Phuket Travel Information, Thailand

Air

Phuket International Airport receives direct flights from countries all over the world as well as connecting flights from Bangkok bringing more than 3 million visitors a year to this emerald isle.

Scheduled direct flights include:

• China Airline - Taipei, Khaoshung
• Condor Air - SHJ
• Dragon Air - Hong Kong
• Lauda Air - Vienna
• LTU - Munich
• Malaysia Airlines - Kuala Lumpur
• Martin Air - Amsterdam
• Silk Air - Singapore
• Thai Airways - Perth, Taipei, Hong Kong, Kuala Lumpur, Penang, Singapore, Frankfort and Seoul
• Angel Air - Bangkok, Singapore, Chiang Mai
• Bangkok Airways - Koh Samui

Charter flights include:

• BalAir - Zurich
• Britannia Airways - Manchester
• Britannia Scandinavia - Scandinavia
• FinnAir - Helsinki
• Martin Air - Amsterdam
• NovAir - Sweden
• PremiAir - Sweden
• UNI Airways - Khaoshung and Taipei

Flights to and from Bangkok take about an hour and are generally scheduled on the hour. Check Thai Airways extensive website for exact times.

Sea

A relaxing and scenic way to arrive in Phuket is by sea on one of the cruise liners operated by Star Flyer or Star Cruises. Information on these cruises can be obtained from Pacific Leisure Ltd. or your local agent. Most are on regular runs covering the Malacca Straits and Singapore.

If you come from abroad by private yacht, it's necessary to check in with Immigration and Customs on Chalong Bay, on the southern end of Phuket. For more information, see our sailing pages or Sail Thailand (Bangkok: Artasia Press, 3rd ed. 1999).

Road

Phuket, 885km south of Bangkok, is connected to the mainland by a 1200m causeway. The bus ride from Bangkok takes about 14 hrs, leaving from the Southern Bus Terminal. The buses are reasonably priced, comfortable, air-conditioned (bring a sweater and socks!), staffed with a host or hostess and make a meal stop on the way. There is frequently a movie shown and drinks and sacks are served as well as ice-cold, refreshing moist towelettes.

The bus from Phuket to Bangkok leaves from the bus terminal located off Phang-nga Rd, not the central market area. Ask the tuk-tuk driver to take you to the air-con bus terminal, tell him you want to go to Bangkok. The bus terminal is also where you would catch a bus to take you to Surat Thani and then the train on up to Bangkok.

Both of these trips, by bus or train, are overnight and get you into Bangkok pretty early the next morning. There are regular mini-bus trips from Singapore and Penang and other sites in South Thailand which are reasonably priced but only recommended for the young, the brave or the hungry for adventure. They tend to be overcrowded and built for small Thais not larger farangs.

Rail

A more indirect but somewhat more comfortable method of getting to Phuket overland from Bangkok involves the night train. Sleeping berths allow you to stretch out for the night but a word of warning - Thais get an early start on the day so there will be no late morning sleep-in on the train. Vendors ply their food wares at stops as well as cold drinks. The train departs from Hua Lumphong Railway Station in Bangkok then to Surat Thani, where you transfer to a bus or fly direct to Phuket. (See below for information on Air Andaman flights to Phuket).

To return to Bangkok via the same way everything is just reversed: you take a bus or flight from Phuket to Surat Thani where the train to Bangkok departs. On the same track, trains from Butterworth in Malaysia (adjacent to Penang) connect with Singapore and stop at Surat Thani.

GETTING AROUND SOUTHERN THAILAND

Air

Bangkok Airways offers a daily 25-minute flight to and from Koh Samui on the other side of the peninsula. Krabi, located about 160 km from Phuket, has a domestic airport just opened in the summer of 1999. Air Andaman has recently begun operating daily flights between Phuket and Krabi, with schedules dependent on the season and weather conditions. They also operate a Phuket-Surat Thani flight daily. Call the Air Andaman Phuket Office: 076-351374, 351375; Krabi Office: 075-691495 or Surat Thani Office: 077-441160 for details.

