Take your time and have a look at my travelogue. It has nothing to do with Pattaya or other destinations in Thailand, but that doesn't really matter. Phuket is very beautiful, but also an expensive place.
Fanta Sea Cultural Theme Park
The most beautiful attraction of Phuket is for me the "Fanta Sea Cultural Theme Park". This alone makes a trip to Phuket worthwhile. I have yet to see a better amusement park like this one. You can spend the whole evening here in an incomparably beautiful atmosphere. When you visit the park, you will find yourself transported to a fantasy world that brings you closer to the legends of the Kingdom of Thailand.
The absolute highlight in this park is the live animal show in the Elephant Palace. The show is unique in the world because it combines real animals with fireworks, laser shows and people and animals flying through the air. The video and photo cameras must be handed in before the show, because there is a risk that the animals are distracted by flashes and you can not see anything of the show because of all the people who want to film.
Before the show, we recommend a meal in the "Golden Kinnaree" buffet restaurant, where you can eat everything you can imagine.
The money you spend that evening in the park is not a loss but a pleasure for all senses a gain for everyone. The tickets for the park should be pre-booked in any case in the hotel or travel office, because the park is very well visited and you save so trouble or stress.
Nut Factory Orchid Sri Bhurapa
A nice souvenir from Phuket for those who stayed at home are the cashew nuts. You can see the processing of nuts at Orchid Sri Bhurapa Factory on Thanon Street. Here the tasty nuts are freed from the shell and refined in many handmade steps with different flavor variations.
You can see the nuts z.B.with honey, chocolate and sesame seeds or with different hot spices like paprika. There are tons of different flavors to try to find the best one for you.
Between tasting the nuts or the dried fruit which is also offered for sale, you get a delicious green tea to get the taste buds free again or just to quench your thirst.
The nuts grow on Phuket, southern Thailand and are not easy to process, because the oil is very corrosive to the skin irritates, the women also bind their fingers when opening the shells. To get the oil from the nut, they are baked for 12 hours at low temperatures.
The cashew nut is said to have several medicinal properties and is even said to increase sexual stamina. The Orchid Sri Bhurapa Factory has been in operation for over 30 years and is family owned with over 80 employees and 2 other cashew nut factories.
The refined nuts taste very good and you can not look so fast as they are nibbled by relatives, friends or acquaintances. So take a few more packs with you so that there is still something left for you! You can also buy the nuts at Phuket Airport in the departure area (domestic), where the nut factory runs its own branch.
Delicious banana pancakes
These delicious banana pancakes are available at every corner, you can treat yourself every day, simply delicious. Must try!!
Wat Chalong
One of the most beautiful temples I have seen on my travels is the "Wat Chalong" on Phuket. Here are many temples to visit on a large area.
The site is very well maintained and everywhere you look you see golden decorations and people casually burning incense to their god. If you are lucky you can also see one of the many ceremonies that are held by monks inside the temples.
The daily ceremonies that are held by the monks are definitely interrasant and convey an inner peace. Many locals come to the Wat to pray or wish for good luck. With incense sticks and flowers for Buddha, they hope that everything will come true.
Khao Sok National Park
A day trip to the nearby "Khao Sok" National Park in the south of Thailand costs 2850,- Baht from Phuket. You can enjoy here in the national park a very pristine landscape with huge limestone cliffs, rivers and waterfalls.
Here is nothing obstructed and you can see all kinds of animals like z.B. Snakes and wild monkeys. The excursion includes a ride on an elephant through the jungle, lunch and a canoe tour on the river past huge limestone rocks.Again, the excursion can be booked directly at the hotel or at the travel office without any problems.
Here are a few more tips for the trip:
Take a backpack with a second pair of shoes, pants, shirt or t-shirt and a towel, insect repellent and drinks. A plastic bag preferably airtight sealable has proven to be advantageous, because it can come to sudden rain pours in the jungle.
James Bond Rock
Forget the "James Bond" rock, you can see more beautiful and bigger rocks on the "Santana Sea Canoe Tour". The way there is worthwhile in any case, because one is driven through beautiful mangrove forests and gets to see thereby scenically a lot.
