(scroll down for itinerary/tips)

SET THE SCENE

White sand beaches that trail into ocean water reflecting the pale sand underneath – the make-up of the line of beaches of Phuket. Standing with your feet in the crumbly sand and the taste of ocean in the air, you can see the pretty coastline from any angle. In the distance, there are green trees covering certain parts of the coastlines and parasailers floating languidly in sky. The waves oscillate between gentle and bursts of power hinting of potential thunderstorms and larger waves to come. If you come around June and July, be prepared for low cast clouds and occasional days of pouring rain with peeks of sunshine on your lucky moments. The beaches are lined with umbrellas, mats, and the occasional random tree swing. There are swimmers enjoying the warm water and people on jetski’s moving around. In the distance you can see the further islands of Thailand looking remote in all of its glory.

SUGGESTED 3 DAY ITINERARY

DAY 1: My family arrived around the afternoon and we were still recovering from Bangkok so we decided to chill at our hotel which had a great pool and poolside bar! Then we went out looking for a Thai massage to finish off the relaxing day (and you can find plenty of massage parlors everywhere!)

DAY 2: Chilling at Patong Beach! And booking the Phi Phi Tour and FantaSea show.

DAY 3: Phi Phi Tour and FantaSea show at night

PHUKET TRAVEL TIPS:

-BEACHES: Phuket is located on the coast so you have plenty of beaches to choose from. I honestly just walked to the nearest beach from my hotel which was Patong Beach. When you get to the beach, there are going to be a lot of locals that will try and get you to buy a chair or umbrella from them to sit under – avoid the cost and just spread out a towel unless the sun is absolutely horrendous that day. Many of the locals also offer kayaking, parasailing, jetskis, etc.

-MARKETS: There are plenty of markets to shop in and eat at in Phuket but the following two are where I went:

—Phuket Floating Market: Think of this as a more modern, clean floating market. When I went with my family on a random weekday morning, a lot of the shops were closed so I recommend maybe coming on a weekend afternoon. WHAT TO EAT: I found the BEST fried chicken I have ever had in my life here! The flavoring on the chicken was unbeatable! You also have to try the boat noodle soup and the duck noodle soup!

—Night Market outside Banzaan Fresh Market: Plenty of food to stuff your face! You can also go inside the Banzaan Fresh Market and buy fresh seafood, have a restaurant on the second floor cook it, and eat it super fresh! WHAT TO EAT: Thai rolled ice cream, ice cream in a coconut, meat skewers, fish maw soup, papaya salad

-NIGHTLIFE: The famous Bangla Road. It’s pretty fun to walk through at night!

-THAI MASSAGE: I completely forgot to mention this on my Bangkok blog, but do not leave Thailand without getting a Thai massage! They are so cheap for 1 hour. My cousins and I spent our evenings post-beach getting massages that completely relaxed our muscles.

-LEAVING PHUKET: Phuket is a tourist trap so you will see a million flyers to do tours to different islands off the coast of Thailand such as Phi Phi and James Bond Island. Since I had limited time with my family, we booked a tour through a travel agency that let us go see Phi Phi Island and snorkel for a day. It was great feeling the wind in my hair my feet over the ocean on the boat but the part of Phi Phi the tour company took us to was pretty touristy and the beaches were dirty. If you are craving some good island time, a lack of tourists, and untouched beaches, I suggest actually spending a few nights on Phi Phi like one of my friends did. And taking one of these boats below:

-SHOWS: Phuket has a couple famous shows. The one I went to see was FantaSea. There is a park surrounding the stage where the show happens and the park is like Thailand Disneyland. There are a ton of fun games to play and elephants walking around. The show was also pretty entertaining to see – complete with elephants, acrobats, and magic! We also got a deal through a tour company in Phuket. Oh you can buy tickets for just the show or show + buffet dinner (since my family are notorious buffet eats, we went with the buffet package and the food was decent).

-WHERE TO EAT: Phuket is a tourist trap. You will see endless of pad thai and not so great quality. I do recommend one restaurant that truly wowed me with their food – No.9 Restaurant. Probably why it has great TripAdvisor ratings and a line outside the restaurant.

To find a complete list of what to eat in Thailand, check out my Bangkok blog!

 

Happy traveling!

-M