BlissWorld

A big thanks to everyone for all the recommendations ^

I think I will stick with the plan, do a day tour to one of the neighboring islands, do another day tour with the elephant/river boat/national park thing, then spend another day at the hotel doing activities/massage

Now, when you say Simon Cabaret is just around the corner....will I be able to walk? That might be something to do during the evening...if I can arrange a ride.

Do you know if there are any reasonably priced places where I can do laundry around the hotel? Or is it going to be easier to have the hotel do it (if its not that much expensive)?

Thanks again

mario33

I said "almost" didnt I

It will be a long walk along hilly winding roads (towards Patong) if you really want to do it; but the theatre will actually send a van to pick you up if you book ahead (before the van heads out) and there will also be a van to drop you off after the show (just make sure you board the right one). You can book either at your hotel tour desk or at a tour booth in Patong.

There are a few shops along the small road leading to the LM. I am sure one of them will do laundry, perhaps someone could confirm.

BlissWorld

Hehe, I'll make sure to arrange a car

I was in the midst of trying to book some tours only to find out that the tours do not operate in June to Similan or Surin due to weather. Is that the norm? I think Phi Phi islands tour is the only one that's operating all year round. Will Phi Phi island be too crowded?

I was thinking about booking via phuket-travel.com. Are there any other booking place that you'd recomment? I tried communiting with the hotel but they never got back to me regarding tours. I could arrange tours when I get there, but I won't arrive until probably 6PM or later and would like to go on a tour the following day. I am afraid I won't be able to book it that late...

mario33

Not sure about your hotel (LM?), but most tour desks open till late.
And if you take the airport shuttle van to your hotel (not recommended), they will stop midway at a travel agency to solicit your business; Welcome to Thailand ! I have not made any online tour booking for quite a while, but these guys seems to be well established www.phuket.com

Raining season has started, Phuket should be less crowded now. Visitors to Phi Phi Leh are mostly concentrated in one bay (Maya Bay), so may still be crowded. Phi Phi Don is more spread out, not likely to feel the crowd.

I thought Surin is in Phuket, not that far from Patong; or are you refering to somewhere else.

Jaimito Cartero

I'll be heading to Phuket the last week of July, for a week long stay at the Hilton, with my wife and teenager. We haven't been back since the Tsunami, and we were only here for a few days that time.

I'm wondering what interesting options we can find to do. I'm mostly lazy, and hate to do much when it's blindly hot. Sitting on the beach, under an umbrella with a good book is fine with me.

The wife and teenager love shopping, but we won't be stopping in BKK, and I don't know how good of cheap shopping there will be in Phuket. Is there a good clothes bazaar?

I've always heard about some of the day long Thai cooking classes, and don't know if there's a good one for the family members to go to. We've done the whole Elephant ride stuff, so looking for interesting, yet affordable things to do.

troyb

Hi,

As part of a Oneworld award ticket, I am currently scheduled to be in Bangkok for 4 nights in late August after a 2 night stay in SIN. I was considering cutting a night off of SIN and extending my stay in Thailand by a night and spending 2 nights in Phuket/Khao Lak/Krabi as well as 3 nights in Bangkok. Is this doable/reasonable? I'd have to purchase a seperate, nested ticket on Thai between BKK and HKT, leaving several hours after my flight from SIN arrives in BKK.

I realize that Khao Lak and Krabi are a bit of a drive from HKT, but they seem like decent properties with SPG Cash and Points availability.

I'll be with my brother and plan to stay at SPG properties, so any insight into those would be helpful as well (I'm currently reading through the SPG forum).

Black Adder

Any opinions on the Holiday Inn Phi Phi Island? Was thinking about splitting my honeymoon between there and the the Holiday Inn Phuket in December but HI Phuket recently upped their points requirements from 15k to 25k points so I was thinking of spending the whole week on Phi Phi Island. Any opinions appreciated.

jezsik

I've not been there for a few years, but it was quite nice and in a lovely location. That, however, might be a strike against it. If you're looking for a romantic get away where you'll relax on the beach, take a walk in the jungle and just be together, it's great. If you're looking to go shopping, checking out restaurants and entertainment venues, you're not going to enjoy it. While you'll find some of that on Phi Phi, it's not in the same area as the Holiday Inn (and it's an expensive water taxi mafia trip back and forth).

mtacchi

One of the worst decisions I have ever made in Thailand was to book a night @ the HolidayInn Phi Phi cause it was 'cheap'.

