Phuket is a small island towards the Western side of Thailand. It used to have a burgeoning tin mining industry, so the Europeans had long made their presence felt in this part of the World. Much of the tin mining was carried out by Hokkien Chinese immigrants, and you can see their legacy in the older parts of town. Today the main business in Phuket is tourism.
I hired a car, which is the best way to get around Phuket and it is very affordable. You can hire a Toyota Vios for around THB 1,000 per day. The landscape from the airport to Phuket town is very familiar to someone coming from Malaysia.
Phuket Airport is around 30 km from Phuket Town - about 40 min driving time. There are only a few major roads so driving around is not a big problem. All you need is a good map, and I had GPS on my phone which was a great help.
As I entered Phuket Town, I got a strange feeling of deja vu. The 2 and 3-storey buildings are very similar to the ones in smaller towns back in Malaysia. As you enter the older parts of town, you could be in Penang or Malacca. The old shophouses look exactly the same - with their Sino-Portuguese/ Sino-Colonial architecture which is common in many South-East Asian towns.
Entering into Phuket Town.
I hired a car, which is the best way to get around Phuket and it is very affordable. You can hire a Toyota Vios for around THB 1,000 per day. The landscape from the airport to Phuket town is very familiar to someone coming from Malaysia.
Phuket Airport is around 30 km from Phuket Town - about 40 min driving time. There are only a few major roads so driving around is not a big problem. All you need is a good map, and I had GPS on my phone which was a great help.
As I entered Phuket Town, I got a strange feeling of deja vu. The 2 and 3-storey buildings are very similar to the ones in smaller towns back in Malaysia. As you enter the older parts of town, you could be in Penang or Malacca. The old shophouses look exactly the same - with their Sino-Portuguese/ Sino-Colonial architecture which is common in many South-East Asian towns.
Entering into Phuket Town.
Phuket has a large Chinese and Muslim population. You see many Chinese temples around, as well as mosques - often on the same street.
The monument at Phuket Town Centre.
These buses converted from trucks are quite common in Phuket. They come in small, medium and large sizes. It is difficult to imagine enduring a long trip on these "buses", but the locals don't seem to mind.
Special school delivery.
One thing really great about Phuket traffic system is the traffic light. They actually have count-down meters which show you exactly how many seconds left before change of light. I think this great idea should be adopted everywhere.
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