Review of Sparrow Bar

Bang Niang is a growing centre for wining and dining. In recent years the area has developed a bit of nightlife. One great example of this is Sparrow Bar. Since its opening in 2013 the restaurant and bar has been attracting plenty of custom thanks to its friendly atmosphere, live music and good food.

Sparrow Bar is found on the main Bang Niang drag, about 100 metres down the road from the 7-11. It is run by Jack and his Thai partner. Apparently if you are a foreigner in Thailand with the name 'Jack' it is almost inevitable that you are going to be named after the Disney pirate Jack Sparrow. It looks like Jack has turned an annoyance into a positive by opening the 'Sparrow Bar'.

Naturally it is a pirate themed bar. It has a pool table and a large indoor stage. Jack is something like a celebrity back in his home country of Holland for his music. He loves banging drums. He has taken this passion for music and set up a house band that plays every night. Their remit is to do 50% Thai songs and 50% English lyric songs.

The bar serves a range of spirits, beers, wines and cocktails. They also have a  small  menu that includes both Thai food, more traditional pub grub and Dutch food. The bar and restaurant are ably worked by a collection of friendly staff.

Jack is keen to promote environmental issues. They have hosted awareness events connected to diving. Recently he has helped raise money for shark preservation - not something a pirate would normally do. More to the point, Jack and Son are keen to be part of the Khao Lak community and work with those looking to give a little back to the paradise location.

Location

Parisia Guesthouse

One of the better budget options in Bang Niang Village is Parisia Guesthouse. It is a traditional Thai style guesthouse that is great value for money and has friendly helpful staff.

For some people the phrase 'guesthouse' is a bit confusing. What is a 'guesthouse' and how is it different to a budget hotel? Well the answer to that is that a guesthouse is typically a small hotel with only 10 or so rooms. Moreover, the owner usually lives and runs the guesthouse. This means guesthouses are normally well maintained. Moreover, they are smaller and more friendly places where you can plenty of chances to chat to the staff and family as well as the other guests.

In contrast budget hotels normally try and pack as many people in as possible. They are big and often a bit impersonal. Furthermore, budget hotels are normally not managed by the owner. This means the staff do not have a vested interest in the business and the cleaners have no one checking the quality of their work.

And of course the best thing about guesthouses is that they are cheaper than hotels and often comparable in price to hostels.

The Parisia Guesthouse is one of the best guesthouses in Khao Lak. It has just 5 rooms. It has a small restaurant downstairs with an attached bar. The guesthouse offers free wifi internet. The rooms are clean and comfortable. They have air-con, hot water, en suite bathroom and balcony. All rooms also have a TV and a fridge.

The rooms are in neutral tones and spacious. They are not going to win any prizes for interior design but that is what guesthouses should be - comfortable and practical.

Prices for Parisia Guesthouse start at 750 Thai Baht a night.

The guesthouse is located near the Tsunami Memorial and just a few minutes away from the beach.

Address: 57/8 Moo 5, Bang Niang Beach, Phang Nga, Bang Niang Beach, 82190 Khao Lak, Thailand

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Khao Lak Horse Club

Khao Lak Horse club is 4 Kilometres from the beach. The trail is through a beautiful wooded area and then down an unpaved track. It is a pleasant ride in itself taking in the local natural scenery far from cars and roads. It is a chance to see the natural beauty of the area away from the resorts, bars and shops.

Eventually the track gives way to a quiet road. The horseback ride goes past the Bang Niang Temple complex. After that Bang Niang’s golden sands are reached. The horseback tour takes you cantering at the water’s edge. Life doesn’t get much better. It is a wide beach and so there is little worry about having to pick a path between people enjoying the beach. Instead you can take in the immense beauty of the beach and those happily using the beach. There is time to dismount, re-hydrate and get on the horse for more riding.

You can see the horseback ride to Bang Niang Beach on the video above.

The horses used by Khao Lak Horse Club are fairly small and of course very docile. Even those with little riding experience can soon master the animals. Of course, the horses tend to follow the lead horse and the guide so there is little problem controlling the horse.

You get the chance to practice trotting around the paddock before heading out on your ride.

You can get riding sessions of 2 hours or more. The club offers mountain or beach rides. There are a total of 10 horses at the club. Some are Arabian and some Quarter.

Prices

Mountain Trail .............. 2,000 - 3,000
Beach Trail ................................. 3,000
1 hour  lesson ........................... 1,500
5 Hour introductory class: ....... 5,000

Reviews

The club is fairly new and only has 9 reviews on Trip Advisor at the time of writing. So far Khao Lak Horse Club has only got ‘excellent’ and ‘very good’ ratings.

One reviewer mentions how well the horses are looked after. This is an important consideration for many tourists. For many who visit elephant camps, snake farms etc. there is often a feeling the animals are not treated as well as they could be.

