This episodes spends a couple days in Phuket as part of our 10 days in Thailand experience. We enjoy ultra luxurious stays, relaxing on the beach, and epic sunset boat cruise, Phuket nightlife and so much more.

Download our ⁠2 Day Phuket Itinerary⁠ to take this exact same trip! Or download the full 10-day Thailand itinerary to see Bangkok, Phuket, and Chiang Mai in one trip!

We went to the ⁠Simon Cabaret Show⁠ and did the ⁠James Bond Island Luxury Sunset Cruise⁠ – both of which we highly recommend!

When you visit Phuket, we recommend staying at the ⁠Phuket Marriott Resort & Spa, Merlin Beach⁠ (we stayed here and loved it!), ⁠Memory Boutique⁠ or ⁠La Flora⁠.

Make sure to listen to our Bangkok and Chiang Mai podcast episodes too!

Things to Do in Phuket – Episode Transcript

0:48

Today we’re continuing on our Thailand trip and we’re taking you to the island of Phuket.

0:54

Last Friday we released our Just the Tip episode on Bangkok and from Bangkok we flew to Phuket.

So Bangkok was just the start of our trip.

1:01

We had that short amount of time and here we are on the beautiful island of Phuket, known for its

famous beaches as well as those clear crystal blue waters.

1:12

Kim, when you were in Thailand almost a decade ago, as you mentioned, really aging yourself on this

podcast, did you go to Paquette and how long did you spend in Phuket while you were there?

1:23

Oh yes, I loved Phuket.

We didn’t stop in Bangkok, we just went straight to Phuket.

1:28

So this was like even greater of an experience because it was the first thing in Thailand we did and

we saw and we did the elephant sanctuary like first thing the next morning.

1:39

That was just amazing.

I swam in the beaches here.

1:42

The beaches were warm.

We even had this lady come up to us on the beach trying to offer us beer for sale.

1:48

And we were like, no, we’re going to go in the water.

We were in the water for like an hour, two hours.

1:52

When we came out, she came right up and got us our beer.

It was amazing.

1:56

Nightlife was fun.

I saw some crazy stuff here that I know you guys saw too, so let’s get into it.

2:04

Well, I’m excited to talk about our time in Phuket because as it is known for its beautiful scenery,

the wildlife you mentioned, the elephants, it’s also known for all sorts of things in terms of

2:17

entertainment, nightlife, etcetera.

So just a little bit about Phuket for you guys.

2:22

So it’s located in southwestern Thailand.

If anyone knows what a map of Thailand looks like, it has that very, very, very thin strip to the

2:32

South of the country.

It is here in this region, but again, southwest and it is the largest island in Thailand.

2:39

It is actually an island.

And a couple of really cool things about Phuket is to the West is the Andaman Sea, which is part of

2:48

the Indian Ocean, and then to the east is the Gulf of Thailand, which is part of the Pacific.

So if you go from one side of the island to the next, you are experiencing here the Pacific Ocean

2:59

and Indian Ocean.

So you have that really unique aspect of about it.

3:03

Patong Beach is probably one of its most famous and popular beaches.

It’s a beautiful long Crescent shaped beach, golden sand, clear waters and Bungla Rd. is right off

3:15

of the beach and Bungla is where all the nightlife occurs.

And then there is a good storied history here in Phuket.

3:20

Also a famous spot to go to is Old Phuket.

It has a rich history of Sino Portuguese influence and architecture, colonial style, shop houses,

3:32

mansions and and this really came about from a time when they were doing tin mining out here when

the Portuguese were here.

3:38

So you have all sorts of cultural influence in this region with that wildlife, nightlife as well as

scenic beauty.

3:45

So Phuket really is a gym.

And we’re also going to give you some tips for visiting Phuket, very similar to the ones that we

3:52

gave for Bangkok.

So bear with us.

3:54

If you listen to Bangkok already, make sure you’re downloading Grab the Lyft and Uber of Thailand.

Traffic is really bad, especially as you get close to Patong Bangala Rd.

4:05

You’re going to wait two to three times the amount it says to get from one place to the other.

And quite often they cancelled our ride and we would have to wait to get hooked up with another

4:14

driver.

There are also tuk tuks, so you could take a tuk tuk.

4:19

But in our case, we were going back to our hotel a lot of the times, which was a bit farther, and it

just be safer to take a grab.

4:27

So just make sure to take all of that into consideration if you have a time constraint.

Also, if you stay outside of the Patong Beach area and at more secluded resorts, it’s going to be

4:37

harder to catch grabs to and from because they’re out of the way.

Our hotel did have a shuttle that would take us from our hotel down to Patong Beach, which was

4:47

really helpful and getting back wasn’t as bad.

So we were able to catch a grab every once in a while.

4:54

But if you’re doing it really late at night, if you’re partying real hard like Kim does on Bungalow

Road and not going to get home till three, 4:00 AM, it may be a little bit harder to catch that

5:04

ride. 3-4 AM is early for Kim.

She would have no, she’d have no problem getting a ride because it would be like 8:00 in the

5:10

morning.

That’s when people are going to work, you know So but depending on your party style may or may not

5:15

be easy to catch those grabs, right?

