Phuket

Phuket, pearl of the South, is Thailand’s largest island. Think endless beaches and crystal-clear blue ocean. Think The Beach and The Man With The Golden Gun. Think cheap tourist hell.

You’ll love Phuket.

Phuket is where you go if you want to get away from the big city and relax by the ocean. Scuba diving, snorkelling, surfing, canoeing, rafting, speed boating and pretty much anything else involving water can be found here.

It’s also the place you go if you want crowded beach parties, and easy availability of Thai girls.

Regardless of its sleazier side, it’s more than possible to spend a few weeks in Phuket and not feel dirty. And lest you forget, it’s pronounced Pu-ket. The h is silent.

Being a large island there are numerous areas to stay, but as a tourist you’ll gravitate towards one of the beach areas:

• Patong – The throbbing heart of Phuket’s tourism. A beautiful beach, but full of everything you may want to avoid. Saying that, it does have a lot of hotels and restaurants, and does offer facilities that other areas do not.
• Kata – A toned-down version of Patong, with plenty of facilities but not quite the commercialism.
• Karon – The most peaceful of the three. A small town area tops a long, almost deserted, beach.

Phuket has two seasons: low and high. Expect many tourists in high season, running from November to March. Low season brings with it cheaper hotel rates, but an increased possibility of rain and more humidity. Regardless of which season you’re in, the temperature hovers around 28 degrees, and the periods of rain are brief and intense.

Airport

Phuket International airport is small and cheerful, and has enough facilities to keep you from starving, should you spend much time there. Like Bangkok, you need to be wary of touts and other predators who try to pick up hapless tourists.

Metered taxis are available, but are someway outside the airport. Ignore anyone who offers you taxi services. A taxi booth is located in the parking lot, and you should speak to the man sat inside. He will direct you to a taxi. Make sure the meter is used.

Be aware that Phuket airport is a considerable distance from most beaches, and you can expect a journey of over an hour to reach any of the ones mentioned previously. A journey to Karon costs around 460 baht, including a fee charged by the hotel.

An airport bus operates every 1 to 1.5 hours and will take you to Phuket town.

A limousine counter in the airport can arrange a van for between 100-200 baht per person. No experience was had of this, so you should take care to pay attention.

Car, jeep, and motorbike rental companies also exist, and if you are planning a long stay in Phuket you may do well to arrange your own transport here (although it is probably more expensive than renting outside the airport).

Transport

Your location in Phuket greatly determines your transport options. Patong beach is sure to have considerably more to offer than Karon, and in the more deserted areas you may have no other option than to strike deals with tuk-tuks and unofficial taxis. These deals are always exorbitant, and you will be charged 250 baht for a simple 15 minute journey between beaches, and quotes back to the airport will start at 1000. Bargain hard.

To put these prices into context, an Air Asia flight between Bangkok and Phuket is around 800 baht.

If you can plan ahead, and have a lot of travelling, then rent a car or scooter. Car rentals come in at around 1000 baht, and scooters at around 200.

Metered taxis are rarely seen outside the towns, and were never seen on Karon beach. Your hotel can arrange a taxi, but will charge an additional fee.