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Contact

Telephone: +66 93 727 1552

Address: Soi Chongfah Waterfall, Ban Khao Lak, Phangnga, Thailand

The Khaolak Horse Club is located on the road to Chongfah Waterfall, about 2 KM from the main road. The ranch is open every day.

The main man is called ‘Ju’.

Best English Pub Grub in Khao Lak

If you are like me then you will find eating Thai food all the time difficult. I love Thai curries and other dishes like somtum, but my stomach won’t take 3 doses of chili a day. Especially in the morning I enjoy a Western style breakfast – either yoghurt, fruit and muesli or a cooked breakfast such as scrambled eggs. However, I am often disappointed with Western food: the bread is sweet, the eggs are greasy and the bacon is paper thin.

To avoid this type of disappointment I usually head to the Mars Bar for some great pub grub. Mars Bar Café is a popular bar on the main road next to Bang Niang beach. It is the orange place on the opposite side of the road from the 7-11.

The bar is the brainchild of Mars from the UK. He moved to Thailand in 2007 and soon fell in love with the country. He got married to a local girl and started his own bar. Unlike many other ex-pats who set up a bar in the land of smiles, this is a special place that draws a good crowd.

Mars takes a keen interest in his bar and is a great raconteur: always ready to share a travel story. He is also a keen music fan who puts on a great selection of rock music. You can find some of his playlists on the bar website: www.marsbarcafe.com

What I like most about Mars Bar Café is the pub grub. It is excellent. The menu offers, fish, chips, mushy peas, jacket potatoes and homemade bread. The Sunday roast is a massive plate of food and well worth the price.

The bar has a number of events on such as ladies night when drinks for the fairer sex are half price. Unlike the other bars in Khao Lak, Mars makes the effort to keep the bar website up-to-date. So it is worth checking out for promotions and events.

Art and the Tsunami

The picture above is done by Top Thumvanit. He is a young talented Thai artist that graduated from Silpakorn University with a degree in Fine Art. As with many artists, and especially in Thailand, he found it hard to make ends meet as an artist.

At first he worked as a street artist in Sukhumvit. Next he tried his luck in Krabi. He eventually found a stable income in Khao Lak. He managed to open his open his own small gallery called appropriately ‘Top Art’. One of his best works is a picture of the boat washed up in land after the terrible tsunami of 2004. He wasn’t in Khao Lak when the tidal wave hit land, but like nearly everyone living in Thailand, the event left a permanent impression.

After the clear up, the boat was left in the jungle as a poignant monument to the terrible power of nature and the tragedy that it caused along the western coastline of Thailand.

Top has since got married and moved yet again to Koh Phangan. He is working from Wang Thong Gallery. It is a small space in a forest near the famous beach of Thong Nai Pan Yai.

We wish him success with his new venture in Koh Phangan. And we thank him for leaving his own artistic interpretation of what must surely be the most famous boat in Khao Lak.

The boat is a police patrol boat. If you are interested, you can find it 1 km inland, east of route 4 in Bang Niang.

Bang Niang Sunset

Khao Lak's second most popular beach

Bang Niang is commonly thought of as the second most popular beach in the Khao Lak area. The long beach is located just north of the number one beach in the area Nang Tong (also spelled 'Nang Thong'). The popularity of the beaches is no reflection of the fineness of the sand or the beauty of the place. Rather Nang Tong beach is next to the main urban center of the region where there are plenty of shops, banks, bars, restaurants, travel agents etc. Most people end up staying on Nang Tong beach for convenience.

However, it is interesting to note that the most expensive and luxury hotels are found not on Nang Tong beach but on more outlaying beaches such as Khuk Khak (JW Marriott Khaolak). This might be a policy to isolate guests in expensive resorts so the guests are more inclined to use the hotel's restaurant and other facilities rather than take an expensive taxi into Khao Lak town.

About Bang Niang

Anyway Bang Niang beach is flanked at both ends by rivers. This separates the beach from its neighbors. Also the sediment from the rivers makes the visibility in the sea less then ideal. The coral reef at Bang Niang is 1km offshore, so the river sediment does not effect the quality of the diving or snorkeling by the reef.

There is a big tidal difference in Bang Niang. At high tide the beach nearly disappears. The beach itself has very fine golden powdery sand.

Bang Niang accommodation

Bang Niang used to be a favorite backpacker hang out. It still receives its fair share of backpackers, but much of the accommodation is now in the mid-range. Furama Khao Lak resort has rooms starting at 990 THB, Sudala Beach Resort 1,600 THB and the boutique Ayaras Villas start at 4,500 THB.

Restaurants and sunset

It takes about 1 hour to walk to Nang Thong going south along the beach from Bang Niang. It is unnecessary to make the journey into Nang Tong if you are looking for something cheap to eat and drink as there are plenty of local restaurants, bars and shops on the main road behing Bang Niang beach.

As with all the Khao Lak beaches the highlight of the day is the end when the sun dips down beyond the horizon. This is the time to stop, watch and appreciate paradise.