Koh Samui does have an international airport. Book your tickets early, especially during the November-May high season.

Sea

Regular ferries ply between Phuket and Koh Phi Phi and thence on to Krabi. These scenic boat trips are caught at the pier in Phuket Town off Soi Suthat. They leave and arrive daily and most local tour operators will have a schedule posted. There are no regular ferry services from other countries.

Road

Regularly scheduled air-conditioned buses depart from the bus terminal in Phuket off of Phang-nga Rd to all points in southern Thailand whether your destination be Krabi, Hatyai, Trang, Surat Thani, Songkhla or somewhere in between. They are comfortable and reasonably priced (i.e. to Krabi is about 102 baht, to Hatyai is about 245 baht).

There are also local long-distance buses that connect to all places in Thailand. You will be able to spot them since the windows will be wide open (there's no air-conditioning) and they will be filled with Thais and their assorted belongings. They are inexpensive but they take a long time since they stop in most every little village enroute. They are great if you are traveling on a budget, not on a tight schedule and want to get a real experience of life in Thailand. When you go to buy your ticket at the bus terminal in Phuket and want to be sure to get an air-con bus, be certain you buy your ticket at the ticket window. Hawkers for the local buses will approach you as you walk in the terminal entrance.

Minibuses also do a brisk transport business around southern Thailand but they are cramped, overcrowded and the drivers all treat the highway like a Thai version of the Monte Carlo Rally.

Taxi service (a hired car and driver) is another way to get around but they can be expensive and can also, although not always, be nerve-wracking. However if you have folks to share the cost, a taxi can be a great way to go for the driver will stop wherever you want, is frequently full of interesting information and can be very helpful when it comes to language problems.

Hitch-hiking, a common method of travel among young backpackers throughout the Western world, is just not done in Thailand. For one thing, the Thais would be appalled thinking you couldn't afford the price of a bus ticket and insist on paying for one for you and secondly, it could be quite dangerous especially if you can't speak the language with any fluency. Generally, however, travel within Thailand is quite safe if you can just disregard the insanity of the drivers on the road.

Rail

The main train stations for southern Thailand are at Surat Thani and Hatyai; there's no way to travel east to west by rail. The train will take you to the border on the eastern side and is a scenic and enjoyable trip with wide open windows, vendors at every stop, and Thais of all walks of life enjoying your presence in their midst. Again, some smattering of Thai is very useful for you will not find many who speak English but those who do will take it as a golden opportunity to practise their English with you.

GETTING AROUND PHUKET

Public transport From the airport, there are "limousines", at 600 = 700 baht (US$16) to Phuket Town or to one of the west-coast beaches. The mini-bus service is about 80 baht (US$2), but be warned, sometimes it takes a while -- the driver and his assistant may take some of the passengers shopping for accommodation.

Tuk-tuks are small, open taxis found everywhere on the island. Within Phuket Town there is generally a set fare of between 20 - 40 baht depending on the distance within town that you are traveling. Anything outside of Phuket Town is negotiable and be warned - the drivers will spot you as a tourist and go for as much as they can get. Find out from your hotel perhaps, what a reasonable fare might be from where you are to where you want to go, for instance from Patong to Phuket Town is around 200 baht, then stand firm and bargain.

Offer the driver lower than what you have decided upon. If he won't agree on that price just say No Thank You and walk away. Chances are he will agree as he sees his fare disappearing. If not, there are lots more tuk-tuks around to choose from. It never pays to lose your temper with Thais - you will only get even more hot than you already are and they will get stubborn for you have lost face with them. Also, don't feel totally singled out because you are a Westerner, local Thais raise their rates to Thais from other parts of Thailand like those from Bangkok or from the north as well.

