Phuket is the pier. The islands are the point.
Which speedboat reaches Maya Bay before the crowds, what a canoe into the hongs costs, and the elephant mornings with no riding at all. Reviews of the day trips, shows and classes you can book on and around Phuket.
Four island runs from the east-coast piers
A canoe in the bay, Phi Phi, the elephants, a fight night.
The four bookings most Phuket weeks are built around, with what each costs.
01Phang Nga BayPhang Nga Bay Sea Cave Canoeing & James Bond Island by Big BoatPaddled through sea caves into the hongs, then on to Ko Tapu. A big boat keeps the price down and the deck shaded.
02Phi PhiPhi Phi Islands Adventure Day Trip w/ Seaview Lunch by V. MarineMaya Bay from the boardwalk side, a swim off Pileh, lunch with a sea view. Book the early boat if you hate queues on the jetty.
03InlandElephant Jungle Sanctuary Ethical Feeding ExperienceFeeding and walking with rescued elephants, no riding. The hills behind Kathu are a different Phuket from the beach strip.
04After darkPatong Boxing Stadium Muay Thai Match TicketA full card of Muay Thai bouts in Patong. Ringside costs more and is worth it for the first two fights.
Speedboat, catamaran, longtail or canoe: how you cross the Andaman decides the day.
A Phi Phi speedboat gets you there in under an hour and shakes you about. A catamaran is slower and calmer. Longtails nose into the Phang Nga shallows, and only a canoe fits through the cave mouths into the hongs.
Speedboat daysThe most islands in one day, the bumpiest ride.
2
Catamaran daysShade, a net to lie on, sunset on the way home.
3
Longtail daysLow, loud and close to the karst walls.
4
Sea canoe daysPaddled under the cliffs into the hidden lagoons.
All 50 boat trips in one list →
★★★★★★★★★★ 4.7 · from $53Phang Nga Bay and Canoeing Tour by Big Boat
What Phuket visitors book most.
Every Phuket tour we review →The day trips and tickets more people take than anything else on the island, and the reason each one keeps selling.
1
Phang Nga Bay and Canoeing Tour by Big Boat
Spend 10 hours exploring Phang Nga Bay from Phuket aboard a two-story boat, with hotel pickup, buffet lunch, drinks, and guided canoe trips at Panak and Hong islands. A local paddler takes you through caves and quiet lagoons, so you do not need to paddle yourself. You’ll also visit James Bond Island and see Tapu rock.
From · $53
Read our review →
2
Paradise Trip ATV Jungle Adventure
from $32
3
Phi Phi Islands and Maya Bay Day Trip with Lunch
from $34
4
Full Day City Tour with Night Market
from $31
5
Phuket Thai Cooking Class with Market Tour Option
from $65
6
YONA Floating Beach Club Day Experience
from $64
7
Guided Tour of Phuket City with Hotel Transfers
from $38
8
3 Khai Islands Relax & Snorkeling Half/Full Day Tour
from $24
Phang Nga Bay is a drowned forest of limestone. Go in by canoe.
Forty-odd minutes north-east of Phuket the karst towers start, some with whole lagoons hollowed inside them. Boats anchor outside; guides paddle you through the cave mouth when the tide allows. Ko Tapu, the needle on every postcard, is the last stop, not the best one.
Elephants, dirt trails and a zipline over the Phuket rainforest.
The middle of the island is hills and rubber plantations, and that is where the sanctuaries, the ATV tracks up to the Big Buddha and the canopy ziplines are. Mornings are cooler for all of it.
Phuket Town is shophouses and dim sum. The Big Buddha watches from Nakkerd Hill.
Thalang Road keeps its Sino-Portuguese fronts painted in mint and lemon, and breakfast is mee hokkien before the heat. Up the hill the white marble Buddha looks over Chalong Bay, a short ride from Wat Chalong.
Every Phuket city tour →Three nights out you only get in Phuket.
Beach bars are everywhere in the Andaman. A paddle into a cave lagoon by starlight, Simon Cabaret and a fight card in Patong are not.
