Phuket, Thailand + Add a trip

Hate crowds?

If you prefer something a bit more relaxing than the craziness of Patong beach a great thing to do is stay in Karon or Kata beach which are both just down the road. Only a short (and cheap) tuk-tuk drive away and heaps nicer. Still a main street with a handful of restaurants but u don't get hassled half as much as in Patong.

Karon Beach and Kata beach are quieter than Patong, a tuk tuk can cost between B 300 and 500 between Patong and Karon. Karon and Kata in my opinion are nicer than Patong, but many people seem to want lots of shops, restaurants and malls and nightlife, for them they prefer Patong. Nai Harn beach is quiet, Kamala and Surin beaches north of Patong are very good. Bangtao is another good beach on Phuket.

I stayed one week in Sunwing Bangtao Beach and I have to say, if you're travelling with kids this is the place to go. On the other hand, if you're travelling alone or with somebody woithout kids, I would avoid this... But 6 pools, kids eat free with paying adult, nice quiet beach, comfty spacious rooms with balconies and elefant ridig on the beach... kids just love it.

Worth noting though is that Bang Tao beach is middle of nowhere but if you wish to do shopping you can always take a taxi to Phuket Town or Patong beach. Taxi wil cost B 600 to both locations.

If you're into "western-type" shopping it's better to stick to Patong and Jungceylon but for more authentic and Thai-type shopping I would recommend Ocean Plaza in Phuket Town.

For food in BangTao I do recommend Alex &Luna on the beach, great food and fair prices and best of all very good view for sunset.

A great, very friendly place to stay! Highly recommended! Bobbi and Steve are your best friends in Phuket!

A big fat thumbs up for Hillside! The rooms are extremely clean and spacious, bathroom was huge (no tub, awesome automatic water temp regulator for energy efficiency) and the rooms came with free WiFi, cable TV and even a DVD player (not that we used it.) Mini fridge came stocked only with the free water they give you daily, which was perfect, and the A/C was new although slightly noisy. Hotel has a mini pool which we didn't use, and no restaurant although there are plenty of cheap eats nearby. The one thing I wasn't crazy about was the traffic noise from Nanai Road which doesn't seem to die down at any hour, although it was probably only an issue for me because our room was right next to the road (balcony overlooking it.) The 15 minute walk to Patong Beach was no problem at all, especially since there is so much cool stuff along the road on the way there (cheap tasty restaurants and cafes, snazzy art dealers, tattoo shops, etc.) Will definitely stay at the Hillside again!

beautiful resort...very classy..fantastic food and great espresso coffee.Rooms LARGE and gorgeously exotic bathrooms!! Quiet, no children under 16? permitted..adult bliss.Location a little isolated but certainly peaceful.

Excellent Hotel!

i stayed in Rayaburi hotel patong- new, clean, lots of space, basic, within walking distance to patong beach, easy to get to other less crowded beaches such as Karon/Kata beaches, great night spots for dinner and drinks nearby.