But that is good information to know.

5:19

Also, again, cash based society.

So be sure to pull cash from an ATM that way you do have it.

5:27

A lot of the bars here do accept credit card, but they have high minimums.

OK, so credit card is widely accepted at a lot of places, but just do keep that in mind high

5:37

minimums.

So that’s why we say just opt for that cash.

5:40

Just a good general rule of thumb for all of Thailand have it with you.

And more importantly in other the reason why to have cash is you want to make change because a lot

5:49

if not all of the public restrooms here do require you to pay to use it.

Even in the bars if you are frequenting them, a lot of them are paid to use.

5:59

So you’re going to need about 10 to 15 baht every time you go to the bathroom, and if you’re

drinking, that’s going to be frequently.

6:05

I do have one tip I’d like to share with you squatties.

What you can do, since it is a cash based culture, is only take a certain amount of money out with

6:14

you and then when you run out you’re forced to go home.

I did that when I was in Phuket and it prevented something that could have been.

6:22

Kim could have blown a lot of money, is what she’s saying.

She had a she had, she had a budget for the night.

6:27

Because when you say go home, you meant back to the hotel room.

You don’t mean I took out my money and I’m flying back home?

6:33

To America and you always say like you’re going to go back to the hotel and get more money and go

out, but that doesn’t happen.

6:39

Yeah, by the time you get back to the hotel, you’re not ready to go back out, especially if you’re

staying a little bit further from that, right?

6:44

We mentioned this when we were talking about Bangkok.

A lot of the places here, being that lots of tourists from all over the world come, they do have

6:51

pretty much universal outlets in the hotels.

But it’s still very wise to bring your Thailand specific outlet just in case you stay at a place

7:00

that doesn’t have it.

And then the weather.

7:03

The wet season is May through October.

Cool season is November through February.

7:08

Even though we say cool season, don’t think it’s cold, it’s just cooler, OK, still very hot and

humid.

7:14

And then hot season is going to be March through May.

So plan your time accordingly.

7:19

Squatty’s Before we get into this episode, I do want to remind you that we have a secret hack that

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7:30

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7:39

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7:53

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Send us that screenshot and we will send you that hack.

7:58

So when we landed in Phuket, it was actually day four of our trip because we had gone from Bangkok

to Phuket.

8:04

We got in pretty late.

We landed about 9:00 PM, but it takes about an hour to an hour and a half to get from the airport

8:13

into the Patong area.

So just keep that in mind.

8:17

So we didn’t get to our hotel until about closer to 11 PMI also want to point out that if you do fly

a budget airline in Thailand, domestically they usually have lower weight allotments for your your

8:28

luggage.

So, you know, going internationally you have a £50 weight limit.

8:33

Going domestically within Thailand, a lot of the times it’s a 33 LB weight limit versus the £50.

So they will charge you per kilogram that you go over.

8:43

We had actually already paid for a larger luggage allotment so we were fine here, but they got us on

the way to our next destination in Thailand and we did have to pay a hefty fee.

8:54

So from the airport you have multiple options.

You could take a taxi, you can take Grab to the central area.

9:00

Now when Brittany says to Patong, we were staying in that region, which is going to be South of the

airport, again, approximately hour, hour and a half, depending on traffic to the West.

9:11

There is another side of Phuket that is very popular.

There’s tourists hotels on the eastern side along the Pacific just as well.

9:21

So anywhere that you’re going on Phuket is pretty much going to be South on an hour, hour and a half

away.

9:27

Grab or taxi approximately if you Google this and even when we were there, we put it in our Grab app

to really see is going to be about 2025 bucks.

9:36

That’s not a terrible price for an hour plus ride.

So that’s pretty much what you’re looking at.

9:41

But we were staying at the Phuket Marriott Resort and Spa, Merlin Beach, and a couple days before

arrival they sent me an e-mail from the concierge and said would you like to be picked up in a black

9:55

vehicle?

Very luxurious.

9:57

Black vehicle.

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

9:59

Well, they called it limo service, right?

You could pay for a Mercedes-Benz E Class or you can pay for Toyota Camry.

10:07

Toyota Camry doesn’t seem like a lot, but it was.

They’re high in Toyota Camry with all leather interior, the highest model you can get.

10:13

You know, they’re really selling it up.

Depending on which one you choose, of course, there’s going to be a different price.

10:19

So we’re like, all right, well, they’re only charging a little bit more than what would be to take a

taxi or a Grab.

10:25

Well, let’s just do it with the hotel.

They’re going to put it on our bill.

10:28

It’s going to be charged to our credit card anyway.

We’re going to get the points for it.

10:31

So that’s what we ended up doing is getting picked up kind of luxurious style to let me.

Tell you when you walk out of an airport and you see your name on the board that they’re holding,

10:42

you just feel just first class.

Feel VIP.

10:46

You know, I wanted to feel VIP on this trip.

Yeah, that’s awesome.

10:49

So he picks us up, puts our bags in his car, we get into the all leather interior car and we take a

little nap as we approach the Marriott it.

11:00

Was so hard to stay awake in that car, so that hour, hour and a half drive went by pretty quick

because we both did fall asleep in the backseat.