Local buses are easily identifiable by their blue color and gaily painted destination signs printed in English and Thai. They travel the island on designated routes between 6:00 am and 6:00 pm and are to be caught in Phuket Town at the central market. They can be subject to detours as they drive down a soi (a small side road) to deliver a passenger, usually a woman with her bags and boxes of goods. These side excursions give you a glimpse of real Thai life on the island as you wander narrow little side lanes to arrive at some small village. In the late afternoon they are filled with school children.

If you want to catch the bus from outside Phuket Town just flag one down on a main road by waving your hand palm down. They stop everywhere. They can be slow and crowded but are also quite inexpensive, never costing more than 40 baht for the longest route.

Motorcycle taxis are for the stouter of heart, and the fares are to some extent negotiable although in Phuket Town they are pretty consistent and similar to the tuk-tuk fares. Two main places in town to catch them are at the central market and outside Robinson's Department Store. Usually there is one man who speaks English who will help you tell the driver where you want to go and help negotiate a price. The motorcycle taxi drivers are recognisable by the numbered red vests worn by the drivers. Again, not many of these drivers speak much English.

Do not ever get in a car or on a motorcycle that is not immediately identifiable as a legitimate operator. Be highly suspicious of anyone who pulls up in a car with darkened windows, no telephone number or service name printed on the vehicle and rolls down the window to ask where you are going and offering you a great deal. Thais are generous people for the most part and in the past perhaps it would have been fine to take such an offer but not any more. In any country there are always those that prey on unsuspecting people. Don't become a statistic; stick with the bona fide transportation operators.

Car rentals

Jeeps are readily available for hire by the day or week. Make sure that insurance coverage is included (it often isn't) as it is the driver's responsibility to pay all damage costs. In case of an accident, the richer party (i.e. the tourist) is usually responsible for all costs - real and imagined. The logic behind this is inescapable: if you had not come to the island, the accident would never have happened - so it is obviously your fault. Simple.

Motorcycle rentals

Everything from little mopeds to 750cc "big bikes" are available at reasonable prices by the day or week. You must look after your own welfare, however, and check to see whether the brakes and so on are in working order; you cannot assume they will be. Note that insurance coverage is not available for motorcycles. You must pay for any damage - and you won't get your passport back until you do! This also applies to your own injuries. You should also wear a helmet; the authorities have been enforcing a new helmet law on the island and always carry your driving license with you. Drive carefully -- always assume everyone else on the road is determined to kill you and you won't go wrong. Larger vehicles take precedence over smaller ones at all times.

Please take care if you are planning on renting any kind of vehicle while visiting Phuket, especially a motorcycle. Last year, 1998, there were more than 10,000 injuries sustained in motorcycle accidents and 179 people were killed. Thai driving is erratic at best and very dangerous at worst. The road may look like a two-lane road to you but to a Thai it's at the least a five-lane free-for-all.

Ferries & tour boats

Regular ferry services run between Phuket and Koh Phi Phi, the spectacular island group a couple of hours away to the east. and on to the Phra-nang Peninsula and Krabi. Tour boats also do daytrips to the Similan Islands, about 50 miles to the north-west, which are famed for the quality of their diving. Boat rentals A lovely way to visit the nearby islands such as Coral Island or Koh Bon is to take a longtail boat. These traditional wooden boats are to be found along Rawai Beach on the very southern end of the island. You can rent one with a driver for an all day excursion or just a journey to the bungalows on Coral Island.

Speedboats are also available for rental on Rawai. It's best to reserve one of these a day ahead. These 30-knot, bright red boats can get you to the Similan Islands for diving or snorkeling and back within a day.

Sea canoe rentals can take you into the magical world of the islands of Phang-nga Bay. To see these marvelous caves and incredible formations always go with a reputable company such as Sea Canoe or Andaman Sea Kayak and experienced oarsmen for some of the entrances into the secret inner worlds of the cliffs are only open for 30-60 seconds and must be done exactly right.

Other ways to get around the Andaman Sea involve chartering a sailing yacht or getting a place on a live-aboard diveboat. (See also our "Watersports" page).

