Recommendation for Phuket

Hi

We%26#39;re arriving in Phuket on the morning of 10th May, before heading off for a spot of island hopping (nothing planned as yet).

Can anyone receommend a place to stay on our first night? We can run to about 5000 baht ($160) and having spent a night in Patong before quite keen to give it a miss. That said we would like to be somewhere where there%26#39;ll be places to eat / drink in the evening and a decent beach for jetlag recovery purposes during the day.

We%26#39;ll be heading off for Phi Phi after that but we%26#39;re also considering Ko Lanta or Koh Lak - is it best to use Phuket as a base for travelling here? Also as it%26#39;s getting into the rainy season shouls we expect downpours at this time or will it be heavy showers with sunshine between?

Thanks in advance

Recommendation for Phuket

Bump

Recommendation for Phuket

Hi,

Do you actually want to stay in Patong just for 1 night, or in another area?

Cheers,

Sandy

Hi

Don%26#39;t want to stay in Patong at all! Was after somewhere really nice by the beach and wasn%26#39;t sure which area to go for - I hear Kata is also a bit touristy - wouldn%26#39;t mind somewhere a bit less..well like Patong but with places to eat and drink nearby for the evening - any thoughts?

C

Hi ohbe1.

It%26#39;s difficult to get a feel of what you want here.

I guess an area less busy than both Patong and Kata but still offer a lot of choice of restaurants would be Karon (in between the two), try the Karon Beach Resort, right on the beach.

For a fantastic beach to rest on I think you can%26#39;t go past Naithon, a very quiet coastal strip, try Naithonburi. The only thing is there are literaly only a few restaurants in Naithon and it doesn%26#39;t resemble Patong at all with the range of choice, think total opposite. Nai Yang is also peaceful and offers a nice beach, try Indigo Pearl, there are many more restaurants here but mostly basic establishments right on the beach.

You could also consider Kamala, no idea about accomodation there but it seems peaceful with a nice beach, especially the northern end, and a small village supporting the area. Surin is stuning, once again I have no idea about hotels here, they seem expensive though. Which leads us on to Laguna/Bang Tao, this is also popular, a huge stretch of pristine beach with a range of accomodation, not too sure about how well it%26#39;s supported by infrastructure though.

Thanks pokip - I%26#39;ll have a look at some of those.

We%26#39;re really just after a beautiful hotel, thai style rather than business traveller style, somwhere we we can relax on the beach during the day (we arrive at 10am) and then go for a decent meal and drinks in the evening.

Have been to Patong and do not want to be somewhere that tacky again!