Thailand Travel Guide Phuket Beaches

KATA This is a heaven for surfers in season. The sweep and texture of the beach makes it deal for jogging and Koh Pu ( Crab Island), just off the northern part of the beach, is a good snorkelling spot from November to May when the water is calm.

Just south of Kata, over a series of hills leading past the viewpoint lies the remarkably undeveloped

NAI HARN surfing and swimming here can be savage fun when weather conditions are right and hang glider fans often take full advantage of the thermals in the hills north and south of beach.

Popular with local Thais is LAEM KA : it is directly opposite Nai Harn on the eastern foot of the island and is a change from the western side. To get there, take the road directly opposite Rawai’s temple/school ( on the left just before you reach Rawai ) and drive until you see the sea. There’s a parking space and steps leading down to a shady 300m balmy piece of heaven. The beachside restaurant here serves delicious seafood and ice-cold beer.

For windswept tropical solitude you cannot beat MAI KHAO BEACH : in the north of the island. Westerly breezes tease the causarinas lining this 12km beach near the Sarasin bridge which links Phuket to the mainland. Time stands still at Mai Khao. Sea turtles come to lay their eggs here once a year and there’s camping available for those who like to rough it a little. Mai Khao is bordered to the south by Nai Yang, also a turtle destination, and NAI YANG is similar in that it’s isolated and beautiful.

If isolation is not your idea of an ideal holiday and people-watching is, look no further than PATONG BEACH. Temporary home to many a hair braider, hawer, timeshare salesman and persons of dubious sexual identity. Sin City by the palms.

Jet shis ride the waves, threading though fishing boats and throngs of people, perhaps unaware of the tranquil beauty only a 20min drive away, stretch out on line after line of hire sun beds and deck chairs to catch the Southeast Asian rays. It’s the classic beachside scene.

All along the busy beach, hawkers sell everything from deep-fried chicken with papaya salad, to fake Lacoste polo shirts, to genuine northern Thai handicrafts. Most holiday-makers take it all in good-natured stride and count the Patong Beach circus as part and parcel of their cultural awareness experience.

Live-aboard Diving in Phuket

Serious diving for serious divers : enthusiasts come from around the world for these serious, days-long dive trips. Some run for 10 days and visit neighbouring countries, usually Burma. Most divers book these trips well in advance, but those with time and flexibility can book a number of trips right here on Phuket Island.The Similan Islands, 90km northwest of Phuket, is the most common live-aboard destination. In good conditions the water visibility here can approach the amazing, through it’s generally in the range of 30m still excellent! The Andaman Sea is generally quite calm, making diving there easy and pleasurable.

Fishing in Phuket

With so much water out there, there have to be fish, right ? And of course there are- big fish, fighting fish- sailfish. It’s Phuket’s one boast to fishing fame- there are few places in the world where one can catch sailfish so regularly.

Boats invariably head to the Racha Islands south of Phuket where deep, clear waters attract the sailfish and their prey. At certain times of year thoudands of sailfish congregate in very small areas, constantly leaping out of the water to land on their sides with the biggest splash- rounding up schools of smaller bait fish. Even when one can’t catch them, the very sight of so many huge, leaping fish is a worthwhile spectacle. Though they can be caught all year round, the monsoon season is particularly good.

The small fishing fleet based in Chalong consists of several old Thai wooden boats converted, with a few modern, dedicated vessels. A wide variety of other fish are also caught here by trolling, including small tunas, spanish mackeral, wahoo, dolphin-fish, baracuda. Bottom fishing can give an even greater variety in the catch. There are a few sharks left in these waters.

Some dedicated souls make the hours-long pilgrimage out to the continantal shelf drop off, where the waters suddenly plunge to hundreds of metres, and where, it is said, huge marlin rule the depths.

Sailing and surfing in Phuket Thailand

Of all the ways to see and enjoy the beauty of the Andaman, sailing is surely the ultimate. For one, this requires time, and there is nothing better than spending days cruising island to island, and walking up each morning in the shadow of a different island. And cruising , being unhurried and quiet, allows one to really unwind and absorb the incredible surroundings. When cruising Phang Nga Bay and the outlying islands of Phuket and Krabi one shares well known anchorages with a few other yacths, but otherwise meets only fishermen selling their catch.

All Surf Spots in Phuket

Kata Beach Surfing, Kata Noi Beach Surfing, Karon Beach Surfing, Nai Harn Beach Surfing, Patong Beach Surfing, Kalim Beach Surfing, Kamala Beach Surfing, Laem Singh Beach Surfing, Surin Beach Surfing, Bang Tao Beach Surfing, Nai Thon Beach Surfing, Nai Yang Beach Surfing, Mai Khao Beach Surfing