Phuket (; th, ภูเก็ต, , ms, Bukit or ''Tongkah'';
Hokkien
The Hokkien () variety of Chinese is a Southern Min language native to and originating from the Minnan region, where it is widely spoken in the south-eastern part of Fujian in southeastern mainland China. It is one of the national languages ...
:普吉; ) is one of the southern
provinces (''changwat'') of Thailand. It consists of the island of Phuket,
the country's largest island, and another 32 smaller islands off its coast.
It lies off the west coast of mainland
Thailand
Thailand ( ), historically known as Siam () and officially the Kingdom of Thailand, is a country in Southeast Asia, located at the centre of the Indochinese Peninsula, spanning , with a population of almost 70 million. The country is b ...
in the
Andaman Sea. Phuket Island is connected by the
Sarasin Bridge
Sarasin Bridge ( th, สะพานสารสิน, , ) is a bridge in Thailand, it is a bridge connecting the mainland of Phuket and Phang Nga in southern Thailand, and known as one of the most beautiful bridges and has an unforgettable histo ...
to
Phang Nga province to the north. The next nearest province is
Krabi
Krabi ( th, กระบี่, ) is the main town in the province of Krabi (''thesaban mueang'') on the west coast of southern Thailand at the mouth of the Krabi River where it empties in Phang Nga Bay. As of 2020, the town had a population of ...
, to the east across Phang Nga Bay.
Phuket province has an area of , somewhat less than that of
Singapore
Singapore (), officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. It lies about one degree of latitude () north of the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, bor ...
, and is the second-smallest province of Thailand. The island was on one of the major trading routes between India and China, and was frequently mentioned in foreign
ships' logs of Portuguese, French, Dutch, and English traders, but was never colonised by a European power. It formerly derived its wealth from
tin
Tin is a chemical element with the symbol Sn (from la, stannum) and atomic number 50. Tin is a silvery-coloured metal.
Tin is soft enough to be cut with little force and a bar of tin can be bent by hand with little effort. When bent, t ...
and
rubber
Rubber, also called India rubber, latex, Amazonian rubber, ''caucho'', or ''caoutchouc'', as initially produced, consists of polymers of the organic compound isoprene, with minor impurities of other organic compounds. Thailand, Malaysia, an ...
and now from
tourism
Tourism is travel for pleasure or business; also the theory and practice of touring, the business of attracting, accommodating, and entertaining tourists, and the business of operating tours. The World Tourism Organization defines tourism mor ...
.
Toponymy
There are several possible derivations of the relatively recent name "Phuket" (of which the digraph ''ph'' represents an
aspirated ). One theory is it is derived from the word ''Bukit'' (Jawi: بوكيت) in
Malay which means "hill", as this is what the island appears like from a distance.
Phuket was formerly known as Thalang ( ''Tha-Laang''), derived from the old Malay "telong" (Jawi: تلوڠ) which means "cape". The northern district of the province, which was the location of the old capital, still uses this name. In Western sources and navigation charts, it was known as Junk Ceylon or Junkceylon (a corruption of the Malay ''Tanjung Salang'', i.e., "Cape Salang").
[Smithies, Michael (2002), Three military accounts of the 1688 "Revolution" in Siam, Itineria Asiatica, Orchid Press, Bangkok, ]
History
16th–18th century: European contact
The
Portuguese
Portuguese may refer to:
* anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Portugal
** Portuguese cuisine, traditional foods
** Portuguese language, a Romance language
*** Portuguese dialects, variants of the Portuguese language
** Portu ...
explorer
Fernão Mendes Pinto
Fernão Mendes Pinto (; c.1509 – 8 July 1583) was a Portuguese explorer and writer. His voyages are recorded in ''Pilgrimage'' ( pt, Peregrinação) (1614), his autobiographical memoir. The historical accuracy of the work is debatable due t ...
