Krabi or Pai?

This is where the two differ most. Krabi has some of the most photographed sand in Asia: Railay West and Phra Nang under their limestone cliffs, quieter stretches at Klong Muang and Tubkaek, and island coves a longtail ride from Ao Nang. Phi Phi is about an hour and a half away by ferry.

Pai has no coast. Swimming there means a dip in the Pai River, a pool under Mo Paeng waterfall or an afternoon floating downriver on an inner tube. That is pleasant in the heat, but it does not replace a beach.

Krabi's cooking has more depth. It is southern Thai food shaped by the region's Muslim communities: fiery curries, turmeric fish soups, khao mok gai and roti, best eaten at the evening market and riverside stalls in Krabi Town. Fresh grilled seafood is the highlight on the coast.

Pai eats more casually. The walking street has khao soi, skewers and Shan dishes, and Santichon village adds Yunnanese noodles and tea. Much of the rest is café food for long-stay travellers, such as vegan plates, smoothie bowls and good espresso. It is easy and cheap, but it says less about the region.

Neither place is a sightseeing trip, but Krabi has a little more. The climb of more than 1,200 steps to the Tiger Cave Temple's hilltop Buddha is a proper outing, and Krabi Town adds Chinese shophouses and the caves of Khao Khanab Nam.

Pai's equivalent is the stairway to the white Buddha at Wat Phra That Mae Yen at sunset. Add the old iron bridge from the Second World War era and the mud-brick houses of Santichon, and you have about half a day of sights.

The two are about even, and both close early, with no proper clubs. Krabi's evenings are beach evenings: cocktails and sports screens on Ao Nang's beach road, and hammocks and fire-spinning at Railay. Anyone who wants a real party takes the ferry to Phi Phi.

Pai's scene is more social and more of a backpacker crowd. Fairy-lit garden bars and reggae spots fill up after the night market, and it is easy to fall into conversation with other travellers.

Krabi's landscape is the more dramatic, and you can explore it on the water as well as on land. Railay and Tonsai are among the best-known sport-climbing spots in the world. You can kayak through the mangroves at Ao Thalane, dive and snorkel around the outer islands, and reach the karst islands of Phang Nga Bay by boat.

Pai's scenery is gentler: rice fields, misty viewpoints such as Yun Lai, the eroded ridges of Pai Canyon and the great river cave of Tham Lod. Exploring there means a scooter and hiking boots rather than a boat. Spring haze from field burning can hide the hills for weeks.

Krabi has far more choice. Ferries reach Phi Phi Don, Koh Lanta's stilted Old Town and the fishing villages of Koh Yao Noi, and a long day takes in Phuket's Sino-Portuguese quarter.

Pai is remote. Soppong and the Lahu and Lisu villages around it are about an hour west on the mountain road. Mae Hong Son and Chiang Mai, each around three winding hours away, are better treated as the next stop on a northern loop than as a day out.

Krabi is the easier choice with children. In the dry season the water at Phra Nang and Klong Muang is warm and shallow, and the large resorts have kids' clubs. Strong sun and open longtail boats still need some planning.

Pai is harder going. The mountain road in is notorious for carsickness, most sights need a scooter or a hired driver, and the town's evenings are geared to young backpackers. Waterfalls, river tubing and the night market suit older, outdoorsy children best.

Krabi is a little easier to get around. White songthaews link Ao Nang, the northern beaches and Krabi Town, and longtails run to Railay, which has no road, though the boats stop in heavy seas.

Pai's centre takes minutes to walk, but there is no public transport out to the canyon, waterfalls or hot springs. Most visitors hire a scooter, which is risky for beginners on the hill roads. The alternatives are hired songthaews and tours.

Neither is a shopping destination, and what differs is the kind of stall. Ao Nang's main road sells beachwear, souvenirs and copies, with tailors among them, and Krabi Town has a weekend market and plain malls for essentials.

Pai's walking street is more crafty. It sells hill-tribe textiles, cotton trousers, woven bags and small art prints, much of it made locally, though the same goods repeat from stall to stall.

Both are good value, but Pai is cheaper. Simple bungalows, night-market dinners and scooter hire cost very little, and most sights are free, which is why so many travellers stay on for weeks.

In Krabi, costs depend on where you stay. Krabi Town is cheap, Ao Nang costs more, and Railay is the most expensive base because everything arrives by boat. Island tours and park fees push up the cost of a beach-based stay.

Neither has a theatre or a concert hall, but Pai has the better evenings for live music. Most nights several bars host acoustic sets and blues or jazz jams by local and travelling musicians. The quality varies, but the music is easy to find.

In Krabi, live entertainment means fire-spinning on the beaches, cover bands and Muay Thai fights staged for visitors near Ao Nang.

Both are easy places to unwind, but in different ways. Krabi's version is a resort spa with open-air pavilions facing the sea, plus a trip to the Hot Springs Waterfall at Khlong Thom, about an hour south. Ao Nang's main road can be noisy in high season.

Pai is simpler and closer to a retreat. You can soak at the Tha Pai springs in the cool morning air, join yoga and meditation courses that run for days or weeks, and spend afternoons in a hammock looking over the rice fields, though the spring haze takes the edge off.