Lanta Old Town

Ko Lanta, Thailand

A small village on Ko Lanta's east side. It's one of the region's most culturally diverse, with Chinese merchants, original Thai fishing families, and an ancient sea gypsy community. Many years ago, Ko Lanta's Old Town acted as the port and commercial centre for the island and provided a safe harbour 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, Buddhist temple, Chinese temple and the island's hospital as well as a long pier. It's a charming place to visit and boasts many good restaurants and interesting shopping like handmade hammocks and an original batik and art gallery. It's also a great jumping off point to other islands like Ko Bubu and Ko Talenbeng.