arrived in Siam in 1545. His accounts of the country go beyond
Ayutthaya and include a reasonably detailed account of ports in the south of the Kingdom as well. Pinto was one of the first European explorers to detail Phuket in his travel accounts. He referred to the island as "Junk Ceylon", a name the Portuguese used for Phuket Island in their maps, mentioning the name seven times in his accounts. Pinto said that Junk Ceylon was a destination port where
trading vessel
A merchant ship, merchant vessel, trading vessel, or merchantman is a watercraft that transports cargo or carries passengers for hire. This is in contrast to pleasure craft, which are used for personal recreation, and naval ships, which are us ...
s made regular stops for supplies and provisions. However, during the mid-16th century, the island was in decline due to pirates and often rough and unpredictable seas, which deterred merchant vessels from visiting the island. Pinto mentioned several other notable port cities in his accounts, including Patani and Ligor, which is modern-day Nakhon Si Thammarat.
In the 17th century, the
Dutch
Dutch commonly refers to:
* Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands
* Dutch people ()
* Dutch language ()
Dutch may also refer to:
Places
* Dutch, West Virginia, a community in the United States
* Pennsylvania Dutch Country
People E ...
,
English
English usually refers to:
* English language
* English people
English may also refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England
** English national ide ...
and, after the 1680s, the
French, competed for the opportunity to trade with Junk Ceylon, which was a rich source of
tin
Tin is a chemical element with the symbol Sn (from la, stannum) and atomic number 50. Tin is a silvery-coloured metal.
Tin is soft enough to be cut with little force and a bar of tin can be bent by hand with little effort. When bent, t ...
. In September 1680, a ship of the
French East India Company
The French East India Company (french: Compagnie française pour le commerce des Indes orientales) was a colonial commercial enterprise, founded on 1 September 1664 to compete with the English (later British) and Dutch trading companies in th ...
visited the island and left with a full cargo of tin.
A year or two later, the Siamese King
Narai
King Narai the Great ( th, สมเด็จพระนารายณ์มหาราช, , ) or Ramathibodi III ( th, รามาธิบดีที่ ๓ ) was the 27th monarch of Ayutthaya Kingdom, the 4th and last monarch of the P ...
, seeking to reduce Dutch and English influence, named as governor a French medical missionary, Brother
René Charbonneau
René Charbonneau was 17th century French medical missionary friar and a member of the Siam mission of the Société des Missions Etrangères. He was the first medical missionary to Siam. He arrived in the country in 1677.
René Charbonneau firs ...
, a member of the Siam mission of the
Société des Missions Étrangères. Charbonneau remained as governor until 1685.
![Дом семьи Чинпрача](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c4/%D0%94%D0%BE%D0%BC_%D1%81%D0%B5%D0%BC%D1%8C%D0%B8_%D0%A7%D0%B8%D0%BD%D0%BF%D1%80%D0%B0%D1%87%D0%B0.jpg)
In 1685, King Narai confirmed the French tin monopoly in Phuket to their ambassador, the
Chevalier de Chaumont
Alexandre, Chevalier de Chaumont (1640 – 28 January 1710 in Paris) was the first French ambassador for King Louis XIV in Siam in 1685.Chakrabongse, C., 1960, Lords of Life, London: Alvin Redman Limited He was accompanied on his mission by Ab ...
.
Chaumont's former
maître d'hôtel
The ''maître d'hôtel'' (; ), head waiter, host, waiter captain, or ''maître d ( , ) manages the public part, or "front of the house", of a formal restaurant. The responsibilities of a ''maître d'hôtel'' generally include supervising the wa ...
, Sieur de Billy, was named governor of the island.
However, the French were expelled from Siam after the
1688 Siamese revolution. On 10 April 1689,
Desfarges led an expedition to re-capture Thalang to restore French control in Siam. His occupation of the island led to nothing, and Desfarges returned to
Puducherry Puducherry or Pondicherry may refer to:
* Puducherry (union territory), a union territory of India
** Pondicherry, capital of the union territory of Puducherry
** Puducherry district, a district of the union territory of Puducherry
** Puducherry t ...
in January 1690.
