Karon Beach Shopping

Where to Shop in Karon Beach

Karon Beach is a five-kilometre stretch of squeaky white sand three kilometres south of Patong. The Karon area is home to several large hotels and is much less crowded than neighbouring Patong as it is more spread out. Shopping in this area is also more relaxed than in Patong yet you can buy most of the same items, it all depends if you know where to go.

Karon Circle

Shopping in Karon starts at the beach traffic circle. Here, you will find a supermarket for all your drinks/snacks and hygiene needs. If you walk up the main road towards Karon's Buddhist Temple you'd be forgiven for thinking that the area is made up entirely of photo labs, pharmacies, banks and tailors and more tailors and more bars than Las Vegas, although with more modest prices.

Take an evening stroll up to Karon Circle, with its sculptures of workers commemorating Phuket's tin-mining and agricultural past, and do some shopping. You will find a wide selection of shoes, fake name-brand watches, sunglasses, bags and suitcases and all sorts of souvenirs, from silk cushion covers to wooden handicraft items, to toy elephants. There is also an optician shop, KT Optic that offers pretty good discounts on name-brand sunglasses. In Thailand, spectacles cost a fraction of the prices they command in the west and of course computerized eye examination is free here.

Further up from the Karon Circle on the same road, the shops (mostly tailors) are soon outnumbered by bars and restaurants. In the side streets by the Centara Karon Beach Resort (formerly Soi Islandia Park Resort) stand more tailors and a dental clinic (dental treatment is a bargain for foreigners visiting Thailand and many people come here expressly for this reason) but this two parallel backstreet area is largely guesthouse and bar/restaurant territory.

Karon Bazaar

A few hundred metres south, going towards Kata on the Beach Road you'll find shoppers' paradise in the form of Karon Bazaar. This is a huge marquee/bazaar that features just about everything you'll ever need with not a tailor shop in sight. The Plaza is neon-lit and concrete-floored and it's a buyer's market as so much of the merchandise is for sale at neighboring stalls, too – so bargain hard.

Here you'll find DVD's, CD's computer games, sunglasses, silk tablecloths and bed covers, hats, Crocs, copied name-brand shoes, snorkeling sets, body boards, T-shirts, watches, belts, suitcases, beachwear, handicraft souvenirs and a whole lot more if you dig deep. Open from late morning to late at night you will even find a couple of places to eat there.
Open: From late morning to late at night.
Location: A few hundred metres south, going towards Kata on the Beach Road, between Moevenpick Resort and Woraburi Phuket Resort.

Aroona Karon

The Aroona Karon houses a range of handicraft shops as well as restaurants and cafés. The main building is the Old Phuket Resort, built in Sino-Portuguese style. This complex is a lovely place to look for souvenirs and handicrafts.
Location: On the Beach Road, next to Woraburi Resort and not far from Hilton Phuket Arcadia on the Beach Road

Souvenir Shops at Hilton Phuket Arcadia

There are good number of shops at the Hilton Phuket Arcadia located on the beach front selling upper-market and quality items including Persian/Indian rugs, and silk scarves. These are mostly Thai-made and Southeast Asian products and are not necessary cheap.
Location: On the Beach Road in front of the Hilton Phuket Arcadia Resort

Karon Plaza

There's a big sign saying 'Special & Cheap Price' at the entrance of Karon Plaza, and experienced shoppers will know that a lot of fun is to be had here, bargaining and haggling. Products are mostly Thai made and the usual gamut of T-shirts, DVD's and handicrafts is for sale.
Location: Opposite Harry’s Restaurant on Lung Phochuan Road

Having a suit made? Then read this first

Some tailor shops can be downright treasure troves of bespoke tailoring. This is because the tailors' overheads are low here, although their starting prices can be a little optimistic - for them, that is. Still, it's not unusual to get a well-cut suit with two shirts thrown in for as little as US$75.

A good tip is to leave plenty of time for your measuring process. Any reputable tailor will point out that a 24-hour service is bound to get something wrong along the way, and that tailors who boast of this service are to be avoided like the plague. Four days should be a reasonable time enough for a fitting; a week better.

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