From coastal retreats to jungle hideouts, private beaches to personal butlers, muay Thai trainers to twin pools—Thailand’s largest island and longest-standing holiday hotspot has hotel options aplenty, but picking the right one can be a daunting task. Phuket is blessed with more than thirty different bays and beaches, and while they all score top marks in terms of postcard prettiness, their vibes (and therefore, their hotel line-ups) vary widely.
Most of the holiday action happens around the bays on its western coast, from the laid-back Nai Harn and Rawai beaches in the coral-fringed deep south to the seemingly endless stretch of crowd-free sand of Mai Khao on the island’s north. In between, there’s naughty nightlife around Patong, family fun around Kamala, and an inspired restaurant scene around the expat hub of Bang Tao. Cross the island’s jungle-cloaked heart for a culture fix in Phuket Town, where smart cafes and next-gen cocktail bars blow new life into the Sino-Portuguese warehouses lining its oldest streets. Nearby, the quiet and craggy coastline of Cape Panwa delivers eye-popping views over the island-dotted Phang Nga Bay.
We’ve narrowed down the hundreds of places to stay to a tight edit of our favourite Phuket hotels—in no particular order.
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