Freedom Beach — Attraction in Karon

The drive to the parking area is uphill on wide dirt/rocky road and rather rough/ rutted in many places. I drove a Honda CRV. You first arrive at a free entry sign & parking, which is longer walk down. I drove past this to a bend in the road and parked there, per another review. On the left, ocean side, descend through a hole in the barbered wire fence, spot with large signs in Thai. You will see it is well worn once you're on it. It's a narrow steep rock/dirt/mud, if wet, trail down. Would be slippery after rain! Wear good shoes with straps for any of these trails.

Or, walk from the bend down the road quite a bit further to a spot with taxis, restaurant, and people charging 100B each to descend another trail. Maybe you can park at this spot but there are several taxis so I'm not sure if they take to others parking here. I only saw them and lots of scooters. This one is much wider for multiple people/groups to go up and down. Steep/rocky/ dirt/muddy/rutted. My sister and I did this one to go down and then discovered the first trail while on the beach and we went back up that way. I recommend doing this and using your 100B to buy stuff on the beach. Technically it is free access. It's hot and very humid as there is no breeze in the forest when hiking these trails which take some time to hike down because of their condition.

Beach has booths selling drinks, renting masks, umbrellas with mat, and a restaurant at the southern end.

It was low tide when we went. 12 Longtail boats there stirring up the water with motors so it was cloudy for snorkeling and made for not the most peaceful atmosphere either. They were close to the swimmers since at low tide you swim further out to get in deeper water. Quite a few people, who even with lots of sand still put their towels 2ft away from mine. Water was not good for snorkeling as it was very cloudy, low tide and the boats probably made it bad, since it had great reviews for snorkeling otherwise. The southern end has the rocks/boulders for snorkeling and north is white sand bottom and clearer water but few fish.

Saw a man having a seizure and for the emergency a lifeguard jet ski arrived with a medical bag and they whisked the man off on a Longtail boat. About 8 Thais carried him by hand into the boat.

Overall, given the drive to park, the not easy hike up and down, the many boats, trail payment, if you go that route, I would go elsewhere. Many other great beaches that look just as beautiful. However, it was an experience and jungle hikes are unique. Think high tide is a much better time to visit especially...

If you’re planning on visiting this beach in July and taking the “free entrance”, it’s NOT worth it - trust me.

Firstly there’s multiple entrances you can take to access the beach, two of which are paid (100baht pp) with a few others being free, the entrance we took was “the Lek Sand Beach Bar” which is a 350-400m walk (15min walk one way). Here are the issues I have:

The road you take to get to the beach entrance is very rough, I would not attempt this on a scooter unless it’s good weather and you are skilled. You can also get a taxi to the entrance, but this will be an additional cost.

The free path is not well maintained, there is rubbish everywhere, it’s very uneven and unstable ground and I would not recommend this walk for someone who is mobility impaired, has injuries or is unfit. Because doing this walk in 32degree heat is no joke 🥵

The beach in July is so rough, we went here specifically to snorkel and unfortunately the waves were so rough you couldn’t even snorkel if you tried, the water was very murky and there was only a small section you could swim safely between the flags, so this would not be safe for children at this time of the year.

The rubbish here is sad. There is plastic bottles, food wrappers etc everywhere - it’s a shame because it really takes away from the beauty of this place, it really has potential but this definitely ruins it.

The dogs 😭 when we were here, there were multiple dogs that looked like they were suffering, had skin conditions, were overheating and just generally in poor health - there’s signs everywhere that says to not feed them but just seeing this broke my heart.

There is a cafe here where you can buy food and drinks but expect to pay double the price, however soft drinks and water was reasonably priced (roughly 50baht) there are toilets here too, but they are paid (10baht) unless you spend a minimum amount at the cafe. The toilets were dirty and there was no toilet paper.

Overall the beach has a lot of potential, I can imagine this would be really nice on a sunny and calm day, but for the time of year we went, how bad the waves were and the awful walk to get there, it was just not worth it, we went to Karon beach after and actually had a...

Just like many tourists, I went to Freedom Beach with very high expectations. I’d seen it all over TikTok and Instagram, so I decided to check it out myself.

I took a Grab from Patong to a spot called the Lek Sand beach Bar. From there, the driver drops you off near three different entrances. I chose one and ended up walking about 20 minutes through pure jungle. Honestly, it was quite scary, the path is slippery, steep, and full of rocks. If you go, don’t wear flip-flops or beach sandals; you’ll regret it. Sneakers are much safer.

When you finally get to the beach, it really does look beautiful at first sight. The water is turquoise, the setting is stunning, and the beach has so much potential. But sadly, it’s not well maintained. There’s plastic, cans, and beer bottles scattered everywhere.

The waves in August were huge, only one small area was safe to swim in. The rest was considered unsafe, so you couldn’t really enjoy the water the way you’d hope to.

There are quite a few stray dogs around the beach. They weren’t aggressive or annoying, but it was sad to see them clearly approaching humans for food. Meanwhile, there are “do not feed animals” signs everywhere, which just feels contradictory, because the dogs honestly look hungry.

There’s a little coffee shop where you can sit, but prices are up to the roof. They do have tables and beds you can rent, but part of the view is blocked. The toilets were another letdown: they smelled awful, had no toilet paper, and you actually have to spend 100 baht at the coffee shop just to use them. Not worth it.

The way back was the hardest part. The climb up through the jungle is VERY inclined, steep, slippery, and exhausting, especially if you’re in flip-flops. By the time you get back up, you’ll be drenched in sweat and desperate for water. Of course, the little stalls at the top sell small bottles for 50 baht, which feels like they’re taking advantage of how tired you are.

Overall, Freedom Beach is beautiful in theory, but in reality it’s poorly maintained, exhausting to access, and not as dreamy as social media makes it seem. If you go, prepare properly: wear good shoes, bring your own water, and lower your...