Bicycle rentals

Bicycling around the island is gaining in popularity as a way for the young and fit to see the sights. There are a couple bike rental operations on both sides of the island as well as a bicycle club - Phuket Mountain Bike Club. Contact the club for information on their excursions as they frequently plan outings to interesting sites.

Elephants

Elephants are a traditional Thai mode of transportation. They are not available for individual rental to tour the island but at places like Siam Safari you can get a half hour to hour trek through jungle and rubber tree plantations aboard these gentle giants. Siam Safari also houses the Thai Elephant Conservation Project.

Walking

There are miles of beaches to stroll on, a National Park to trek through and hundreds of gift shops, craft shops, markets and parks to explore in your own time and at your own pace. Always be careful of the sun, wearing a hat and sunscreen as well as carrying water with you.

VISAS & HEALTH

Visa requirements

Most nationalities can get a 30-day tourist visa upon arrival. This is non-extendable. If you overstay the term of the visa, there is a fine of 200 baht (about US$5) per day. Tourist visas are available from the Thai Embassy or Consulate in your own country and are good for up to two months with a one month extension available. These should be gotten close to your departure time for there is a time limit on when they can be used.

Health advice

No special health problems exist in the Phuket area. (If you're travelling to remote areas of Thailand or planning to stay for a long time, rabies, tetanus, hepatitis and encephalitis shots are recommended, but not required). Malaria isn't a problem in the Phuket area. Prophylactic malaria medication is not recommended in any case. Most medical advice these days is simply to use insect repellent, sleep in air-conditioned rooms or under a mosquito net, and keep covered as much as possible in the evening when the mosquitoes are out and about. But we repeat: Phuket is not in a malaria zone.

If you are planning on enjoying the more adult types of entertainment offered in certain areas of the western beaches, please remember that AIDS is a major heath concern, not only here but in all of SE Asia and always use prophylactics.

Clean all cuts thoroughly as soon as possible with something like betadine. The hot, humid, tropical air is very conducive to skin infections and rashes. Always drink bottled or boiled water. Do be wary of the tropical sun. Wear strong sunscreen (20+ factor) even on cloudy days or when sheltering under a sun umbrella.

Medical facilities

Phuket has some very good hospitals that are accustomed to dealing with foreigners. Bangkok Phuket Hospital, Phaya Thai Hospital and the Phuket International Hospital are all of international standard. Ask your hotel to recommend a clinic or dentist.

On 8 January 1996, southern Thailand's first recompression centre for diving accidents opened on Phuket.

Miscellaneous advice

Bring light clothing, including shorts and swimwear. Cotton is much cooler than synthetic materials. Sunglasses are a must. Polarizing lens are recommended when you expect to be on boats. A brimmed hat is also advisable if you're going to be spending time on the water. Use sunblock. The ozone layer remains intact at these latitudes, but sunburn is never pleasant, risks of premature skin ageing or skin cancer aside.

In the wet season (roughly May-late October), you are well advised to carry a rain poncho if you're planning to travel by motorbike. Buy a good phrasebook. (Make sure the book includes some sort of tonal marks for each syllable, or it will prove ineffective).

Most of the local people you will deal with as a tourist speak English, although many people in tourism also speak French, German, Italian, Japanese and Chinese. If you plan to visit any of the many wats (Buddhist temples) or mosques please do so respectfully. Women should wear blouses with sleeves and either a skirt or long pants. Shorts and sleeveless vests are insulting in these places. Also, women may never, ever touch a monk - to do so will cause him to have to undergo extensive purification time. If you want to make a donation to a monk, hand it to a man to give to the monk.

Remember to check the expiry date on any photographic film you buy. Also remember that in tropical climates film has a shorter life, and you should shoot it and get it processed as soon as possible. The bright light, especially around water, means that you might want to stop your lens down, as well.

Electrical appliances use 220V.