Welcome to Phuket, the Pearl of the South

Phuket is the largest island in Thailand, located on the west coast, in the Andaman sea, it is 48 kilometers from North to South and 21 kilometers From East to West. Its landscapes are incredibly various : rocky Pinnacles, sandy beaches, limestone cliffs, wooden hills, small bays and lagoons, in a tropical vegetation everywhere present.
A chain of mountain runs along the West coast and covers around two third of it. The highest peak is Mai Tao Sip Song, reaching 529 meters. The remaining third is all flat.
Due to its surface and the micro-climates which have developped there, Phuket offers many different experiences and feelings.
Phuket-Town, with its ancient Sino-Portugese buildings, its Chinese and Thai temples with their sophisticated architecture, and its colorful and popular local markets.
Patong Beach, Kata Beach, Kamala Beach, Karon Beach and so many other beaches, all set along the West coast, offering an absolutely spectacular tropical scenery, with white sand and a color of water worthy of the most beautiful postcards, which have attracted so many travellers toward Phuket beaches.
The casuarina pine trees of Nai Yang Beach will impress you in a different way as well.
Khao Phra Thaeo National Park is a perfect representation of the tropical rain forest with its so particular flora and fauna.
The mangroove of Koh Siray offers wild landscape of muddy beach waters
And, of course, the limestone line on the east coast and these rocky Pinnacles planted in the sea, on the West coast, which made Phuket and its area become so famous.
Just add an easy access through the international airport, splendid luxurious hotels at international standards, with swimming pools among the largest of Thailand, and you will understand why Phuket has become such a favorite destination for travellers of all generations.

Phuket, Beaches like in a day dream

Nai yang & Naithon beach are the closest beaches to the airport, and among the less crowded of Phuket, despite this wonderful long stretch of virgin white sand beach. Just enjoy !
Bang Tao Bay is a long beach in a cove, few kilometers south of Naithon beach, lined with huge high grade resorts of international brand.
Surin Beach & Kamala Beach are located just bellow Bang Tao and offer stunning panoramas on a long splendid beach, and in a much quieter atmosphere than other more developped beaches of the south.
Patong Beach, nestled in a cove, it is surely the most famous of all beaches of Phuket and also, far away, the more developped. Its is just facing Phuket-Town, so it is easy to reach and is world renowned as much for its gorgeous beaches as for its crazy drunken nights.
Karon Beach, just south of Patong Beach, and also second more developped beach of Phuket. Splendid beach as well, lined with high buildings and 5 stars resorts.
Kata Beach &, Kata noi Beach are both small coves separated from Karon Beach by a natural rock reef, more tranquil than Karon or Patong Beach, but enjoying a sand as much white and fine and an as marvelous clear water, they are a perfect place for vacations.
Nai Harn Beach is one of the most remote beaches of Phuket, in the deep south of the island, nestled in a bay surrounded by mountains and small islands. The Meridien Phuket Yacht Club, is the only big hotel of the beach. Appart from this hotel, the beach is like deserted, hydillic...
Rawai Beach & Chalong Bay are south of Phuket when going up the East coast. Stunning beaches again, but you won't enjoy the sunset from the beach as it is sunrise sided...
Panwa Beach & Cap Panwa are the beaches at the top end of Chalong Bay.

Nightlife in Phuket : excited or quiet according to your mood

In Bang Tao, hotels offers all infrastructures to make you spend a nice evening, but you can also taste local nights, you will find many bars and restaurants around and along the beach, serving delicious food at reasonable prices. Most of the bars play music and stay open late in the night.
Kamala hosts numerous beach bars and restaurants, perfect to start or spend the night. For attractions, try Phuket Fantasea, a cultural show with elephants, tigers, traditional danses, light and sound, etc... A unique event, visited by all tourist in Phuket.
Patong is THE place for nightlife in Phuket. You will find restaurants of any kind as well as bars open until late in the night. You will also be able to make some shopping and enjoy several entertainments like the suprising shows presented by several cabarets of the area (the most famous only count Lady-boys in the show) or make a night bungy jumping (!)... But it is true that Patong nights are mostly famous for its "Go-Go bars", where you will enjoy a drink, watching the more and more surprising sex shows, performed by beautiful ladies, surrounded by pretty hostesses working hard to divert you and make you enjoy the night... There are hundreds of "Go-Go bars" and "Lady bars" (similar, except that there are no shows, only hostesses...) in Patong !
Kata Beach & Karon have many good quality restaurants where you can enjoy succulent meals and spend a charming evening. But, certainly due to its proximity to Patong, the choice of bars is very tight, just few local bars with TV and Pool table, but you will find a mini-golf at Dino Park.
Nai Harn Beach offers a much calmer nightlife, with few good restaurants and nice bars along the beach, for a quiet evening.
Rawai Beach is a perfect setting for a pleasant dinner, many excellent local restaurants lining the beach, where you will enjoy what was for a long time the best sea food in Phuket.