11:07

But when we arrived at the Marriott, we were ready to rally.

So we check in and because we are Marriott Bonfoy members, we got to spin a wheel that you could

11:19

earn like extra points on or breakfast or some other things.

And we won complimentary breakfast at the breakfast buffet for our stay.

11:31

For the entire stay that we were there, yeah, I was really excited.

And then the person who was checking us in says all day, no one has gotten this.

11:38

They’ve only gotten like 0200, 103 hundred extra Marriott points, blah blah blah.

I was like, you’re the first person to get the breakfast all day.

11:47

And I was honestly debating adding on the breakfast beforehand because I heard it was actually

pretty good here.

11:54

But good thing I didn’t because we got it for free and we’ll get to it the next day when we wake up.

But let me just say, delicious.

12:02

Really good and I’m glad that we got it.

And this Marriott resort has its own private beach, multiple swimming pools, a swim up bar and

12:12

games.

So Kimmy, I think you would really like this resort if you were to come back to Phuket.

12:17

Swim up bar.

I mean, I like it already.

12:19

They had a swim up bar.

The games Brittany’s talking about is like the human sized chess board that you can actually go

12:25

ahead and play.

They had basketball shooting like you would find in an arcade, all sorts of stuff.

12:31

One of the things that I thought was really cool.

Again, private beach.

12:33

OK.

But then they have all sorts of different pools.

12:36

And then they had a pathway that connected 2 pools on opposing sides.

And then they had like elephant statues because, you know, elephants in Thailand that are just

12:47

spraying water from their trunks on you as you come through.

And it’s this beautiful design.

12:51

I’d loved it here.

So I’m really glad that we actually stayed.

12:54

And it really enhanced the feeling and vibe that we got here while we were in Phuket in terms of

just beach vacation.

13:01

So by the time we bring all of our stuff to the room, everything, it’s probably edging on 11:30-ish.

But you know, we got our second win and we’re like, let’s go to Patong.

13:14

I’m impressed.

Yeah, you should be impressed.

13:17

We caught a grab to Patong.

We walked Bungler Rd. the road comes like right up to the beach and you can walk the whole thing and

13:25

when the sun sets the street comes away with neon lights, loud music, whole bunch of bars, people

dancing on the bars, great people watching workers come out.

13:35

It’s just a fun vibe.

Now, what do you mean by workers?

13:39

Brittany?

Just go ahead and say it.

13:40

We all know the ladies of the night.

I’m going to say it for Brittany because Brittany’s afraid to say it.

13:44

Ladies of the night, that’s what you can expect here.

But again, if you listened to the Bangkok Just the Tip episode, don’t be intimidated by the fact

13:53

that this is here.

This is not all that’s there.

13:55

Yes, it’s a big part of it, but you can see all sorts of stuff.

Just go for a casual drink at any one of these bars.

14:02

Enjoy your time.

Lots of these bars don’t even have working girls.

14:06

They have live DJ music, sing alongs with bands, etcetera.

So you’re going to have a really great time here.

14:12

And off of Bungalow Rd. there’s a road that’s perpendicular to it that at night they have a little

food market too, so you could get some good food out there just as well.

14:21

You might think party, everyone’s going to be in their 20s, early 30s.

No, we saw people of all ages.

14:28

Yes, there was the people that were partying in their 20s and 30s, but we saw people in their 40s,

fifties, 60s.

14:34

Everyone was out walking the street having a good time.

And those people in their 40s, fifties, 60s, some of them were partying and some of them were just

14:41

casually vibing, right.

So you’re going to find pretty much all sorts of everything going on out here in terms of age

14:49

variety.

Are they partaking in the Nanigans?

14:52

Are they just people watching, observing and join themselves?

So again, really fun, lively atmosphere to go.

14:59

But just do expect that you’re going to come here.

It’s just going to be a lively, loud atmosphere.

15:04

And during the night, you cannot drive down this road.

It’s walking only.

15:08

So the whole street is wide open.

So Jamal and I just went and got our bearings.

15:13

We walked down the street, kind of took in all the sights, and then we picked a bar to just go to

and sat down and get a drink.

15:20

Very good for people watching.

So there was three guys that came and sat at the bar that we were at and they looked like they were

15:28

barely 18.

And one of the workers from the street comes up to their table and they looked interested and I

15:37

think they were asking if maybe she was 100% woman or not.

And she took one of their hands and put it right up her dress so they could get a feel.

15:48

We still don’t know if it’s a yes or no.

I mean, there was a touch test, but we don’t know the answer to that.

15:52

But nevertheless, good for people watching for sure.

And then of course eventually that person ended up going off with so selected lady to be determined.

0:00

We are unsure, but you’re going to find all sorts of excitement and things to do and see when you’re

16:10

here on Bangla.

And even if this is not your cup of tea, if you’re in Phuket and you’re just here, I’m here for the

16:16

beaches.

I’m here for Oldstown Phuket that’s more laid back classical.

16:21

This is still a spot that you should absolutely 100% come to to just see it, even if it’s for a

quick little bit, because this is probably the most iconic and famous thing about Phuket.

16:31

Is Patong Beach and Bungalow Road right here?

So by the time we went back to the hotel, it was about 3:00 AM.

