Relaxing on the beaches of Phuket

Nature
The wow factor for nature - does it show nature at its best? Doesn't need to be the wildebeest migration or diving with hundreds of hammerheads. Rather make you pause as you realise just how awesome the natural world can be
6
Culture
How much does this experience showcase some of the better and finer things that us humans can offer? Sure, it can be ancient ruins and renaissance churches, but it can also be festivals or soaking up some of the great modern cities of the world
3
Fun factor/activity
Very simple - was it fun? This is usually linked in with doing some kind of activity - i mean, walking along some cliffs is nice, but paragliding from them, now that is fun. Its a vastly underrated factor in a truly great experience
6
Avoid the crowds
Big tour groups and being surrounded by loud fellow tourists can sap the life out of even the greatest of travel experiences. This score is to reflect just how much you can avoid this. But. . . The score also takes into account if the crowds actually add to the experience, such as with a party town or a bustling local market
5
World famous
How world famous is the experience?
6
unique
How hard is it to have a similar experience in other places round the world?
3
Overall TE Score
The overall travel experiences score:  fun factor + avoid the crowds + (best of nature or culture) + (best of world famous or unique). Then convert into a score out of 100
57 *What the scores mean and where do they come from
RANKING
How this travel experience ranks compared to all the other experiences on this site, based on the travel experience (te) score
311th/454
Top 70%
continent
Asia
country
Thailand
Length of time
3-4 days
Typical daily price
This gives you a rough idea of the daily price based on 2 people travelling where they can split costs like accommodation. It excludes travel there and back, and factors in inflation the numbers in brackets show the price range for the full time of the experience (so not necessarily daily). It is a range to reflect different budget vs higher end
$150 (typically $60 - $240)
Time of year visited
February
Primary Tags
Click on any of the tags to see all travel experiences with the same tag
Wow Factor
The wow factor reflects just how much you’re likely to say “wow”. As there’s a lot of experiences in the world, and a lot of wows, i’ve gone with a simple ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ to ⭐️ score, and a separate category for the truly "gash"
⭐⭐

Summary

Phuket is a beautiful spot to chill out at for a few days.  ✅ Accommodation and eating options right up there in standard with just about anywhere. ✅ Beautiful sunset beaches. ✅ Great opportunities for partying / lash.  ✅ Good scuba diving to the south.  ✅ Enough scale to head off on trips all around the peninsular.

 

Yes, its touristy, but it ticks the chill out vibe after a few weeks of travelling or as a simple break from any of the nearby Asian cities.

 

Phuket Old Town Sunday market, Thailand

 

Only a very brief travel entry, so a few high level tips:

  1. Even if there for full on partying/ lash – try not to stay in Patong.  It’s great for the nights out, but there are just so many wonderful options slightly further away in the hills and on the beaches for the same prices.  Staying in one of these villas typically is the highlight for me
  2. There are a bunch of islands off the east coast of Phuket that you can visit as part of day tour with a variety of operators leaving from Yamu Pier.  The islands are great, but you just need to be careful who you book with because it is very easy to get rammed into a full tourist boat that won’t quite hit the paradise vibe you’re looking for
  3. Definitely visit the Sunday Phuket Street Market in the Old Town – I was blown away by how good it was and just how atmospheric the old town is.  Also known as Lard Yai or the Sunday Walking Street Market, located on Thalang Road, its open every Sunday from 4pm-10pm
  4. When in Patong, even if not there for a giant night out, make sure to head to Tiger Bar . . . and you can’t miss Suzie Wongs.  Both kind of sum up the Patong vibe with something like 50 different mini bars each with their own theme in Tiger Bar, and Suzie’s is an institution – be sure to go the original one!
  5. There are some super spots for scuba diving all around Phuket, in particular the ferry reef dive off Raja Yai in the south is superb, with heaps of large cleaner fish that come up super close.

 

Western beach of Phuket, Thailand

 

Highlights

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#1 The villa views - grab just about any up in the hills of Phuket and you'll get some stunning views and a wonderful chilled out vibe

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#2 The lash

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#3 The sensational islands to the east. Some of the most wow in the world, and defintely worth a boat trip to see them from Yamu Pier

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#4 Sunday Phuket Street Market in the Old Town - I was blown away by how good it was and just how atmospheric the old town is (and how good that photo turned out!)

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#5 The white sand sunsets

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$6 The other lash

Experiences Nearby

The below map shows experiences nearby with a colour that reflect the Overall Score of those experiences

Score Detail

The scores above are the real point of this site.

Over 20+ years and 100+ countries, I’ve tried to rank the world’s best travel experiences — from genuinely mind-blowing ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ to the properly gash.

Every one of the 500+ places on this site has both a Wow Factor rating and a more analytical Travel Experience (TE) score based on the things that actually make travel memorable.

If you're curious about the thinking behind it, head to the About page.

Otherwise, explore the map above or on the Home page and see which places truly deliver maximum wow.

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