Phuket, also known as "The Pearl of the South" or "The Pearl of Andaman", is located off the southwest coast of Thailand in the Andaman Sea, which is part of the Indian Ocean.This is the largest island of Thailand with an area of 210 square meters (30 miles from north to south and 13 miles from east to west). About the same size as Singapore.
The island is very easily accessible by Phuket International Airport, with his brand new International Terminal, and is only 1 hour by plane from Bangkok, Kuala Lumpur or Singapore.
Phuket is connected to the mainland by a bridge at the north of the island : the Sarasin Bridge.
This specificity, in contrast to most other islands accessible only by plane or by boat, makes it easy to enter or leave the island by car, motorbike or bus to visit other beautiful places like Phang Nga, Krabi and Kao Lak or the Natural Park of Kao Sok, all located less than 200km from Phuket.
By boat you can also easily visit all the islands of the Andaman Sea like Kho PhiPhi, Kho Lanta, Racha Island, the Similians, James Bond Island and the all the other islands of the beautiful Phang Nga Bay or Krabi and its surroundings.Its ideal location makes Phuket the perfect base to discover all the wonders of southern Thailand be it by air, by sea or by land.
The island of Phuket offers incredibly varied and beautiful landscapes : a deep blue and turquoise sea, sandy beaches, bays, coves, mountains covered with forests, cliffs, lagoons, all in abundant and lush tropical vegetation.
Incredible as it may seem, despite its huge tourism development, nearly 70% of the island still remains covered by forest.
The island is quite hilly on the west coast, from south to north, mountains and valleys succeed to add to the beauty of the site and offer stunning points of views.
The west coast has beautiful sandy beaches, while on the east coast they are less enjoyable, more muddy with larger variations depending on the tides.This is why almost all tourism infrastructure of the island cluster on the west coast and mainly southwest.
Patong Beach is the most touristic place in Phuket and also focuses much of its nightlife.
The main tourist cities of the island are (from south to north) : Rawai, Nai Harn, Kata, Karon, Patong, Kamala, Surin and Bang Tao.
The main tourist cities of the island are (from south to north) : Rawai, Nai Harn, Kata, Karon, Patong, Kamala, Surin and Bang Tao.
This is the only island of the country to be a province in itself. It is also the smallest and the wealthiest province in Thailand.
It is divided into three districts (Amphoe) : Mueang Phuket in the south, Thalang in the center and Kathu in the north. These three districts are subdivided into 17 communes (Tambon) and 103 villages (baan-Muu).
The administrative capital is Phuket Town (or Phuket City) and is located southeast of the island.
The administrative capital is Phuket Town (or Phuket City) and is located southeast of the island.