16:38

Are you proud of us, Kim?

Yeah, you guys really did get your second wind.

16:43

We rallied hard, we rallied hard.

Why not win in Thailand, right?

16:47

So the next morning we woke up and we went down to take advantage of the free breakfast buffet that

we won.

16:55

When we checked in, they had unlimited Thai iced tea, fresh juices.

They had a noodle bar where you could pick what type of noodles and the toppings and your meats.

17:08

They had an egg and omelet station.

They had an English breakfast station.

17:13

They had meats and cheeses.

They had Curry and noodles.

17:17

They had a whole station for fresh fruit, they had a whole area dedicated to pastries, and they even

had a chocolate fountain.

17:27

Oh my God.

Chocolate fondue fountain and Brittany forgot to mention probably some of the best French toast

17:34

we’ve ever had at a breakfast spot.

Whoa, better than snoozes?

17:38

OMG French.

Toast, I’m not talking about sit down and order, but I’m talking in terms of like at a hotel kind of

17:44

made to order in a buffet style like this.

Like it was truly, truly acceptable.

17:51

So this was a good spot.

And what I really liked about it is again, you heard Brittany, there was just a wide variety of

17:56

everything because of course, you are in an Asian country, so you have noodle bar and all sorts of

other stuff.

18:01

There’s a very large Indian population in Thailand just as well.

And of course, lots of Indian visitors.

18:06

So you find a lot of Indian food.

A lot of UK people, did you guys notice that too?

18:11

UK, Australia, yeah, China, everybody is coming to Thailand.

So if you didn’t catch on from Brittany’s mentioning everything that was there, you’re going to find

18:21

something for your cuisine palette if you are really specific or if you want a wide variety.

And everything that we had was really, really good.

18:28

So of course, we took advantage of the free breakfast.

Love it.

18:32

And then we were like, OK, well, our resort has a private beach.

Why would we go with the plebes to the public?

18:39

Let’s just be on our own private beach at our resort right here.

So after breakfast we went back to our room, just got ourselves situated and we enjoyed ourselves at

18:49

the beach.

Brittany, she brought her book, I picked us up some beers from the bar.

18:53

We’re sitting, relaxing, laying out on the loungers, getting in and out of the water, really

enjoying ourselves and soaking in the resort life as well as the beach life.

19:04

Yeah.

So we spent a little bit on the beach, got in the water.

19:06

They actually do have some snorkeling in the area, but they weren’t doing it at that time.

So we missed that.

19:12

Then we decided let’s go hit up the resort pool.

So we went and relaxed by the pool.

19:18

We ended up getting in and swimming up to the swim up bar, grabbing a drink from there.

Yes, so had a great time in that pool.

19:28

That pool was adults only, so no children.

There was a children only pool on the other side.

19:34

So that was fantastic for us.

And then we decided to get ready for the day.

19:39

We took a free shuttle from our resort into Patong Beach and I decided I wanted a massage, so I got

my first full body Thai massage with deep tissue for only 500 baht.

19:54

Jamal decided he didn’t want a massage, he wanted to go get drinks, so he went to the bar while I

did that.

19:59

Interesting choice, Jamal.

You know, it was one of those things that was like really hot.

20:04

Of course I was expecting it to be hot.

But I just thought to myself, OK, we’re going from our hotel to Batong.

20:11

We got to walk along the road.

I’m getting sweaty.

20:15

Go in.

Do I really want somebody massaging me while I’m feeling all sweaty and gross?

20:20

Just the thought of that kind of was like, no, like I, I don’t really want a massage.

I’m going to get a massage later in Thailand.

20:27

But today and in this moment was not my time.

So I was like, get your massage and Brittany wanted to do an hour and a half long massage.

20:33

I don’t even really like massages that much.

I’m like, I’m not sitting there for an hour and a half.

20:36

You know what I mean?

Like, OK, that’s still too long for me. 30 minutes like cops.

20:41

Because even when I did my hour long massage later, it’s just too long.

But anyway, nevertheless, I was like, you go do that.

20:48

I’m going to go out to the bars.

The bars, by the way, during daytime, completely different than what it looks like at night.

20:56

There’s people in there, but it’s not as lively.

It’s dead.

21:00

Girls are not working during that point in time.

Or if they are, they’re hidden.

21:04

It’s not like in mass.

So I was like, I’m going to go to a bar.

21:08

And you mentioned earlier, Kim, like, oh, you feel like there’s a lot of people from the Uki made

friends, the gentleman on holiday from the UK.

21:16

And we were just sitting talking and having drinks with each other.

And that’s something that I really enjoyed when we traveled to is like if you’re finding somebody

21:23

and not that I was alone because of course I’m travelling with Brittany, but in that moment I was

alone.

21:27

You just strike up conversation, you meet people.

And I had a really good time just enjoying myself that way.

21:32

So that was my game plan while Brittany was getting a massage.

Yeah, my massage was great, was an hour long.

21:38

It was in an air conditioned room.

When you walk in, they wash your feet, they put you in slippers.

21:45

They had a locker for me to store my items and they walked me upstairs to a room.

They give you a little outfit to change into.

21:53

It’s just like a thin linen outfit.

Wow.

