Lanta Old Town

Lanta Old Town

Lanta Old Town
4
Historic SitesNeighborhoodsHistoric Walking Areas
About
Lanta Old Town is a small village on Ko Lanta's East Coast in Krabi Province. Many years ago, Ko Lanta's Old Town acted as the port and commercial center for the island and provided safe harbor for Arabic and Chinese trading vessels sailing between the larger ports of Phuket, Penang and Singapore. Today, Old Town is the district capital; it has a post office, police station, Buddhist temple, Chinese temple and the island's hospital as well as a long pier.
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  • Pirjo
    Loimaa, Finland41 contributions
    4.0 of 5 bubbles
    It is worth visiting
    We travelled by scooter from Saladan there. Just a little traffic in the morning about 10 a.m. At that time Lanta Old Town was quiet, but many restaurants were open already and little shops too. I liked those old brown buildings.This time we didn’t go to the Community museum but people have recommended that. Obs! The museum is closed on Mondays and there are no swimming beaches at Lanta Old Town.
    Visited February 2024
    Traveled as a couple
    Written February 15, 2024
  • ug-muc
    Munich, Germany438 contributions
    4.0 of 5 bubbles
    Very nice
    Nice place, touristy but not annoying, still seems somehow relaxed. You can walk through it. There are lots of shopping opportunities and lots of restaurants. The key here is to find the right place where it's not just about making a quick buck.
    Visited March 2024
    Traveled solo
    Written March 1, 2024
  • Suratrichard
    Surat Thani, Thailand2,674 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    Fascinating!
    Situated on the east coast of Koh Lanta, the old town is well worth visiting. There’s a large car park near the pier or parking on the main road is sometimes available. Near the car park is a small museum which is particularly interesting. The main road in the old town has a number of restaurants selling sea food and traditional Thai dishes. They all face the sea with views of many islands. There are many shops selling clothing and what could be described as touristy items. Don’t be put off though! We always visit when we are on the Island and certainly recommend visiting and enjoy a good meal.
    Visited October 2024
    Traveled as a couple
    Written October 22, 2024
  • Travellers
    72 contributions
    3.0 of 5 bubbles
    Nice place for a visit!
    It’s an interesting place to visit, mainly for its unique location and Chinese-inspired architecture. However, for me, the highlight of the evening was actually the journey there on a Vespa—it added a sense of adventure and charm to the experience. The area itself is quiet, with only a handful of shops and an even slower pace than Saladan. While it’s not particularly lively, it’s still worth a visit for its distinctive atmosphere and cultural touch.
    Visited December 2024
    Traveled with family
    Written December 22, 2024
  • Fiore959
    Province of Rome, Italy349 contributions
    4.0 of 5 bubbles
    Pleasant walk, although it is a place "for tourists"
    It is one of the few "tourist" places in Ko Lanta, if not the only one and for this reason it is quite popular. In practice, it is a single street along the sea, with wooden houses on both sides (those on the sea side on stilts), all now transformed into shops or restaurants. Pleasant for a walk, which can also be extended on the pier, to see the large sculpture.
    Visited December 2024
    Traveled as a couple
    Written January 8, 2025
  • Albia-Newton
    Evanton, United Kingdom4,981 contributions
    4.0 of 5 bubbles
    Old town but modern commercialisation
    A historically important trading point on the old maritime route to china Now mostly taken over by tourism with shops and restaurants filling 95 percent of the buildings Worth a stop when touring the island
    Visited January 2025
    Traveled as a couple
    Written January 19, 2025
  • 30soph
    London, United Kingdom29 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    Well worth a visit
    I’m so glad we made the effort to travel to this side of the island to see the old town. Lovely street with gorgeous gift shops and lovely looking restaurants on stilts. Worth wandering to the end of the pier to for the incredible views
    Visited January 2025
    Traveled with family
    Written January 24, 2025
These reviews are the subjective opinion of Tripadvisor members and not of TripAdvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.