1785: Burmese invasion
Before the
Burmese attacked Thalang in 1785 during the "Nine Armies' Wars",
Francis Light
Captain Francis Light ( – 21 October 1794) was a British explorer and the founder of the British colony of Penang (in modern-day Malaysia) and its capital city of George Town in 1786. Light and his lifelong partner, Martina Rozells, were th ...
, a
British East India Company
The East India Company (EIC) was an English, and later British, joint-stock company founded in 1600 and dissolved in 1874. It was formed to trade in the Indian Ocean region, initially with the East Indies (the Indian subcontinent and South ...
captain (and later founder of
Penang), who had been based on the island for some years, notified the local administration that he had observed Burmese forces preparing to attack. The island's military governor had just died, so the Burmese thought that it could be easily seized.
Than Phu Ying Honorifics are a class of words or grammatical morphemes that encode a wide variety of social relationships between interlocutors or between interlocutors and referents.Foley, William. ''Anthropological Linguistics: An Introduction''. Oxford: Black ...
Chan, the widow of the recently deceased governor, and her sister Mook (คุณมุก) ordered the women of the island to dress as soldiers and take positions on the Thalang city walls. The Burmese called off their attack due to the perceived strength of the defences. Short of supplies, they retreated. After a month-long siege of the capital city, the Burmese were forced to retreat on 13 March 1785. The two women became local heroines, receiving the royal titles
Thao Thep Kasattri and Thao Si Sunthon from a grateful
King Rama I
Phra Phutthayotfa Chulalok Maharaj (, 20 March 1737 – 7 September 1809), personal name Thongduang (), also known as Rama I, was the founder of the Rattanakosin Kingdom and the first monarch of the reigning Chakri dynasty of Siam (now Tha ...
.
The
seal
Seal may refer to any of the following:
Common uses
* Pinniped, a diverse group of semi-aquatic marine mammals, many of which are commonly called seals, particularly:
** Earless seal, or "true seal"
** Fur seal
* Seal (emblem), a device to imp ...
of Phuket is a depiction of the Two Heroines Monument along Highway 402 in
Phuket
Phuket (; th, ภูเก็ต, , ms, Bukit or ''Tongkah''; Hokkien:普吉; ) is one of the southern provinces (''changwat'') of Thailand. It consists of the island of Phuket, the country's largest island, and another 32 smaller islands of ...
. This commemorates the sisters The seal is a circle surrounded by a
kranok pattern
Kranok pattern ( th, ลายกระหนก, ) is one of the most important Thai motif patterns, because it appears in many Thai artworks such as Tripiṭaka cabinets, the doors of Thai temples, and coffins. According to the Royal Institut ...
and has been used since 1985.
19th–20th centuries
During the reign of King
Chulalongkorn (Rama V) from 1 October 1868 to 23 October 1910, Phuket became the administrative centre of the tin-producing southern provinces. His reign was characterized by the modernization of Siam, governmental and social reforms, and territorial concessions to the British and French. As Siam was threatened by Western expansionism, Chulalongkorn managed to save Siam from colonization.
In 1876, mining laborers in Phuket and nearby provinces formed a rebellion. This was due to the low tin price, the government's tight fiscal policy, and Chinese laborers are not treated fairly.
In 1933 ''
Monthon Phuket'' (มณฑลภูเก็ต) was dissolved and Phuket became a province.
21st century (2001-present)
On 26 December 2004 during
Boxing Day, Phuket and other nearby areas on Thailand's west coast suffered damage when they were struck by a
tsunami
A tsunami ( ; from ja, 津波, lit=harbour wave, ) is a series of waves in a water body caused by the displacement of a large volume of water, generally in an ocean or a large lake. Earthquakes, volcanic eruptions and other underwater exp ...
caused by the
earthquake
An earthquake (also known as a quake, tremor or temblor) is the shaking of the surface of the Earth resulting from a sudden release of energy in the Earth's lithosphere that creates seismic waves. Earthquakes can range in intensity, fr ...
off
Sumatra in
Indonesia
Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Guine ...