21:55

And then she performed with a massage.

It was deep tissue then with some Thai stretches in it, so it was really nice.

22:03

I enjoyed it.

And then after that I texted Jamal that I was done.

22:08

We went down the street on Bungler Road and they had a little market off the side of the streets

that was like a food market.

22:14

So we got some of the best St. pad Thai.

I think we got the entire trip, as well as some Curry.

22:21

And this evening I had wanted to go see a show, the Simon Cabaret Show.

Have you heard of it, Kim?

22:29

It does sound a little familiar.

It is a world famous lady boy show, so we’ve got tickets to that.

22:36

Jamal wasn’t super intrigued.

I had heard about it from our cat sitter actually.

22:44

She had gone to Thailand I think two years ago.

She had gone to the show, really enjoyed it, recommended it.

22:49

So I booked it and I mean it was like 25 bucks a person.

World famous drag lady boy show.

22:56

They’re in these extravagant costumes, lots of singing, dancing, little comedy and we saw children

there, people with their families.

23:04

So it’s a family friendly event, nice venue.

I was going to say that quite honestly, Britney described what it is and it is A and I’m doing air

23:14

quotes.

You can’t see me like burlesque show, but it is very tame that you can have fun with your family

23:21

there.

Like she said, there were kids, you saw people of all ages, different family types that are there

23:28

and it’s so popular that they do 2 shows a night.

We went to the first show of the evening and then when we were done people are already queuing up

23:35

for the second show.

So this is something that’s actually like really, really popular in Phuket is going here.

23:41

When we picked up our grab after we had gotten our pad Thai to get over here, we just put in the the

name of the like the theater and he’s like, oh, you going to Simon Cribe parade?

23:51

Like everybody knows this show.

So it’s really, really popular.

23:55

Yeah, so that was fun.

And then we ended up just taking a tuk tuk from the show back to Bangla Rd.

24:02

The tuk tuks are so much fun.

Like some of them you can connect to their Wi-Fi and play your own music.

24:09

Some of them have a whole bunch of lights, so they have their own vibe.

And the one that we got into had all of that.

24:15

So we were picking our own songs and just having a good time as we went back to Bangla Rd.

One thing I remember hearing as a tip before I went all those years ago was to negotiate the price

24:27

with the tuk tuk before you get in.

Did you do that?

24:30

Absolutely, I didn’t get in a tuk tuk before I even asked them what the price was.

And Brittany mentioned this in our previous episode talking about Bangkok, how tuk tuks are a lot

24:41

more expensive than actually catching a grab.

So the tuk tuks are immediately available.

24:46

You’re going to find them everywhere, but sometimes they’ll charge double, triple, I feel like what

it would be for grabs.

24:51

So if you want the quick convenience of it, it’s right there.

But yeah, I would ask them 100% beforehand.

24:57

How much is the price?

I would not step foot in one until like I confirmed what it was.

25:01

So that is a really good tip.

I think it just goes a long way anywhere you are with transportation.

25:06

If you don’t know what is upfront, ask before you get it.

Squatty’s, if you like what you’re hearing, I have good news for you.

25:12

We have a Phuket itinerary.

We have an itinerary on the whole trip to Thailand as well, which is going to be much bigger than

25:19

Phuket.

You can download download both of those at shoptravelsquad.com.

25:23

We also have them LinkedIn the show notes for you.

So after the show we just went to a food market, it was called the Bonsan Fresh Market.

25:32

We got some more mango sticky rice, coconut pancakes.

We walked back down Bangla Rd., we people watched, grabbed a drink and then we took a grab back to

25:42

our hotel for the night.

I just want to say there’s all sorts of stuff that you could do off of Bangla Road and in this

25:47

region, of course, like right off of Patong Beach.

It’s not just along the road.

25:51

There’s so many different side roads offering different types of shops, tourist things, restaurants,

etcetera.

25:59

But across the way from this bonds on market, they were doing like a Muay Thai fight that night.

They have arenas for the fighting.

26:07

That’s a big event too.

So there’s all sorts of things to really do other than just people watch.

26:12

This just happened to be what we were doing because Brittany and I love to people watch.

We love to eat food, especially when we travel, but all sorts of things to do in this region.

26:21

So our final day in Phuket, our final full day, we decided to book a luxury sunset cruise that also

went to James Bond Island and it was an amazing day.

26:36

They picked us up at about 10:30, so we had plenty of time to eat again at the breakfast buffet,

then get ready.

26:44

We had about an hour to an hour and a half fan ride.

Nice air conditioned van.

26:49

We got to the boat dock around noon and then we just got the presentation about what to expect on

the boat.

26:56

So the boat can fit about 150 people at capacity.

We only had 90 people and the luxury yacht doesn’t allow any shoes on boards.

27:06

It’s very clean.

They have lounge chairs for you to lay out on, they have bean bags for you to lay out on.

27:12

They have cabanas up top that you could pay for in reserve.

They have a full stocked bar that wasn’t included but it’s available and it also included both

27:22

lunch, dinner, and a few island stops.

Let me tell you something, the food that they offered on this yacht cruise was exceptional.

27:30

Like actually really, really delicious.

So we did enjoy that.

