Things to Do in Trang in March

March low-season boat schedules let you time visits between tour-group waves, so the 80 m (262 ft) swim into the lagoon is often silent except for your breathing and the drip of stalactites. Morning tides are calmer, giving snorkelers clearer water before afternoon runoff clouds it. Go early. Stay quiet.

Inside the mountain, you lie flat in a narrow boat while the guide pulls on a rope through 400 m (1,312 ft) of absolute darkness. Only bats' wings and the smell of guano remind you the ceiling is inches away. March water levels are low enough that the boat scrapes only occasionally, making the passage less chilling than after the heavier rains. Still spooky. Still fun.

Start at 6:30am when the air is still 75°F (24°C) and dim sum shops along Tha Klang Road are lifting bamboo steamers of har gow. A 12 km (7.5 mi) flat circuit passes century-old shophouses painted in faded mint and ochre, the wet market reeking of durian and dried shrimp, and the 1912 railway station where the daily train to Sungai Kolok whistles off at 7:20am. Pedal slow. Look up.

March seas are settled enough that captains swing south past Koh Chuak and Koh Ma, stopping at snorkel spots where yellow-masked butterflyfish circle granite boulders. You'll taste sea urchin roe grilled on the boat deck and rinse salt off with rainwater scooped from tarred barrels. Salt and smoke. Perfect combo.

At 6pm millions of wrinkle-lipped bats spiral out of a sinkhole, forming a ribbon that blackens the sky for 15 minutes while you stand in a palm plantation smelling of damp earth and frangipani. March evenings are usually clear, so the plume contrasts against orange light better than in hazy April. Bring a wide lens. Jaw drops free.