Southern Thailand Road Trip: Beaches
3 cities |
10 attraction(s) |
total distance 297
km
TIPS
Day1-2
Day3-4
Day5-6
Day7
Day1-2: Phuket
4 attraction(s) ·
28 km
1
Patong Beach is a public beach located in the middle of the west coast of Phuket Island. It is three kilometers long, requires no entrance fee, and is open to the public 24 hours a day. Due to the natural bay barrier, the waves here are relatively calm and perfect for swimming and beach activities. Patong Beach's unique geographical conditions have made it one of the earliest and most mature beaches in Phuket Island. Here, you can find a large number of hotels, restaurants, bars, and small shops, and enjoy a wonderful holiday. However, the prosperity of Patong Beach also brings commercialization and environmental pollution, and the beach and seawater are some of the most polluted in Phuket.
Choosing to stay in Patong Beach, you can enjoy beach activities such as beach chairs, umbrellas, Thai massages, motor boats, banana boats, and parasailing during the day, and taste seafood stalls, buy souvenirs or spend a beautiful night in a bar at night. If you are interested in Phuket's bar culture, you might as well go to Bangala Road and experience the pedestrian street perpendicular to the beach, enjoy the performances of pole dancing girls and ladyboys, or watch various unique performances. Even if you are not a fan of nightlife, you can stroll through the bar street at night and experience Phuket's unique culture.
11
km
3
Located on the west coast, Kata Beach is adjacent to Karon. From Patong, taking a tuk-tuk only takes 15 minutes and costs about 450 baht. Among the three main beaches, Kata Beach is the most suitable for swimming. Although the beach is not very long, the sand is soft and the waves are very mild. There are rocks at both ends of the beach, making it a good place for taking pictures. There are many European and American tourists on the beach, laying lazily on beach chairs all day long. The whole Kata area is mainly for European and American tourists, presenting a seaside town flavor. The restaurants here mainly serve western food to cater to the tourists' taste. Although there are also cafes and bars on Kata Beach, it is not as lively as Patong. The overall prices for food and shopping are higher than those in Patong and Karon.
6
km
4
Wat Chalong, located in the Chalong area of Phuket, is one of the oldest and most famous temples in Phuket with a history of over 100 years. The temple adopts traditional Thai architectural style and has four main halls: the main hall, the pagoda, the original site of the temple, and the old ancestor hall. The main hall is the most eye-catching building in the temple, where three bronze statues of high monks are enshrined for worshipers to feel the solemn atmosphere of Buddhism. The pagoda is the tallest building in the temple, divided into three floors. The first floor enshrines seven different postures of Buddha statues based on the day of worshipper's birth. The second floor enshrines a white jade Buddha statue, while the third floor enshrines the holy relic of Buddhism: Buddha's ashes, which was given to Thailand by Sri Lanka, and is very precious despite its small size. The original site of the temple is a small wooden house that has been preserved since the temple was built. It enshrines wax statues of the three high monks and some utensils that were used by high monks, and is also the only hall in the temple with air conditioning. There is also a slightly inconspicuous white building near the center of the temple, where Buddha statues and two bronze guardian statues are enshrined, and worshippers can offer incense through small holes in the mouths of the bronze statues. Wat Chalong also offers inexpensive souvenirs for tourists to buy, but some halls are not open to visitors, so please be aware.
Day3-4: Phuket > Phangnga Province
3 attraction(s) ·
61 km
1
Phang Nga Bay belongs to Phang Nga Province and is located 75 kilometers northeast of Phuket Island. It covers a total area of 400 square kilometers and has 42 small islands, with unique and peculiar mountain shapes, mysterious, steep and beautiful caves. The unique mangrove ecology is named "James Bond Island" after the movie "James Bond". Although the sea water in Phang Nga Bay appears murky green, it still attracts many travelers to explore the mysterious caves. Different caves such as Bat Cave, Mangrove Cave, Diamond Cave, Oyster Cave, Room Cave, etc. have different shapes. Kayaking exploration is exciting and safe, and you may also see wild animals such as monkeys, mudflat fish, lizards, etc. Since there are no islands for tourists to stay on in Phang Nga Bay, and visiting each island or cave requires a professional guide, it is recommended that tourists not go alone and should ideally sign up for a one-day tour, including round-trip transfer services.
6
km
2
Unique island with limestone cliffs popular for sailing & featured in a 1974 James Bond movie.
55
km
3
Day5-6: Krabi
2 attraction(s) ·
11 km
1
Accessible only by boat, this peninsula with limestone cliffs is popular for rock climbing & diving.
11
km
Day7: Krabi
1 attraction(s) ·
0 km
1
Island known for secluded beach with clear blue water & coral reefs for snorkeling & scuba diving.