27:35

What was it?

They had all sorts of stuff.

27:37

They had Thai food.

They ended up bringing out papaya salad, all sorts of curries, fried chicken wings, sushi.

27:45

They had soup, chicken dishes, they had all sorts of things.

It was like a whole buffet spread and when you got on board you got a welcome drink as well.

27:53

Oh, I love that.

Yeah, so it was really, really enjoyable.

27:57

Now, Brittany mentioned this cruise went to James Bond Island, so we’ll get to that in just a

second.

28:02

But this took us on the eastern side, which is technically the Pacific side.

And there’s lots of islands here in the Gulf of Thailand to go to that are very famous, scenic and

28:12

beautiful.

So this cruise sails to a lot of those.

28:16

One of the more famous places that she could go in the Gulf of Thailand island wise is Fifi Islands.

Our cruise did not include that, but it’s one of the most beautiful.

28:24

And again, using Phuket as a base, one of the easiest places to be to get to there since it is an

island and in the Gulf of Thailand right there.

28:33

But we had several stops, the final one being James Bond Island.

And it’s called James Bond Island because they filmed a scene from the 1974 James Bond movie The Man

28:45

with the Golden Gun there.

And you would think, I think, OK, they just filmed a movie there.

28:49

Who cares, right?

But this island that we went to, the last one, James Bond Island, it has an iconic limestone karst

28:58

or C stack that rises out of the Bay from the beach right there.

So it just has this one iconic spot.

29:05

The island itself is like, OK, whatever, I’m not going to deny that.

But all the stops that we made along the way were what made it enjoyable.

29:14

The other islands that you see while you’re sailing.

And let’s talk a little little bit about that, Brett.

29:19

So the first stop of the cruise was about 30 minutes into sailing.

We were swimming in the Panna Bay.

29:26

Really beautiful Bay, that’s turquoise waters, whole bunch of sea stacks.

Stopped here to swim.

29:33

The boat had a water slide, so you can get directly on the slide and just slide right into the

water.

29:40

Super fun, really beautiful, amazing yacht.

Once we got out of the water after swimming for a bit, they started the buffet lunch.

29:49

And if you’re just a couple, you are going to be sitting at a table with other people.

So each table can fit four to six people.

29:57

And we were sitting with another couple.

They were originally from Scotland, but they now live in Sydney, Australia, so we got to know them.

30:05

They get quite a bit of holiday time, which is amazing.

I love when we vacation talking to other people from other countries and to hear about like all of

30:14

the vacation or holiday time that they get and just the customs of the country that they live in,

so.

30:21

How much did they get?

Gosh, I want to say they got 5 weeks a year.

30:27

That doesn’t include any sick time or anything like that.

So.

30:30

Nice.

And she was a nurse as well.

30:33

It was just interesting to hear how things worked and how it was very easy for her to get her

nursing degree transferred from Scotland to Australia.

30:43

And I thought, what if I did that?

Well, I, I don’t know, but you know, pipeline dreams, I guess.

30:49

Go for it.

Yeah, so then we have lunch.

30:51

Jamal mentioned earlier all of the different types of food we had like the coconut milk soup, the

sushi, the noodle dishes, vegetable dishes, all of that had a great lunch, continued our cruise and

31:02

then we made it to an island called Hong Island.

Hong Island is known for its hidden lagoons.

31:09

The word Hong in Thai means room.

And so that refers to like the sea caves and enclosed the balloons that you can only get to buy

31:17

kayak or really small boat.

So from the yacht you actually get into a two person kayak and I thought we’re going to have to

31:25

kayak ourselves.

No, no, no, no, you haven’t got guide.

31:28

You just sit back and relax and this guide will paddle you through, kayak you through The Cave

entrances and you go through and you see all of these sea caves and you’re in this lagoon and you’re

31:39

surrounded by all of these amazing sea stacks towering above you and this lush greenery.

And they make it just a really great experience.

31:48

Like he had this little leaf that had a cut out heart in it and he took our picture and it was just

a really good time.

31:56

Yeah.

And so when we read the description of this tour, it said that you will have your kayak, you’ll be

32:01

able to kayak to the caves.

And like Brittany said and thought, I thought the same thing.

32:07

Oh yeah, we’re going to be kayaking.

So when she said, oh, no, we have a guide, our tour boat did not have a guide for us.

32:14

And by that I mean they specifically these islands that we’re sailing in, a lot of them are part of

a National Park.

32:20

So to protect it, they don’t allow anybody to just go in and buy anybody.

I’m talking tourists.

32:26

So there is a boat that’s hanging by this little island, an area that where we went that is

basically National Park approved workers that are your kayak guide.

32:38

So they sail you in there.

You see the caves, you get to go all around.

32:42

So it was a very cool and unique experience that I really, really did enjoy.

And then after we were at Hong Island, we went on to James Bond Island again.

32:51

You forgot the refreshments again when you get on board.

They gave refreshments, You say it like you’re selling it up, but when I hear refreshment coming

32:58

back on board, I think alcohol.

It was a very good delicious juice drink, but they are non alcoholic.

33:03

And I said to myself, if you put just a little bit of alcohol in here, this would be prime time.