. The waves destroyed several highly populated areas in the region, killing up to 5,300 people in Thailand, and two hundred thousand more throughout the South and Southeast Asian regions.
Some 250 were reported dead in Phuket, including foreign tourists. Almost all of the major beaches on the west coast of Phuket, especially Kamala,
Patong
Patong ( th, ป่าตอง , ) refers to the beach and town on Phuket's west coast. It is the main tourist resort on the island of Phuket, and is the centre of Phuket's nightlife and shopping. The beach became popular with Western tourists, e ...
, Karon, and Kata sustained major damage, with some damage caused to resorts and villages on the island's southern beaches. Thailand's hardest-hit area was the
Takua Pa District
Takua Pa ( th, ตะกั่วป่า, ) is a district (''amphoe'') in Phang Nga province in south Thailand.
Geography
The district is on the Andaman Sea coast. To the north of the district is Si Phang Nga National Park. The southern part ...
of
Phang Nga province north of Phuket, where a thousand or more Burmese workers building new beach resorts died.
In December 2006, Thailand launched the first of 22 tsunami-detection buoys to be positioned around the
Indian Ocean
The Indian Ocean is the third-largest of the world's five oceanic divisions, covering or ~19.8% of the water on Earth's surface. It is bounded by Asia to the north, Africa to the west and Australia to the east. To the south it is bounded by t ...
as part of a regional warning system. The satellite-linked deep-sea buoys float offshore, roughly midway between
Thailand
Thailand ( ), historically known as Siam () and officially the Kingdom of Thailand, is a country in Southeast Asia, located at the centre of the Indochinese Peninsula, spanning , with a population of almost 70 million. The country is b ...
and
Sri Lanka.
In early 2020,
COVID-19 pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identi ...
had reached Phuket. However, in March, Phuket and the rest of
Southern Thailand
Southern Thailand, Southern Siam or Tambralinga is a southernmost cultural region of Thailand, separated from Central Thailand region by the Kra Isthmus.
Geography
Southern Thailand is on the Malay Peninsula, with an area of around , bounde ...
went to the lockdown, citing the beginning of
stay-at-home order
A stay-at-home order, safer-at-home order, movement control order (more common in Southeast Asia), or lockdown restrictions (in the United Kingdom) – also referred to by loose use of the terms (self-) quarantine, (self-) isolation, or lockdow ...
s,
mask mandate
During the COVID-19 pandemic, face masks or coverings, including N95, FFP2, surgical, and cloth masks, have been employed as public and personal health control measures against the spread of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19.
In com ...
, and with
social distancing
In public health, social distancing, also called physical distancing, (NB. Regula Venske is president of the PEN Centre Germany.) is a set of non-pharmaceutical interventions or measures intended to prevent the spread of a contagious dis ...
, while it was relatively successful in containing the virus, its tourism-dependent economy was badly affected. Two years later, COVID-19 response in the country was ended by 2022 as ahead of the
post-pandemic phase.
Geography
Phuket is the largest island in Thailand. It is located in the
Andaman Sea in southern Thailand. The island is mostly mountainous with a mountain range in the west of the island from the north to the south. The mountains of Phuket form the southern end of the
Phuket mountain range
The Phuket Range ( th, ทิวเขาภูเก็ต, ''Thio Khao Phuket'', ) is a subrange of the Tenasserim Hills in the Kra Isthmus, Thailand.
Geography
The Phuket chain is a continuation of the greater Tenasserim range, forming one of ...
, which ranges for from the
Kra Isthmus
The Kra Isthmus ( th, คอคอดกระ, ) in Thailand is the narrowest part of the Malay Peninsula. The western part of the isthmus belongs to Ranong Province and the eastern part to Chumphon Province, both in Southern Thailand. The ...
.
![Sunset NaiYang](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/23/Sunset_NaiYang.jpg)
Although some recent geographical works refer to the sections of the Tenasserim Hills in the isthmus as the "Phuket Range", these names are not found in classical geographic sources. Besides, the name Phuket is relatively recent having previously been named Jung Ceylon and Thalang. The highest elevation of the island is usually regarded as Khao Mai Thao Sip Song (Twelve Canes), at above sea level. However, it has been reported by barometric pressure readings that there is an even higher elevation (with no apparent name), of 542 meters above sea level, in the Kamala hills behind Kathu waterfall.