5 Minutes after getting there (You must take a 40 minute long boat from the REAL part of Phi Phi), I knew it was going to suck.

Just spent the night and went back to 'proper' Phi Phi.

It's isolated with little to NO activity.

Property is nice enough, but seriously.. You'd think of slitting your wrist just for something to do...


EDIT.. MRS.MTACCHI wishes to add "there in not a lot to do on Phi Phi - BUT THERE IS REALLY NOT ANYTHING to do @ the Holiday Inn.

(ps.. we both like Phi Phi and thinks its really fun beach hang out, I was there diving last week, so were not anti-Phi Phi..just Anti-Holiday Inn

samplat

Just booked tickets for the first ever Samplat family trip to Phuket, arriving Nov 26 for a week! .

Looking for suggestions re places to stay:
- Mrs. Samplat has heard about Patong's party reputation and thinks it would not be a good place to stay for a family type vacation (kids ages 9 and 6). Karon or Kata beach are other options. Any opinions?

- Many of the hotels we've tried so far don't allow 2 adults+2kids in a regular room, and their villas/suites are quite pricey. Any suggestions for good places to stay? Ideally, less than $200/night but since its high season, prepared to spend more if necessary.

Thanks!

dagr8one

Hi there-

Am going to Thailand for the first time in Sep (yes, I know wet season) and would like to know if a visit to Phuket is as bad as I have heard/read elsewhere.

I have seen historical weather reports on weather underground and it seems to say "RAIN" an awful lot..

Is it really worth not going this time of year?

jezsik

My favorite visit to Phuket took place in August. Yeah, there's rain, but it's spectacular rain. The water pours down from the sky in buckets. That can get tiresome but the rains don't last very long. When the sun comes out, everything is clean and air tastes fresh.

Patong beach is pretty well protected, but I was staying at Karon where the waves were simply awesome. They're not really surfable, unfortunately, but great to play in if you're a strong swimmer.

For your first visit, it won't really matter how bad the weather is. You're going to be so agog at all the sights, sounds and tastes that you won't even notice the weather.

seanthepilot

You may want to check out Karon or Kata if you're worried about the kids... if they're in at night and on the beach in the day, I can't see it being too much of a big deal. Only you know your tolerance level.

As for prices, you can find rooms in every price range. Last week of Nov may be high at the beach resorts, but you'll find rooms (nice rooms) for as little as $24/night at the smaller places. That's our rate and some of our rooms fit 4. I'd think what you're looking for shouldn't be that hard.


I really enjoyed Sept in Phuket. With a bit of overcast, it keeps the stiffling heat away, and you can still enjoy the beach. Like the previous posted said, the rain only lasts part of the day. $1 rain ponchos are for sale everywhere if you hit a bad week.
IIRC it's October that's the reaally wet month.

mario33

If I remember correctly, that unfortunate incident at HKT took place in September last year and it was raining continously for days.

dannythecat

What's the Aleenta at Phang Nga like as far as proximity to interesting places?

A co-worker and I decided to kick around Thailand for a few days after a conference we're attending in BKK at the end of October, and we've had a hang of a time trying to choose where to stay. Ko Lanta was our original plan but we're a bit worried at making the ferry connection to make it to the airport in time for a flight back to BKK and then onto HKG, so we're focusing now on either Ko Samui or something more convenient to either the Phuket or Krabi airports.

We're hoping for a modern, fairly luxurious spot with a great low-season rate that offers a gorgeous beach and affords some good day-tripping opportunities and Aleenta seems to fit the bill. We'd prefer not to eat resort food though and would much rather visit some small beach bars and local restaurants, and I'm wondering if the Aleenta is accessible to any of these? Tripadvisor reviews seem to describe it as isolated, but my definition of "a long way to town" is a lot more generous than most people's

Any insight is much appreciated!