In Phuket’s Thalang district, you’ll find evergreen national parks, cosy open-sided cafés, and markets that feel enchantingly local. Follow our guide to the top spots.
Phuketians set up stalls in virtually every corner of Thalang, though one that stands out is Talad Ruam Jai, or “market of the joined hearts”. Tourists aren’t jostling you, and affable vendors clad in orange sell scrumptious Thai food. Fuel up with golden tuna spring rolls, try papaya salad if you can take the heat, and devour coconut-based Thai desserts. Their sweet scents drift in the balmy evening breeze on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Sundays in front of the Lotus mall.
With chocolatey, dark roast Arabica coffee from Chiang Rai’s mountains, laid-back Bloom Espresso café on Tonsai Waterfall Road has a seductive pick-me-up. Grab one of the six tables or get the tangy, mildly citric yuzu espresso in a takeaway cup. The owners also serve all-day brunch, including cheeseburgers and chicken caesar wraps. Should you have a sweet tooth, you can get a decadent lava cake with a molten chocolate centre and vanilla ice-cream at Sea Calm Cafe near the airport.
Banana Beach is blessed with amazonite water and blinding white, floury sand. While it takes its name from the Thai word “gluay”, you won’t find any bananas here. The name took root after Westerners misinterpreted “Haad Hin Gruay”, or Funnel Rock Beach, which derives from the funnel-shaped coastline bordering the northern end of this slice of paradise. You’ll also love the chilled-out feel of Nai Yang Beach. The casuarina-lined beach is home to a few restaurants, massage parlours and a smidgen of nightlife.
Chock-a-block with Thai mythological figures from the Naga snake and Krut eagle to the guardian warrior Yak, Wat Sri Sunthon is a cultural haven. While the temple’s reclining Buddha watches silently, pachyderms blow air from their trunks at ethical sanctuaries. Phuket Elephant Nature Reserve offers riding-free and bathing-free interactions. For a taste of Phuket’s tin-mining history, slip into colourful Thai-Chinese costumes at Thalang’s Peranakan Museum, which showcases Chinese-Malaysian, Dutch and British influences that shaped the architectural landscape in Old Phuket Town.
A masterstroke by luminary architect Bill Bensley, The Slate marries the modern with the industrial. Exposed concrete and solid steel meets homely plank floors. Look forward to extra deep tubs and plush, jumbo-sized beds that make for proper shut-eye. You can also find a soothing spa and numerous restaurants on site, including a smokehouse, snooker hall and Thai mansion overlooking a lagoon that’ll turn the nearby beach into an afterthought.
Coastal Sirinat National Park has pine-fringed beaches, coral reefs and hiking and biking trails. It also boasts a squillion bird species. Soak up a crow pheasant’s boop-boop-boops while chasing the runner’s high, or watch the late-afternoon sun drizzle over the park like honey as you picnic under a casuarina.
Rub shoulders with Thais at Nai Yang's fish market and buy fresh grouper, snapper or mackerels at 6am daily. Ensure you rock up on time. In scenes reminiscent of the old Wall Street, the fishermen's catch of the day sells within minutes.
Stump up some cash to see James Bond Island's unique pinnacle up close from a private longtail boat or venture into Bang Rong's tangled mangroves on a kayak. The self-sufficient Bang Rong community offers tours but still relies on fishing and agriculture.
It's no secret - Thais' photo addiction is on another level. Aware of that, the brains behind Ma Doo Bua Cafe offer drone shots of couples on a wooden boat, surrounded by Victoria water lilies on an artificial pond. Locals flock here rain or shine. Join in and take your picture, too.
A Smart Bus ride from the airport to Phuket's west coast beaches costs about $4.50. Depending on traffic and how far you travel in Thalang district, the trip takes between 10 and 90 minutes. A taxi costs at least $35. Tuktuks or Bolt are other options.
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