The population was 249,446 in 2000, rising to 525,709 in the 2010 decennial census,
the highest growth rate of all provinces nationwide at 7.4 percent annually. Some 600,000 people reside on Phuket currently, among them migrants, international ex-pats, Thais registered in other provinces, and locals. The registered population, however, includes only Thais who are registered in a ''thabian ban'' or house registration book, which most are not, and at the end of 2012 was 360,905 persons.
Phuket is approximately south of
Bangkok
Bangkok, officially known in Thai as Krung Thep Maha Nakhon and colloquially as Krung Thep, is the capital and most populous city of Thailand. The city occupies in the Chao Phraya River delta in central Thailand and has an estimated populati ...
and covers an area of excluding small islets. Other islands are:
Ko Lone
A KO is a knockout in various sports, such as boxing and martial arts.
K.O., Ko or Kō may also refer to:
Arts and entertainment Music
* KO (musician), Canadian musician who plays a fusion of hip hop and folk music
* ''K.O.'' (album), a 2021 ...
,
Ko Maprao
A KO is a knockout in various sports, such as boxing and martial arts.
K.O., Ko or Kō may also refer to:
Arts and entertainment Music
* KO (musician), Canadian musician who plays a fusion of hip hop and folk music
* ''K.O.'' (album), a 2021 ...
,
Ko Naka Yai ,
Ko Racha Noi ,
Ko Racha Yai , and the second biggest,
Ko Sire .
The island's length, from north to south, is and its width is .
[Phuket Town Treasure Map](_blank)
www.phuket-maps.com
Forest, rubber, and palm oil plantations cover 60 percent of the island. The west coast has several sandy beaches. The east coast beaches are more often muddy. Near the southernmost point is Laem Phromthep ( th, แหลมพรหมเทพ, "Brahma's Cape"), a popular viewpoint. In the mountainous north of the island is the Khao Phra Thaeo No-Hunting Area, protecting more than 20 km
2 of the
rainforest. The three highest peaks of this reserve are the Khao Prathiu (),
Khao Bang Pae , and
Khao Phara . The
Sirinat National Park on the northwest coast was established in 1981 to protect an area of ( marine area), including the Nai Yang Beach where
sea turtle
Sea turtles (superfamily Chelonioidea), sometimes called marine turtles, are reptiles of the order Testudines and of the suborder Cryptodira. The seven existing species of sea turtles are the flatback, green, hawksbill, leatherback, loggerhe ...
s lay their eggs. The total forest area is or 20.6 percent of provincial area.
Climate
Under the
Köppen climate classification
The Köppen climate classification is one of the most widely used climate classification systems. It was first published by German-Russian climatologist Wladimir Köppen (1846–1940) in 1884, with several later modifications by Köppen, notabl ...
, Phuket features a
tropical monsoon climate
An area of tropical monsoon climate (occasionally known as a sub-equatorial, tropical wet climate or a tropical monsoon and trade-wind littoral climate) is a tropical climate sub-type that corresponds to the Köppen climate classification category ...
(''Am''). Due to its proximity to the equator, in the year, there is little variation in temperatures. The city has an average annual high of and an annual low of . Phuket has a
dry season
The dry season is a yearly period of low rainfall, especially in the tropics. The weather in the tropics is dominated by the tropical rain belt, which moves from the northern to the southern tropics and back over the course of the year. The te ...
that runs from December to March and a
wet season
The wet season (sometimes called the Rainy season) is the time of year when most of a region's average annual rainfall occurs. It is the time of year where the majority of a country's or region's annual precipitation occurs. Generally, the sea ...
that covers the remaining eight months. However, like many cities that feature a tropical monsoon climate, Phuket sees some precipitation even during its dry season. Phuket averages roughly of rain.
