Beach Travel Destination: Phucket

Home to some of Thailand's most popular beaches, Phuket is a mountainous island located in the Andaman Sea. It boasts many high-end seaside resorts, spas and restaurants. Phuket is one of the southern provinces of Thailand. It consists of the island of Phuket, which is the country’s largest island, and another 32 smaller islands off of its coast. It lies off the west coast of Thailand in the Andaman Sea. Phuket Island is connected by the Sarasin Bridge to Phang Nga Province to the north. The next nearest province is Krabi, to the east, which is across Phang Nga Bay.

Capital: Phuket City

Population: Around 600,000

Official Language: Thai

Primary Religion: Theravada Buddhism

Official Currency: Thai Baht

Main Source of Income: Tourism

Climate: Tropical

National Symbol: Elephant

Fun Fact: Phuket is both an island and a province.

Helpful Tip: Phuket is pronounced, “Pooket.”

Phuket Top Attractions:  Two Heroines Monument: a monument in Amphoe Thalang, a memorial statue of the heroines Thao Thep Kasattri and Thao Sri Sunthon, who rallied islanders in 1785 to repel Burmese invaders.  Thalang National Museum: The museum contains a permanent exhibition of the cultural life in old Phuket, ancient artifacts, coastal remains, and materials used during the war with Burma.  Hat Patong : Phuket's most developed beach and is mostly made up of hotels, restaurants, nightclubs and various tourist attractions.  Hat Karon: The second largest beach in Phuket, it consists of large resort complexes and has a sister beach called Karon Noi.  Kamala Beach: a large, undeveloped beach with coral reefs on the north side and surfing in the low season. It is a tourist beach in the high season and a sleepy seaside village in the off-season.  Laem Phromthep: is a cape located on the south end of Phuket. "Phrom" is Thai for the Hindu term "Brahma", signifying purity, and "thep" is Thai for "God". Local villagers used to refer to the cape as "Laem Chao", or the God's Cape, and it was an easily recognizable landmark for the early seafarers traveling up the Malay Peninsula.  Wat Chalong: where you can find the statue of Luang Pho Cham, who helped the people of Phuket destroy the Chinese Coolie Rebellion in 1876.  Phuket Pearl Farm: It is the only pearl farm on Phuket and can be visited only by boat, but the ride is free. With up to 100,000 oysters bred annually and over 50,000 pieces of pearl jewelry designed by locals, it is a tourist destination  Khao Phra Thaeo Wildlife Conservation Development and Extension Center: a center for study of the environment, its focus is to promote the Khao Phra Thaeo Wildlife Park. The park contains a number of wild animals that would otherwise have gone extinct in Phuket.  The Big Buddha of Phuket: located on the peak of a mountain near Muang Phuket, it is covered in white Burmese marble.  Phuket Butterfly Garden and Insect World: one of the very few remaining butterfly gardens in Thailand.  Old Phuket Town: Visitors can view the Sino-Portgugese style of architecture  Phuket Aquarium: the only public aquarium in the greater region, it is recognized as a major destination on Phuket Island for both foreign and local tourists and attracts around 300,000 visitors each year.