Hong by Starlight
The canoes go into the hongs late in the afternoon, timed to the tide so the cave mouths are passable. You come out into the bay as the light goes, fold a krathong from banana leaf and float it on the water after dark. On a good night the plankton glows when you trail a hand.
- 1Phang Nga Bay Sea Cave Canoeing & James Bond Island by Big Boat★★★★★★★★★★ 5.0 · 4,666 reviews
- 2Phang Nga Bay and Canoeing Tour by Big Boat★★★★★★★★★★ 4.7 · 3,528 reviews
- 3James Bond Island Longtail Boat and Sea Canoe Tour★★★★★★★★★★ 4.8 · 2,364 reviews
Simon Cabaret
Phuket’s ladyboy cabaret has run on the Patong strip since the early nineties: feathers, lip-sync, costume changes every few minutes and a finale built for the photo queue outside. Three shows a night; the early one suits families, the late one fills with the bar crowd.
- 1Simon Cabaret Show Admission Ticket★★★★★★★★★★ 4.5 · 570 reviews
- 2Simon Cabaret Show Entry Ticket★★★★★★★★★★ · 500 reviews
- 3Simon Cabaret Show Tickets Optional First 3 Rows★★★★★★★★★★ 4.5 · 384 reviews
Muay Thai in Patong
Every bout opens with the wai kru, a slow ritual dance to pipe and drum before the first kick lands. A card runs through a mix of young local fighters and foreign contenders, with the headline fight last. Arrive for the opening bouts; they are often the fiercest.
- 1Patong Boxing Stadium Muay Thai Match Ticket★★★★★★★★★★ 4.7 · 2,203 reviews
- 2Bangla Boxing Stadium Muay Thai Ticket★★★★★★★★★★ 4.7 · 393 reviews
- 3Muay Thai Boxing Class at Rachai Muay Thai Gym★★★★★★★★★★ 4.9 · 197 reviews
When the southwest monsoon closes the sea, Phuket moves indoors.
From May the swell builds, red flags go up on Patong and Kata, and some island boats cancel the night before. Afternoon storms pass in an hour. Keep the boat day flexible and fill the wet ones with a cooking class, a long massage or a show.
Four Phuket days that run on someone else’s calendar.
Most of the island can be booked from a sunbed the night before. These depend on park seasons, tides and fixed numbers of seats.
- 01Similan Islands Snorkeling Day Tour from PhuketThe Similan national park closes to visitors from mid-May to mid-October. In season the day boats run full.
- 02Phi Phi Islands and Maya Bay Day Trip with LunchMaya Bay shuts every August and September so the reef can recover, and landings are capped for the rest of the year.
- 03Hong by Starlight: Sea Cave Kayaking and Loy Krathong FloatingOne departure a day, timed to the tide, with a set number of canoes.
- 04Elephant Jungle Sanctuary Ethical Feeding ExperienceSanctuaries take small groups at fixed feeding times, and the cooler morning sessions go first.
What a Phuket day out costs, from a Khai Islands half day to a private longtail.
Three price brackets, per person. Plenty of good Phuket days cost less than a beach-club lunch.
Khai Islands half days, city loops with the viewpoints, Muay Thai tickets and the elephant feeding sessions.
The full island days: Phi Phi by speedboat, Phang Nga Bay by big boat, ATV and zipline combos.
Private longtails, sunset yachts and the scuba days that include the dive gear.
Patong to Phang Nga Bay: the week most first visits follow.
Patong
Old Town
Big Buddha
Phang Nga Bay
Phi Phi
KrabiBy place: the island, the bay and the islands beyond
By kind of day: boat, trail, stage or kitchen
New Phuket tour reviews.
Every new Phuket review →
Coral and racha Islands Snorkeling Trip with Lunch
Read our review →
ATV Quad Mountain Adventure with Panoramic Sea View
Read our review →
Zipline Adventure Ocean Views in Patong & Transfer
Read our review →
Athena Cabaret Show Ticket with Roundtrip Transfer
Read our review →
Phi Phi Island Highlights: Cruise, Snorkel & Buffet Lunch
Read our review →
Phang Nga Bay: Skywalk at Samet Nangshe Entry Ticket
Read our review →