Demographics
![Thailand 2010 - panoramio (1)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/1a/Thailand_2010_-_panoramio_%281%29.jpg)
As with most of Thailand, the majority of the population is
Buddhist
Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and ...
, but there is a significant number of
Muslims (20 percent) in Phuket, mainly descendants of the island's original
Austronesian peoples
The Austronesian peoples, sometimes referred to as Austronesian-speaking peoples, are a large group of peoples in Taiwan, Maritime Southeast Asia, Micronesia, coastal New Guinea, Island Melanesia, Polynesia, and Madagascar that speak Austro ...
. Among the Muslims, many are of
Malay descent. People of
Chinese
Chinese can refer to:
* Something related to China
* Chinese people, people of Chinese nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity
**''Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic concept of the Chinese nation
** List of ethnic groups in China, people of ...
ancestry make up an even larger population, many of whom are descendants of the tin miners who migrated to Phuket during the 19th century.
Peranakan
The Peranakans () are an ethnic group defined by their genealogical descent from the first waves of Southern Chinese settlers to maritime Southeast Asia, known as Nanyang (), namely the British Colonial ruled ports in the Malay Peninsula, ...
s, known as "Phuket Babas" in the local tongue, constitute a fair share of Chinese community members, particularly among those who have family ties with the Peranakans of
Penang and
Malacca.
Phuket provincial population in the preliminary count of the 2010 census was counted to be 525,018 people, including some 115,881 expatriates, or 21.1 per cent of the population. However, it is admitted this is inaccurate since the Phuket Provincial Employment Office currently records for more than 64,000 Burmese, Lao and Cambodian workers legally residing on the island. The Thai census figure for 2015 shows a population of 386,605 persons.
The number of people on Phuket island swells to over a million during the high season, as tourists, mainly from Western Europe, China, Russia, and the United States flock to Phuket around Christmas.
Religion
Administrative divisions
Provincial government
Phuket is divided into three districts (''
amphoe''), which are further divided into 17 subdistricts (''
tambon
''Tambon'' ( th, ตำบล, ) is a local governmental unit in Thailand. Below district ('' amphoe'') and province ('' changwat''), they form the third administrative subdivision level. there were 7,255 tambons, not including the 180 '' khwaen ...
''), and 103 villages (''
muban'').
#
Mueang Phuket
#
Kathu
Kathu is a town in South Africa, and the iron ore capital of the Northern Cape province. Its name means "town under the trees", after the Camel Thorn forest it is situated in. The phrase "the town under the trees" was coined by an engineer wo ...
#
Thalang
Local government
As of 26 November 2019 there are: one Phuket Provincial Administration Organisation (') and 12 municipal (''thesaban'') areas in the province. Phuket has city (''
thesaban nakhon
Thesaban ( th, เทศบาล, , ) are the municipalities of Thailand. There are three levels of municipalities: city, town, and sub-district. Bangkok and Pattaya are special municipal entities not included in the ''thesaban'' system.
The mu ...
'') status. Kathu and Patong have town (''
thesaban mueang
Thesaban ( th, เทศบาล, , ) are the municipalities of Thailand. There are three levels of municipalities: city, town, and sub-district. Bangkok and Pattaya are special municipal entities not included in the ''thesaban'' system.
The mu ...
'') status. Further 9 subdistrict municipalities (''
thesaban tambon
Thesaban ( th, เทศบาล, , ) are the municipalities of Thailand. There are three levels of municipalities: city, town, and sub-district. Bangkok and Pattaya are special municipal entities not included in the ''thesaban'' system.
The mu ...
''). The non-municipal areas are administered by 6 Subdistrict Administrative Organisations - SAO (''ongkan borihan suan tambon'').
File:Phuket from space.jpg
File:Karte Golf von Thailand - Phuket.png
Economy
Tin
Tin is a chemical element with the symbol Sn (from la, stannum) and atomic number 50. Tin is a silvery-coloured metal.