Most Recent: Reviews ordered by most recent publish date in descending order.

Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as wait time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.

Popular mentions

4.0
4.0 of 5 bubbles2,897 reviews
Excellent
882
Very good
1,181
Average
661
Poor
134
Terrible
39

Suratrichard
Surat Thani, Thailand2,674 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Oct 2023 • Couples
The old town is particularly worth visiting and taking some time there. There’s plenty of car parking available by the pier or sometimes it’s possible to park on the road side by the restaurants. It can get quite busy so some care is needed when walking down the Main Street.
Close to the carpark, is the community museum which is fascinating with free admission ( there is a donation box). The locals are very proud of their museum and there are many interesting artifacts on display along with the history of the Island. It’s not a modern interactive place but don’t be put off by that!
Walking down the Main Street, most of the restaurants will be on the left hand side and there is an excellent choice…The Pinto is a firm favourite with superb seafood and reasonable prices. In addition to places to eat, there are a considerable number of shops selling mainly touristy items like tee shirts etc. It’s worth taking time wandering about.
On the way back to the car, it’s worth strolling down the pier particularly if the tide is in.
Additionally there is an interesting Buddhist temple not far from the car park…Buddhist temples aren’t exactly numerous on Koh Lanta so it’s worth visiting this one.
It’s possible to spend a couple of hours here or more if you want a relaxing meal.
Highly recommended.
Written October 17, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

SlaveToTheTasteBuds
Denmark, Australia97 contributions
3.0 of 5 bubbles
Jan 2024 • Couples
We spent the afternoon here. Pretty cute place, very picturesque with some restaurants on the water. We paid too much for very average food at Fresh restaurant so do your research as to where to eat, do not go to Fresh. The shops are quaint but majority sell the same things as the last. Not many shops are up for bartering, frustrating as majority of items are not at all worth the cost.
I would 100% recommend the hammock shop. Extremely helpful staff. We had many questions about getting hammocks back to Australia and they were fantastic in helped up navigate that.
Fun drive on the scooter to Old Town and a nice wonder through the streets but don’t need to go back.
Written January 13, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Marie M
Chiang Mai, Thailand583 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Mar 2023 • Couples
If you like quaint little places to see something different, then this might be for you. You only need two hours to explore the area and eat a meal or a snack. Explore the pier area with the giant blue lobster monument, walk the main street with friendly people hoping you will choose their restaurant or gift shop. Please respect local culture and cover your chests and bathing suits, would you wear a bikini and no shirt and walk down your main street in a city that was not on the beach? It is impolite to go shirtless and we saw tourists without shirts and with skimpy bikinis walking down the street. Bring a sarong and shirt if you are coming off a boat or car ride from a beach.
What to see: A small museum that has Chinese and Peranakan objects and fishing peoples' antiques.
Photos of the tsunami of 2004
Creations of art using recycled plastics Done by children.
Colorful side alleys on the water housing eateries and little places to stay
A Buddhist shrine with Chinese pagoda and dragons by the water
The pier offers long boat access etc.
Yes, it is worth at least one visit when you are in Koh Lanta. Hire a car and he will wait for you in the parking lot.
Written April 2, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Suratrichard
Surat Thani, Thailand2,674 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Jan 2022 • Couples
If you’re visiting Koh Lanta, then make sure you visit the old town. There’s plenty of car parking near the pier which is free from where you can wander along the Main Street and along the pier.
Some of the buildings are very old so don’t just look at ground level but look up as well! There’s a variety of shops, including a hammock shop, and a good number of restaurants with sea food a speciality.
The local shopkeepers and restaurant owners will do their best to entice you into their premises but not in an aggressive manner as can be experienced in parts of Thailand.
There’s plenty of photo opportunities particularly when they tide is in ands you can easily spend an hour wandering about or longer if you visit one of the restaurants.
Well worth visiting
Written January 8, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Suratrichard
Surat Thani, Thailand2,674 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Aug 2022 • Couples
Although we had visited the old town on previous visits, we didn’t hesitate on our last visit to the island, going again.
There’s plenty of car parking near the pier by the gigantic lobster and toilets are available here also.
To the left of the car park there’s a small but very interesting local museum with free admission ( there is a donation box) and to the right is the pier with some very good views at the end.
The Main Street is the place to find some very good restaurants serving excellent seafood and traditional Thai dishes. We would particularly recommend the Pinto restaurant.
Many of the buildings are old wooden structures with jetties out into the sea. In addition to the restaurants, there are a number of non food shops selling local crafts and souvenir clothing.
Before leaving the old town, it’s worth seeking out the Buddhist temple. Being mainly Islamic, this part of Thailand doesn’t have many Buddhist structures and the one in the old town is small but has some beautiful parts to it.
A very interesting part of Koh Lanta and well worth visiting.
Written August 15, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Mister_FixitBangkok
Nonthaburi, Thailand119 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Jan 2020
We visited here twice in our 5 day trip, because it's rather quaint and slow paced.
We arrived the first time at about 11 am, just as a small fresh market was closing. There's a longish pier with a statue of a huge crustacean which we walked along to look at some fishing boats at sea.
There are a few tourist-oriented shops and quite a few restaurants of varying price levels. We had a coffee in one, but didn't eat at any although I have read good reviews of a few of them.
Worth a few hours at most, maybe more if you had a leisurely lunch.
Further south is a small sea gypsy village, but when we went there were major road works on the way where huge water pipes were being installed and I think we may have missed the turn-off.
Written February 12, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

