Where to stay in Phuket

The west coast, from south to north

• Nai Harn: powdery sand and clear water with a freshwater lagoon behind, quieter than most beaches. Swimming isn't advised from May to October: watch for red flags.
• Kata and Kata Noi: Kata sits between hills with Ko Pu offshore, a reef at one end and shops, rooms and bars behind; it draws surfers from May to October. Kata Noi, next door, is a small beach of fine white sand.
• Karon: a long, curving beach with small dunes, casuarinas and palms, and rooms from budget to top-end. In 2025 it had just over 20 lifeguards along about 3 km; from May to October the Tourism Authority of Thailand warns of strong undertows at its open south end.
• Patong: a bay of about 3 km, the island's tourist centre and its busiest, most developed resort, with the widest choice of rooms, restaurants, shops and nightlife. Since December 2023, bars in Bangla Road's late-night zones may stay open until 04:00.
• Kamala: a quieter beach of about 2 km; one of the island's Muslim communities lives here.
• Surin: casuarinas along a steep beach, not one for swimming in the south-west monsoon. With Bang Tao, it is still a centre for beach clubs and nightlife.
• Bang Tao: one of the island's longest beaches, on old tin-mining land that is now resorts and a golf course, steep with high waves and no place for weak swimmers. More of the island's planned hotels are here than anywhere else: 30% of those planned for 2026 to 2030, in one survey.
• Nai Yang and Mai Khao: about 13 km of unbroken beach in Sirinat National Park, with casuarina forest and reef and the park's headquarters at Nai Yang. Planes come in to land low over Mai Khao. Leatherback turtles nested there in February 2024; every nest reported in the two seasons since was in Phang Nga. Nai Thon, south of Nai Yang, is a short beach between rocky headlands, also in the park.

In the rainy months, heavy rain can flood low roads anywhere on the island; in recent years Patong's have flooded most often.

Away from the west coast

Rawai, at the island's southern tip, is quieter and less commercial, with a Chao Le (sea nomad) village, a seafood market by the pier and boats to the nearby islands; it is popular with long-stay visitors. Chalong is a muddy bay for boats rather than swimming, with a long pier busy with island day trips. Cape Panwa, in the south-east, has the aquarium and beaches you can swim from, with water less clear than the west coast's.

Old Town is inland, so staying there means a ride to the sea; a Smart Bus runs from the city's bus terminal to Patong for ฿50. What's there, and what to eat: Phuket Old Town

For couples, families and people on their own

Couples who want a quiet beach and the sunset can look at Nai Harn and Kamala, or at Kata Noi, a small beach next to Kata. Hotel rates are highest around Surin and Kamala and in the north, at Mai Khao and Bang Tao: what an upscale hotel costs is below.

Families: the Tourism Authority of Thailand said in 2021 that families and couples choose Kamala for a quiet break, and Karon had lifeguards along its beach in 2025. Strong surf and rip currents reach the west-coast beaches from May to October, so swim where the flags allow: red means stay out of the water, and a red-and-yellow flag marks where lifeguards are watching.

On your own, Patong or Old Town? Patong has the beach, the nightlife and the most rooms; Old Town has the food and the streets, but no beach and a ride to the sea. Rawai suits a longer, slower stay.

What an upscale hotel costs, by area

In the first half of 2026, one hotel-market survey put the average night at a luxury or upscale hotel at ฿8,641 around Surin, Kamala, Patong and Karon, ฿7,377 in the north (Pa Khlok, Bang Tao, Mai Khao, Nai Yang and Nai Thon), ฿5,564 in the south (Kata, Nai Harn, Rawai and Cape Panwa) and ฿5,260 in the city, Chalong and Koh Sirey.

Getting there from the airport

The airport is in the north-west, beside the national park. A car from the fixed-price counter in arrivals takes up to three people; the Smart Bus runs down the west coast to Rawai for ฿100 a seat, but not to Nai Yang, Mai Khao or Old Town. An orange airport bus goes to the city's bus terminal for up to ฿100.

Staying on an island

Koh Racha Yai belongs to Phuket and has rooms, by boat from Rawai or Chalong. Koh Yao Noi and Koh Yao Yai, in Phang Nga, are rural islands 30–40 minutes by boat from the Bang Rong pier on Phuket. Phi Phi is part of a national park in Krabi, where Maya Bay closes from 1 August to 30 September. All of them depend on boats, which can stop in rough seas.