In the mangroves you can then experience a lot like z.B. happened to me that the propeller got caught in a root. Thus it is then lost in the infinite widths of the mangroves.
Another boat came to our rescue to get us out of our predicament. Near the "James Bond" rock there is a village that is completely built on the water, it is called "Koh Pannyi" Sea Gypsy Island or in German sea gypsy island.
This island is located near some nice big rocks. There you get a lunch served and lots of handmade things to buy. This is a very good extra income for the fishermen on the island with their families. The trip can be booked again easily from the hotel or travel office.You will be picked up early by bus from your hotel and you don't have to worry about anything.
You should take a backpack with a change of clothes, drinks and a raincoat for this day trip. With photo or video recordings on the ship one should be careful, because very fast splash water can come from the boat on the lenses.
Dry then the water drops and you want to clean the lens it can happen that you leave beautiful scratches in the lens. Note that small salt crystals from the water can remain on the lens when drying off.The bus tour leads back to a cashew nut shop where you can buy some delicious souvenirs.
Santana Sea Canoe Tour
I can recommend the Santana Sea Canoe Tour to anyone staying on Phuket. The tour is a one day trip through Phangnga Bay, which is part of the Marine National Park. You will be picked up by a bus from the hotel and then taken to the boat, where you will have a nice breakfast with the boss himself.
The drinks are free and you only have to pay for the beer if you want to drink some, a great service I think.
The food is very good, you even get real brown bread served, a pleasure I can only say, because you didn't expect it at all. You can learn a lot about the surroundings and the tour during the meal. After breakfast we start soon. You are allowed to paddle by yourself or you will be driven, which is of course not as easy as it always looks like. Especially if you have a bit rough seas it can be quite exhausting.
The guided tours through the "Honks" that are the lagoons that you can only reach through caves into the interior of the huge limestone rocks, are led by the boss personally and I think they are unique.You feel like Jule Verne when you drive through the caves into a new world. I thought I could see the Nautilus appearing at any moment to take us on board.
Here is a tip: take a spare pair of clothes and a towel with you, because you can get wet. Waterproof containers for cameras in the canoes are available and you should definitely make use of them.
Bang Pae Waterfall
If you are looking for a short relaxation from the hustle and bustle, you can make a trip to the "Bang Pae" waterfall.The waterfall is located in the north of Phuket in the "Khao Phra Thaeo" National Park.
Before you go to the waterfall, you can visit the "Gibbon Rehabilitation Project", which is only a short distance from the entrance to the trail.
The gibbons have been freed from captivity and are being nursed back to health. One hopes to release as many monkeys as possible back into the wild.You can support the project with a small donation and your signature.Be sure to take a second pair of shoes with you, because under certain circumstances it can get quite wet on the way in the jungle.
You should take some water bottles with you, because you will get exhausted in the jungle with the very high humidity and the high temperatures.Once you are standing in the middle of the jungle and hear nothing else but the sounds of the forest, you can totally switch off and relax.
Diving on Phuket
If you want to dive, it is better to go in the dry season, because in the rainy season the sea is quite uncomfortable. One can become already really badly seasick to the rainy season and enjoy the diving no more.
In the Andaman Sea the underwater visibility is quite mixed, from good to very bad, within a few hours everything is there. But then you are rewarded with beautiful soft corals, sharks, rays and sea snakes. My most beautiful diving experiences on Phuket I had with Maritta from See Bees. Code name is "seahorse.
She was one of the first to dive on Phuket and knows her way around underwater, no matter where.If I were you, I would try to book her for a few days for you privately, then you have enough time to explore everything underwater with her. Especially if you want to film or take pictures, she knows the best places and really finds the best stuff for you.
My hotel on Phuket
As a diver you can best stay at the "Palm Garden Resort" in Ao Chalong. The hotel complex consists of several bungalows set in a beautiful palm grove with a swimming pool. In the surrounding area you can go shopping, eat well or simply enjoy the nightlife in one of the many beer bars.