To the discovery of Phuket

Phuket has much more to offer than lazy days sunbathing on its splendid beaches and many agencies will arrange tours to discover the island.
Phuket Town is the administrative main town of Phuket and also the largest city. Most of the buildings are older than 100 years and you will be charmed by its beauty and diversity. Many buildings are in the Sino-Portuguese style, typical of the architecture of this coast, down to Malaisia. You can go there for a tour where you will enjoy superb colonial houses among more recent buildings.
Temples. You will also find many temples in Phuket, like Wat Chalong, one of the largest temple of the island. Wat Phra Thong, or Temple of the golden Buddha, famous for its half-buried Buddha, and Wat Phranangsang, built on order of a royal princess, are both located in Thalang.
Khao Phra Thaeo National Park is the last tropical rain forest of Phuket. A trecking track of eight kilometers crosses the park and invites you to the discovery of local nature. You will also find a small museum and an information center at the waterfall.
Butterfly garden and Aquarium is a wide open air space, ornamented with waterfalls, which hosts thousands of butterflies of stunning colors. There is also a Tropical Aquarium among the most beautiful of the world..
Thai Village & Orchid garden offers a Thai cultural show of various Thai danses, Thai boxing exhibitions, local handicraft presentation and elephant show, surrounded by orchids.
Night markets. There are 2 main night markets in Phuket. The first is in Patong, exhibiting all local handicraft, easy to find, as it is along the beach road. The second interresting night market is in Phuket Town, around Robinson's Department Store, rich in colors and in the variety of foods, including muslim, chinese and thai specialties.

Be active in Phuket

Scuba diving is surely the first activity that will come to your mind when you'll see the magnificence of the sea and of the underwaters around Phuket, which remains a worldwide renowned destination for divers everywhere on the planet. There are many diving schools on all beaches of the island. You will have the opportunity to explore many of the best sites around Phuket, like Shark Point or Anemone Reef, but also, northward, all the archipelago of Merguin, south of Burma.
Safari. Some travel agencies organize discovery safari around Phuket with jungle trekking, Land Rover riding, river descending in canoë or rafting and elephant trekking, with visit of rubber tree farms, schools and temples. A good and efficient mean to see everything that have to be seen in Phuket.
Golf. Phuket hosts not less than 8 golf courses of international class, 9 and 18 holes, including the famous Blue Canyon Country Club, hosting the "Johnnie Walker Classic" and the "Honda Classic" tournaments or the Missions Hills Golf Club very close to the Blue Canyon, or the Laguna Golf Club, north of Bang Tao or the Phuket Country Club close to Patong. These golf courses are among the most beautiful of the world, with, for some of them, stunning views over the Andaman Sea. Phuket is renowned to be a guenine "paradise for golf players".
Water Sports. Like all modern tourist beach area in the world, Phuket offers any kind of water activities, Jet-Ski, water Skiing, sea Kayaking, etc...
Dino Park is an entertainment park on dinosaurs, with animation and replica at real scale (or so) and a volcano entering in eruption every hours. You can also enjoy a 18 hole mini golf, to play with the whole familly.
Boat trip. You can also aboard a boat and roam around all interesting sites around Phuket, like Koh Kai, tiny remote island, or the Surin archipelago northward, amazing diving site. If you are short in time, you can even visit Phang Nga Bay or Koh Phi Phi during a one day boat trip only.