Tin is soft enough to be cut with little force and a bar of tin can be bent by hand with little effort. When bent, t ...
mining was a major source of income for the island from the 16th century until petering out in the 20th century. In modern times, Phuket's economy has rested on two pillars:
rubber tree
''Hevea brasiliensis'', the Pará rubber tree, ''sharinga'' tree, seringueira, or most commonly, rubber tree or rubber plant, is a flowering plant belonging to the spurge family Euphorbiaceae originally native to the Amazon basin, but is now ...
plantations (making Thailand the biggest producer of rubber in the world) and
tourism
Tourism is travel for pleasure or business; also the theory and practice of touring, the business of attracting, accommodating, and entertaining tourists, and the business of operating tours. The World Tourism Organization defines tourism mor ...
.
Since the 1980s, the sandy beaches on the west coast of the island have been developed as tourist destinations, with Patong, Karon, and Kata being the most popular. Since the
2004 tsunami
An earthquake and a tsunami, known as the Boxing Day Tsunami and, by the scientific community, the Sumatra–Andaman earthquake, occurred at 07:58:53 local time ( UTC+7) on 26 December 2004, with an epicentre off the west coast of northern Su ...
, all damaged buildings and attractions have been restored. Phuket is being intensely developed, with many new hotels, apartments, and houses under construction.
In July 2005, Phuket was voted one of the world's top five retirement destinations by ''Fortune Magazine''.
In 2017, Phuket received about 10 million visitors, most of them foreign, with China the leading contributor. Tourists generated some 385 billion
baht
The baht (; th, บาท, ; sign: ฿; code: THB) is the official currency of Thailand. It is divided into 100 ''satang'' (, ). The issuance of currency is the responsibility of the Bank of Thailand. SWIFT ranked the Thai baht as the 10th-m ...
in revenues, nearly 14 percent of the 2.77 trillion baht earned by the nation as a whole.
The first half of 2019 saw a dip in the number of tourists visiting Phuket, driving lower hotel occupancy rates and leading to increased price competition.
RevPAR
RevPAR, or revenue per available room, is a performance metric in the hotel industry that is calculated by dividing a hotel's total guestroom revenue by the room count and the number of days in the period being measured.Mauri, A. G. (2012), ''Hotel ...
(revenue per available room) is down. A decline in the number of tourists, combined with an oversupply of hotel rooms, is the root of the problem. Despite falling numbers, the
Tourism Authority of Thailand
The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) ( th, การท่องเที่ยวแห่งประเทศไทย) is an organization of Thailand under the Ministry of Tourism and Sports. Its mandate is to promote Thailand's tourism in ...
(TAT) claims that tourism revenues have risen by 3.1% in the first half of 2019.
It is unclear how many hotel rooms Phuket has available. Oxfam says it has 60,000 hotel rooms for its 9.1 million annual visitors.
The ''Bangkok Post'' in September 2019 reported that Phuket has 600 hotels with 40,000 rooms.
Three weeks earlier it said that Phuket had 93,941 hotel rooms available, excluding villas and hostels, with an additional 15,000 projected to become available by 2024.
Transportation
;Air
Phuket International Airport (HKT) commenced a 5.7 billion baht (US$185.7 million) expansion in September 2012, scheduled for completion on 14 February 2016. The airport will increase its annual handling capacity from 6.5 million to 12.5 million passengers, and add a new international terminal.
;Rail
There is currently no rail line to Phuket. Trains run to
Surat Thani
Surat Thani ( th, สุราษฎร์ธานี, ) is a city in Amphoe Mueang Surat Thani, Surat Thani Province, southern Thailand. It lies south of Bangkok. It is the capital of Surat Thani Province. The city has a population of 1 ...
and
Khiri Rat Nikhom 230 km away.
