The southernmost resort of Rawai is also the only major town with a nice beach on the eastern side of Phuket.

Beaches and swimming

Rawai Beach stretches for about 1km from the harbour pier southwards, but it's not as popular compared to the larger beaches on the island's west coast.

The beach is quite narrow and not very safe for swimming due to the very heavy traffic of small boats.

However, Rawai has a beautiful shaded promenade with benches and is an ideal place for a short rest after a sightseeing cruise.

Accommodation in Rawai

The town is an ideal place to stay if you are looking for a local resort from which there are individual cruises to the islands south of Phuket, which you arrange yourself right on the beach.

As Rawai has no big famous beach, accommodation here is cheaper than on the west coast and has a more local feel. At the same time, there are full facilities in the form of many restaurants, supermarkets or agencies offering organised tours.

What accommodation in Rawai would we recommend?

Cheapest hotels to 40 usd - Rawai Whale Resort
International Hotels - Wyndham La Vita Rawai Phuket *****

Rawai is a popular resort for digital nomads, for example.

Transportation to Rawai

There are sogntaews to Rawai via Chalong from Phuket Town, approximately once an hour between 6:30am and 4pm. The fare is 40 thb. Songtaews run along the main street all along the beach where you can hitch a ride anywhere.

The regular bus line also ends in Rawai.

Smart Bus - single price 100 thb or 299 thb for a day ticket
- Runs on the route HKT Airport - Surin - Kamala - Patong - Karon - Kata - Rawai
- Frequency 30 to 60 minutes
- Timetable and information: phuketsmartbus.com

You won't find large parking lots in Rawai, so you have to park only on the edges of very busy streets.