The largest and main administrative city is named the same as the island: Phuket. To distinguish the names, "Town" is always added to the name.
Although Phuket Town is not directly by the sea and has no beaches, it is the best place to stay if you want to explore the island and go on daily excursions.
What to do and see in Phuket Town?
The sprawling town lies in the eastern part of the island and is the only one on Phuket to boast a beautiful little historic centre,
It also serves as one of the main commercial centres with many shopping malls, especially around the outskirts of town.
Old Town
Phuket's historic centre is one of the oldest in all of Thailand.
On 10 streets you can admire the colorful houses of the so-called Chinese-Portuguese style, which originally date back to the 16th century.
The Old Town is filled with a variety of tourist shops and restaurants that, while tempting in quality, are priced up to 3 times higher than street eateries elsewhere in Phuket.
Phuket Old Town is a relatively small area right in the middle of town that you can walk through in 30 minutes.
The night markets
Night street markets are very popular in Thailand, especially for food, but also for various souvenirs or clothing. Phuket Town is no exception and here you will also come across several night markets.
- Lard Yai (location on google.com/maps) - the most famous and expensive market, which turns the entire central Thalang Road into one big market.
- Open only on Sundays from about 17:00 to 23:00
- Talat Yai (location on google.com/maps) - a local market with very cheap food on the outskirts of town towards the wharf
- Open Wednesday, Thursday and Friday 4pm-8pm
- Naka Local Market (location at google.com/maps) - the largest market in the western part of the city near the big shopping centres. It's one of the more expensive and touristy ones, but absolutely great to eat here.
- Open Saturday y Sunday from 16:00 to 23:00
Mongkhon Nimit Temple
On the northern edge of the Old City, visit the beautiful Buddhist temple of Mongkhon Nimit.
The temple is not as large as the largest temples in Bangkok and will take you about 20 minutes to visit.
The grounds are open from 5am to 7pm and admission is free. However, a strict dress-code is required, i.e. long pants and draped shoulders.
Accommodation Phuket Town
The town is a great starting point for business trips. In order to have the songtaew bus stops in the Old Town at your fingertips, we recommend choosing accommodation within walking distance of the centre.
The cheapest hotels with private bathrooms in the room offer a night from 20 usd.
Furthermore, right in town you will come across many good quality local hotels with prices up to 50 usd. We would recommend these:
However, you can also stay in large multinational chains and 5* hotels, where you can expect significantly lower prices than the main resorts on the west coast.
Transport in the city
Phuket Town is the only place on the island with its own public transport and a major transport hub.
All songtaew (open-bodied buses with seats) and long-distance buses around Thailand depart from here, and there is also a regular ferry landing.
Pink Bus
Public transport is provided by several lines of pink songtaew buses. Although you will read on various websites that local bus lines operate modern air-conditioned buses, this information is not current.
All the pink buses operate in the form of songtawas, i.e. pick-ups with an open back for passengers.
Fares are uniform on all routes and cost 15 thb. The fare is paid to the conductor, who sits at the entrance of the bus at all times.
Frequency on each route is approximately 30 minutes and buses run from approximately 6:30am to 6:00pm.
Blue Bus - lokální autobusy
On Ranong Central Street, you'll find the main stops of the songthaew buses, which are referred to as "blue buses" depending on their colouring or "beach buses" depending on their destinations.
Use these services to travel from Phuket Town to other parts of Phuket Island.
There are two stops on Ranong Street.
- Near the beginning of the street at the roundabout (exact location on google.com/maps)
- Departures towards Bang Rong, Sarasin Bridge, Surin, Kamala, Ao Makhang (Aquarium), Rawai, Nai Harn
- Behind the market at Chinotel level (exact location at google.com/maps)
- Departures towards Patong, Kata, Karon
Long distance buses
Buses outside Phuket depart from two different bus stations.
- Bus Terminal 1 in the centre (exact location on google.com/maps)
- Nearby destinations like Phang Nga, Krabi, Hat Yai, Ranong, Si Thammarat and more
- Bus Terminal 2 in the north of the city (exact location at google.com/maps)
- Long distance destinations like Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Hua Hin and others
For detailed information on travelling around the island, see the chapter Transportation in Phuket.
What to see around
Discover all the places to see in Phuket.