LFC19YNWA
72 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Feb 2020 • Couples
Went to old town for a few hours whilst staying in Koh Lanta and it was very pleasant. The Main Street has various shops and restaurants and the prices for clothes/gifts are much better than other places on the island so worth holding off on any purchases elsewhere until you look here.
We ate at rare view restaurant and the food was very good and excellent value for money.
All in all it’s a nice place to visit even for just a few hours
Written February 3, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

peter z
20 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Mar 2020 • Couples
Old Lanta is such a cool place to see, it would seem all of the history of Koh Lanta is condensed into this relatively small area.
The old town has many new buildings, and refurbished buildings, statues, markets, and then ravaged structures from when the tsunami tore through the area 15 years ago, it's not easy to describe in some ways because it can be viewed, depending on the person as just piles of rubble, without taking the time to consider the disaster that came through. There are multiple pictures of Old Lanta even before that too, in the 50's or maybe even earlier, hung up and on display by the new pier.
They have a few statues/displays made entirely of waste found in the ocean, plastic bottles, caps, straws and other waste and have turned it into a way to keep the area clean for not only the human inhabitants, but also the animals with whom they share the island and surrounding ocean.
The place just leaves you in awe, and while your driving away you only want to turn around and go back for more.
Definitely visit the old town if you are in Kob Lanta, you won't be disappointed!
Written March 13, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Suratrichard
Surat Thani, Thailand2,674 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Apr 2021 • Couples
We really enjoyed our visit to Lanta old town and spent a couple of hours wandering about. There's plenty of car parking available near the pier ( complete with giant lobster!). The toilets are also in this area.
There are some very interesting old shop houses most of which were open selling souvenirs etc with one selling nothing but hammocks in every possible colour. There are a number of restaurants although not all were open given the lack of tourists due to Covid.
An added bonus was finding a small local museum. Free admission although there is a donation box. It houses a number of fascinating artifacts with a number of old photographs. It only takes 30 minutes or so to wander round but well worth taking the time.
Would we visit again? In all probability yes.
Written April 15, 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

trichan
Canada69 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Jan 2020
The old port is a short street filled with small cafes, restaurants & other shops on stilts.
Quaint, relaxing . Taxi from a Klong Dao about 35 min and 700 b, which could be high for a visit, 2 to 3 hour visit is enough
Written January 30, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

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Lanta Old Town - All You Need to Know BEFORE You Go (2025)

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