But yes, Brittany, thank you for reminding me.

33:10

They actually did have delicious refreshments when you got back on board.

Every time you got on board you got a different little drink, so it was just nice.

33:18

Did you buy anything from the bar here?

Well, I definitely was buying from the bar.

33:21

Don’t get me wrong.

I was buying from the bar.

33:24

I’m enjoying myself.

I’m sailing these beautiful waters.

33:27

It’s an all day event.

Somebody’s driving for me when we get back.

33:30

Yeah, I’m getting beverages from the bar.

Absolutely.

33:34

But like Jamal was saying, we then went to James Bond Island.

To get to James Bond Island, we couldn’t take our yacht up to it.

33:40

So you actually have to get onto a smaller boat that will take you to the island the boat held.

How many people do you think 20?

33:48

I would say so.

It’s a long, narrow boat and you could only sit 2 by 2.

33:53

And you do have to be pretty like flexible to get onto this boat and like capable because you have

to walk on the edge of the boat and then drop down into a seat and you get out the same way.

34:06

So if you have some disabilities, you may not be able to partake in this portion of it.

Yeah, disabilities are mobility issues.

34:14

This may be a little bit difficult situation, but like I said, I mean, they really sell up James

Bond Island because the movie was here.

34:22

OK, big deal.

Again, the famous limestone car C stack that’s here is very beautiful.

34:28

I’m not going to deny it.

It is a picturesque, iconic image of what you would imagine when you think beaches within Thailand.

34:35

But otherwise, I was talking to some people, people on the boat too.

They’re like, yeah, this is fun because it’s a whole experience on the boat.

34:43

We got to do the kayaking and just the swimming in the Bay.

But they talk about Fifi Islands being of course, a lot better to go enjoy the beach aspect of

34:53

things.

But as a whole day event, I really did enjoy this.

34:56

But I will say this because I really believe that James Baldwin Island is whatever, but the

experience as a whole prime time.

35:03

The view of the sea stock is amazing.

It’s one of the most photographed landscapes in Thailand.

35:09

I see.

It’s like floating there, like a little Stonehenge.

35:13

Yes, just like that.

And there are a whole bunch of souvenir stands that you can go to on the island.

35:19

You can kick around the island for two different viewpoints.

We did have to go around the side to get back to the boat to get then back onto the yacht.

35:27

And then when we got back onto the yacht, of course, they gave us refreshments.

This one did include alcohol in it and then we had dinner and they turn it up on the boat for sunset

35:39

with a dance party.

That’s why they wanted to liquor you up.

35:43

The boat actually had a live DJ the whole time that we were cruising day and night on the way back.

So by the time we were on our way back after dinner, the DJ was really turning it up.

35:55

They dimmed down the lights.

It almost felt like it was a nightclub in there, quite honestly.

36:00

And let me tell you this, very few people were dancing at first.

Then some people started dancing and then more.

36:06

And then you watch all these 60, even 70 year olds, they were really throwing it down on the dance

floor on this yacht, living life.

36:14

And I said to myself, yeah, no, I didn’t dance.

I know you’re going to ask him.

36:18

I, I, I didn’t dance, but I told this to Brittany when I was watching those 70 year olds dance and

living their best life.

36:25

I said I need to get some dance lessons so that this.

Could be us later.

36:29

You got it in Spain.

In Argentina.

36:32

In Argentina, so I know you can move.

I can.

36:35

It’s just difficult to put that, those movements into nice rhythm.

But yeah.

36:40

Yeah, so we had a cruise back from James Bond Island with dinner, the sunset.

We watched sunset on the front of the boat, just on a beanbag, actually.

36:51

It was really nice.

We’re just relaxing.

36:54

We got back to the dock at about 7:00 PM, and then once we got into the van, we got back to our

hotel at about 8:30.

37:01

And that boat day was just the perfect way to end our time in Phuket.

It was just so relaxing, got to see more of the water, the beaches, the islands swim, get a little

37:12

tan and it was a great final day.

It sounds amazing.

37:17

I wish I was on that boat with you.

I think you would have loved it, Kim.

37:20

I think you would have too.

And like I said, you know, I really enjoyed the places where they took us.

37:25

Again, I didn’t say I didn’t like James Bond Island.

I just think as a whole it’s overrated.

37:29

But where they took us, all three spots were really, really nice.

But it was the experience of being on the boat, sailing the waters, seeing the other islands that

37:38

you’re not even stopping at, and just really enjoying the waters and the view.

The experience with the food, buying yourself a drink, just living your best life out on the waters

37:49

in Thailand.

Amazing.

37:50

Well, we do have a couple of questions of the week, so squatty’s are curious.

We have two questions.

37:58

First one is, was Phuket worth visiting?

This person said they’ve been to Bangkok in northern Thailand but wanted to know is Phuket worth it?

0:00

So I told them that if they love the beaches and they love nightlife, Phuket is the place for them.

38:12

Bangkok has very much the same temperature, but northern Thailand is a little bit cooler and has a

more relaxed vibe.

38:20

So Phuket is more like Bangkok in terms of the nightlife.

So I kind of went on that route and that if I were to go back to an island, I think I would probably

38:29

go somewhere a little bit more secluded, nature oriented and not as party heavy, but that was my

take on it.

