01
InterContinental Phuket
Our first choice for this side of the island. The Kamala Beach location makes it particularly good for combining beach days with the nearby beach bars.
OUR PHUKET
The best of Phuket is by the sea.
We based ourselves on Kamala Beach at the InterContinental and quickly settled into the rhythm of beach mornings, boat days and evenings that could carry on long after sunset. For us, it was the perfect base for exploring this side of Phuket.
The InterContinental sits right next to Café del Mar and some other great beach bars, so there was always somewhere nearby to head for as the day started to wind down. It made the location feel particularly easy — the beach on one side and plenty happening just beyond it.
We also took a boat out for the day and headed into the national park, exploring some fantastic cave areas and stopping to swim in incredibly clear, crystal-blue seas. Getting out onto the water was one of the highlights of the trip.
We spent time on Bang Tao Beach too, where there are some good restaurants and a slightly different feel from Kamala. Another hotel worth knowing is Cape Sienna, but for us the InterContinental is the best place to stay if you want to explore the beaches and beach bars around this part of Phuket.
FROM OUR CAMERA
Phuket, as we saw it.
WHERE TO STAY
InterContinental
Our choice for this part of Phuket. The location on Kamala Beach makes it an excellent base for exploring the beaches and beach bars.
BEACH BARS
Kamala
Café del Mar is right next door, with other good beach bars nearby. It is an easy place to move from a day on the sand into the evening.
GETTING OUT
By boat
Take a boat into the national park for the caves, islands and crystal-clear water. It was one of our favourite days of the trip.
OUR RECOMMENDATIONS
Places we loved.
02
Café del Mar
Right next to the InterContinental and an easy place to settle into the afternoon before the evening gets going.
03
The National Park
Get out on the water and explore the caves and coastline. Swimming in the crystal-clear seas was a real highlight.
04
Bang Tao Beach
Worth spending some time here for a change of scene, with some good restaurants around the beach.
05
Cape Sienna
Another notable hotel on the west coast and one worth considering when looking at places to stay around Phuket.
06
A day on the water
If you only make one big excursion, make it a boat day. The caves, coastline and clear water give you a completely different view of Phuket.
OUR EDIT
Stay in Kamala and explore from there.
For us, the InterContinental was the right base. Being directly on Kamala Beach and next to Café del Mar meant that we could keep the days relaxed without being cut off from everything happening around the beach.
The real highlight, though, was getting away from the island for a day. Heading into the national park by boat, finding the cave areas and jumping into that incredibly clear water was exactly the sort of experience we wanted from Phuket.
Add in a day at Bang Tao Beach, some good restaurants and evenings around Kamala, and the whole trip had a very easy rhythm. For us, it is the best way to do Phuket.
MORE FROM OUR CAMERA
More from Phuket.
OUR MAP
Phuket.
Kamala, Bang Tao and the coastline and islands we explored around Phuket.