Everybody on the bus was chattering about the local crocodile farm, how the heat was killing off its reptilian inhabitants and therefore its business.
It didn’t make much sense, but perhaps more perplexing was that I could understand the passengers in the first place. We were in Thailand, after all, and I am Myanmar.
But this was just another morning in Ranong, where you hear Burmese on the buses and boats coming in from the Andaman Sea, and where you read it next to Thai on the bilingual signs.
Ranong is a sun-bleached city surrounded by waterfalls, hot springs, ocean and a national park. Only 25 minutes by longtail boat from Kawthaung on the southernmost tip of Myanmar, it’s established on the “visa-run” route for foreigners in Thailand.
Traveling from Kawthaung, I boarded a boat with four others for 500 baht (US$15 or 23,000 kyats) altogether for the Thai border. Fishing villages coloured the journey and Thai immigration was a painless and quick process, costing 1,000 kyats for a seven-day visa (on a Myanmar passport).
Handily, you can change your network from Telenor SIM to Dtac Thailand instead of buying a tourism SIM as soon as you cross over—also during this time taxi drivers will greet you with a “mingalapar” and “sawasdee.”
We stayed at Asia, an average hotel on Ruangrat street in downtown Ranong. Each double room cost $14 per night. Five minutes away is Muang Ranong food market, where vendors welcome you with steamed chicken and pork ribs for $1.50 per serving.
A good option for breakfast is kway teow—a noodle soup which can come with a protein staple such as chicken or fish, meatballs, and sometimes congealed pig or duck blood.
One of my favourite parts of the trip was shopping at Tesco Lotus. You won’t find this in the Lonely Planet Top 10, but it’s part of a huge mall packed with all kinds of cheap, quality goods and tempting franchises—none of which Yangon satisfyingly offers (the Dairy Queen ice cream was a major highlight).
Here are the top Ranong attractions for your short trip there.
Porn Rang Hot Spring
Close to Ngao National Park—and so surrounded by nature—this spring is popular with holiday-making Thais. Five or six baths are located around the area, with different temperatures for each. Facilities include showers, snacks and souvenir shops (no food or drink is allowed near the hot springs) and a small entrance fee is charged.
Rattanarangsan Palace
This beautifully designed palace is your obligatory history stop; a chance to read about the old Thai kings and see how they lived (clue: plushly). The grounds are great for a stroll and overall it’s interesting to see the Thailand (or Siam) gone by.
Rakswarin Hot Springs
Another tempting set of hot springs, and with easy public access. The pools are clean and well-maintained, one of the reasons why this is often described as a Ranong must-visit. There is also a private area, and the large park is worth exploring.
Ngao Mangrove Forest Research Centre
Take a taxi from downtown to this centre—when you arrive, the staff will give you short sticks to chase the cheekiest monkeys away. A walk around takes about one and a half hours, during which time you can read helpful information in Thai and English. The view points are not to be missed, just be careful around those monkeys!
Laem Son National Park
Laem Son (or "Pine Cape") National Park is 50 kilometres south of Ranong and encompasses over 100 kilometres of coastline along with two dozen islands. Living in the park are a wonderful mix of birds and monkeys, who sometimes venture to the fluffy white sand beaches. The shoreline is densely lined with mangrove swamps—a popular hangout for the crab-munching macaques—interspersed with arching beaches backed by casuarina trees. Laem Son, also known as Bang Ben, is the main area where restaurants, bungalows, and campsites are located.
