to tie on a visit to the gorgeous hot water waterfall too, which is just 10 minutes down the road
• Tiger cave temple for both cultural and nature experiences
• Other National Parks in the area. We visited Than Bok Khorani National Park
• Attractions around the Krabi Town and Ao Nang areas including:
  • The Krabi Slider (water slides)
  • Krabi river cruises which take in gorgeous caves, mangroves and the floating village
  • The giant catfish farm and The amazing Tree House cafe, which is right next door

The best place to stay in Krabi has to have great food!

I don’t know about you, but not having to cook, and being well looked after on the food front were very important factors for us to consider when we were deciding where to stay in Krabi. The Elements did incredibly well at nourishing our bellies and we highly recommend it for amazing local and international cuisine alike. There were also plenty of vegetarian options on the menu. With the variety of food on offer it meant that we didn’t feel like we needed to go anywhere else for food during our stay (so we didn’t!)

Mmm, breakfast buffet…yes please!

Breakfast was a buffet style from 7am-10am each morning. We could choose from tasty cooked options such as bacon, eggs and pancakes (or all of the above if desired!). A variety of breads, cereals, local cooked dishes and fresh seasonal fruit were also on offer. Juices, milks (even chocolate milk!) and fantastic tea and coffee had us well sorted on the drink front. And if we fancied it there were also one or two treat foods on offer, usually in the form of pastries, but sometimes they even had chocolate cake (yes, for breakfast!). So whether you’re after tasty treats or healthy local vegetables and eggs, you may find that you only need to have a small lunch after a breakfast like this!

The best place to stay in Krabi should have a good variety of food on offer!

The Elements Krabi has a great selection of authentic, local cuisine ranging from delicious curries to local staples like pad thai and fried rice. We highly recommend trying a local “set meal” for dinner to get a good taste for the variety of dishes on offer. If you’re after more of a western fix, then they also make very tasty pastas, pizza, burgers and salads. As well as dining in the on-site restaurant, you can also opt for room service or snacks and drinks from the pool bar.

Afternoon snacks and treats

If you’re looking for the best place to stay in Krabi, it’s worth considering the small touches that show the accommodation providers have gone the extra mile. The afternoon snacks on offer were a great example of “extra mile” service which was unexpected and added to our appreciation of the level of service at The Elements.

Some days we were offered complimentary poolside juices in the afternoon. Other days it was fruit kebabs or “local style” ice pops. On a could of occasions there was even the option to make our own “local style” shaved ice. These were all nice “sweet treats” to try on hot tropical afternoons lazing in the restaurant or by the pool.

The facilities at The Elements Krabi Accommodation

The best place to stay in Krabi should probably have some great facilities that mean you don’t need to leave unless you really want to! The Elements Krabi Resort  caters very well for couples and families alike. We based ourselves around the pool area much of the time. There are two sizeable pools, one of which has the pool bar, an area with jets to massage your back, and a length long enough to get some swimming in. The other pool is almost an extension of the first and it winds in front of the premium suites. It’s complete with rocks and green foliage to add to the nature theme. There are also a few large “floaties” available for relaxing on, and to keep the kids entertained!

If you feel like exploring the area and getting a little bit active, there are two bikes that you can take out for a spin. These are included as part of the accommodation price, and one of them provides an extra fun element with it being a tandem! Want to sweat it out a bit more? No worries! You can escape the heat in the fully equipped air-conditioned gym and then get your sweat on again! There is also a steam room on offer in each changing room if you’re still not hot enough.

Self care and wellness at the Spa

On the days when you’re after a little extra self care, head to the spa. There you can choose from a range of wellness focused treatments. We both got the signature “made to measure” massage. This is a 60 or 90 minute full body massage where you choose an essential oil combination based on the therapeutic benefits you’re after. The therapists were also able to cater for me at four months pregnant. I enjoyed a relaxing almond oil massage. Traditional Thai massage and rejuvenating facials are also on offer.

The best place to stay in Krabi for kids?

We were pleasantly surprised about how much there was to entertain our daughter at The Elements Krabi Resort. Before we visited, we thought it might have been more of a “couples” resort. We knew about the pool and that they had an area called the “playground”. However we’d only been told that the “playground” contained the gym and that there was an X-box that would keep our daughter happy. We tend to choose non-screentime play options for our daughter if we can, so we weren’t sure that the playground would have much for us.

However we were really pleasantly surprised to find that the playground catered very well for our daughter! There is a dedicated playroom, which we didn’t see any indication of on the Elements website. It’s perfect for the young ones and contains a tent, crawling tunnel, plus plenty of puzzles, games, books and toys.

The “fireplace” is the adjacent room with comfortable seating and the aforementioned X-box! If an x-box isn’t your thing you can check out the magazines and range of dvds to suit all tastes. The staff even let us take some of them up to our room. Little miss also used the “sand toys” in the pool and across the road at the beach.

A local experience at the playground

Our batik painting experience is another reason we rate The Elements as a great option for the best place to stay in Krabi. Little miss produced her very own “Krabi crab” at the batik painting table downstairs in the playground. She got to choose what she wanted to paint on. We were glad they had the option of canvas squares, which meant that her wonderful creation was allowed to continue with us on our travels!

A few other reasons why the Elements was the best place to stay in Krabi for our family

There were a few other small touches that added up to a great stay for us at The Elements Krabi Resort. Here are some of the other things we appreciated:

• Drinking water included in the accommodation price. The elements team would always top up our drink bottles when we went to the restaurant. Water is also on offer in the rooms. We really appreciated that it came in glass bottles instead of plastic
• After our first day at the elements, the staff were able to anticipate our preferences. This meant that Little Miss was well looked after in the restaurant. Her pink plate and cutlery would be set up for her, alongside her request for a baby chair (just a little phase she’s enjoying right now!). We also opted out of plastic straws, which the staff came to understand after our first day there
• The restaurant is spacious and home to some rather adorable ride-able toy horses. This was a pretty unique offering that we hadn’t seen anywhere before. There are three horses in different sizes for all ages. By pushing down on the foot rests and then releasing, you can ride your horse around the restaurant! Families with young children will understand what a God-send something like this is so you can actually sit and relax after finishing your meal or whilst waiting for it. We found that most, if not all of the other guests usually headed out on tours pretty early in the day. This left the restaurant free for our daughter to ride to her hearts content!
• Jets in the bath in our room!

Are you looking for the best place to stay in Krabi?

Have you been looking for the best place to stay in Krabi? Or have you been considering a stay at The Elements Krabi Resort? We’d love to hear from you! Please feel free to leave a comment in the box below. We’re also happy to share more of our opinions about this Krabi Thailand resort or share more details about things to do in the area.

If you’re visiting other parts of Thailand, check out our review of the Chestnut Hill Eco Lodge near Hat Yai.