38:37

I think it’s definitely worth visiting.

When we were planning this trip, it was either going to be Phuket or Crabby, which are two very

38:43

popular beach locations.

And ultimately we decided on Phuket because Phuket’s just Phuket, right?

38:49

So if you’re going to Thailand for the first time, absolutely.

And we did a lot of the same thing.

38:55

I’m going to be completely honest, you know, we were in Patong Bangla, yes, we had the full day out

on the water, which was really cool and spent a lot of time at our resort because it had its own

39:06

beach.

But there’s Old Town Phuket, which we didn’t get to go to.

39:10

There’s the whole eastern side of the island that we didn’t get to go to.

Just as well the elephant sanctuary that you went to, Kim, there’s national parks on the island of

39:20

Phuket where you can go see the elephants, do all sorts of things.

So there is a lot of stuff.

39:24

And then there are several beaches that are a lot more laid back and calm.

Other than Patong, those are going to be Kata Korone and Kamala, a beach.

39:35

So they’re really, really nice beaches.

We didn’t go to them, but they were on our list of things to do.

39:39

But it is away from all the chaos, right?

So you can find a little bit of that seclusion still on Phuket and a lot of other stuff.

39:48

But maybe if you go back to Thailand again, you’ll want to try something else.

But I would absolutely say for sure go to Phuket.

39:56

I would definitely go back to Phuket.

I I think I was there two or three days and I would 100% go back.

40:02

Yeah, and we were there too.

And like I said, we didn’t scratch scratch a lot of what there is to do and there is plenty.

40:08

Second and last question, is the heat and humidity tolerable?

Oh, it is hot, but if you’re in the water and you get in the water, that makes it a lot more

40:18

tolerable.

That’s how I felt at least.

40:21

And everyone’s hot.

And all of the restaurants, if you go into an establishment, most of the time they do have AC, so

40:28

that is helpful.

But just know that while you’re there, you’re going to get it with some heat and humidity.

40:33

Yeah, heat and humidity is, it’s never fun.

It’s never enjoyable.

40:37

But Britney said it best.

Everybody is experiencing that.

40:40

So everybody’s hot and sweaty with you.

Just embrace it.

40:43

I mean, I looked at Britney so many times and said this weather sucks, but I was having such a good

time.

40:48

It is what it is.

You just got to deal with it.

40:49

But, you know, would I say you’re going to die out there?

Absolutely not, unless maybe you went a couple months later after US when it gets exceptionally

40:57

hotter, which I wouldn’t recommend going then.

But if you go during the prime time of when they say to go, you know, November to February, I think

41:04

you’ll be in good shape.

I would just say wear the right clothing.

41:08

You don’t want to get stuck with swamp ass so.

I was just thinking about planning your outfits.

41:14

Yes.

Around getting swamp ass.

41:16

You know, this reminds me when you said that, Kim, this reminds me of our episode when we were

talking about Everglades and you were planning what you were going to wear on the swamp boat,

41:26

airboat, whatever, and you had an outfit in mind.

And then you had to cancel that because you’re like, oh, this is going to give me some major swamp

41:32

ass.

So you know, you got to plan according.

41:34

I definitely remember people in our group just like the men in particular, the shirt being very

obviously a little sweat drenched.

41:43

So just keep that in mind with your dressing.

Less is more and you’re probably not going to be like doing your hair really nice because you’re

41:50

going to go in the ocean.

It’s going to get humidity and all that.

41:53

The one thing I want to throw in here at the end, you didn’t mention it, but when I was in Phuket,

my trip to Thailand was end of October, beginning of November, I was eaten alive by mosquitoes.

42:05

The mosquito replant that we had at that time did not work actually, and we didn’t reapply it

enough.

42:10

We will link the best mosquito repellent ever in the show notes it.

We’ve used it all over since.

42:18

I’m surprised you guys didn’t mention this because I was tore up.

You know.

42:21

Not get eaten by mosquitoes until we went to northern Chiang Mai and in the jungle.

So we actually escaped the mosquitoes in Bangkok and Phuket.

42:31

Yeah, we got some bites, but they weren’t really bad.

And then when Brittany says we went to northern Thailand and Chiang Mai and got bit, we just got bit

42:37

more.

I think it’s one of those things where they’re always there, but it’s seasonal.

42:40

I remember when we were in Africa and our tour guide was telling us, like, you know, they’re always

here, but there’s certain seasons where they’re worse and you may they have just been there in the

42:49

worst time.

So the fact that we got so few and far and in between, I guess it didn’t really come to our mind to

42:55

mention it.

But you bring up a very good point, Kim.

42:57

Yeah.

I mean, just always wear insect repellent because you’re going to need it.

43:01

Because we got like one or two and one of them one time was like a really bad itch for a couple

days, but tolerable.

43:06

If I had multiple of them, maybe it wouldn’t have been so tolerable.

Well, one week from today we will be airing that Chiang Mai episode, so stay tuned for that.

43:15

Thank you Squatty so much for tuning into our episode this this week.

Make sure to keep the adventures going with us on All the Socials, a Travel Squad podcast and send

43:23

us in your questions of the week.

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