;City transit
Songthaews are a common mode of transport in Phuket. Phuket's songthaews are larger than those found in other areas of Thailand. Songthaews are the cheapest mode of transportation from town to town. They travel between the town and the beaches. There are also conventional bus services and motorbike taxis. The latter are found in large numbers in the main town and at Patong Beach. Traditional
tuk-tuks
An auto rickshaw is a motorized version of the pulled rickshaw or cycle rickshaw. Most have three wheels and do not tilt. They are known by many terms in various countries including auto, auto rickshaw, baby taxi, mototaxi, pigeon, jonnybee, bajaj ...
have been replaced by small vans, mostly red, with some being yellow or green. Car taxis in Phuket are quite expensive and charge flat rates between towns. Privately run buses are available from the airport to Phuket Town and major beaches. It is often recommended by locals to take the ride-share company, Grab.
![Street sign in Phuket, Thailand](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/6b/Street_sign_in_Phuket%2C_Thailand.jpg)
;Bus
Phuket's Bus Station 2 BKS Terminal is the long-distance arrivals hub for buses to and from Bangkok and other major Thai cities and provinces. Located four kilometres to the north of Phuket's town centre and port, the complex is large and modern, linking with transportation by tuk-tuk, metered taxi, motorcycle taxi, songthaew, or local bus to the island's beaches and resorts. There are daily scheduled buses from private and government-run companies going to Phuket from Bangkok's Mo Chit and Southern terminal stations.
;Tram
The
Mass Rapid Transit Authority of Thailand
Mass Rapid Transit Authority of Thailand or MRTA ( th, การรถไฟฟ้าขนส่งมวลชนแห่งประเทศไทย) is a state enterprise under the Ministry of Transport of Thailand. It is responsible the ope ...
(MRTA) announced in 2018 that bidding to construct a 60-kilometer-long, 23-station tram network in Phuket will commence in 2020. The 39 billion baht tram is part of the government's Private-Public-Partnership (PPP) plan which ensures it will be fast-tracked. The planned route stretches from
Takua Thung District in
Phang Nga province to
Chalong in Phuket. Phase one will connect Phuket International Airport with Chalong, about 40 kilometres. It will take three years to complete.
;Ferry
There are daily ferry boats that connect Phuket to neighboring islands
Phi Phi
The Phi Phi Islands ( th, หมู่เกาะพีพี, , ) are an island group in Thailand between the large island of Phuket and the Straits of Malacca coast of Thailand. The islands are administratively part of Krabi Province. Ko Phi ...
and
Koh Lanta. Ferries depart daily from Rassada Pier and Tonsai Pier, with service expanding each year. The average price for a one-way ticket ranges from 300 THB to 1500 THB.
Health
6 hospitals exist in Phuket. The main hospital in Phuket operated by the
Ministry of Public Health is
Vachira Phuket Hospital, with smaller hospitals at Thalang and Patong. 3 Private hospitals exist which are
Phuket International Hospital,
Bangkok Hospital Phuket, and
Mission Hospital Phuket
Mission (from Latin ''missio'' "the act of sending out") may refer to:
Organised activities Religion
*Christian mission, an organized effort to spread Christianity
*Mission (LDS Church), an administrative area of The Church of Jesus Christ of ...
.
Human achievement index 2017
Since 2003, United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in Thailand has tracked progress on human development at the sub-national level using the
Human achievement index (HAI), a composite index covering all the eight key areas of human development. The National Economic and Social Development Board (NESDB) has taken over this task since 2017.
Sport
In 2009, the club is formed as
Phuket F.C., nicknamed The Southern Sea Kirins, and admitted to the Regional League South Division. Club home games are to be played at
Surakul Stadium
Surakul Stadium (; ) is a multi-purpose stadium in Phuket Province, Thailand. It is currently used mostly for football matches. The stadium holds 15,000 and was built in 1959.
The stadium co-hosted the 2008 AFF Suzuki Cup. The use of the Su ...
. Sirirak Konthong was named as the first-ever coach of Phuket. In 2010 Phuket won the Southern Regional Division 2 and finished 2nd in the Division 2 Champions League after losing to Buriram FC in the final anyway the club was promoted to
2011 Thai Division 1 League
2011 Thai League Division 1 is the 14th season of the League since its establishment in 1997. It is the feeder league for the Thai Premier League. A total of 18 teams will compete in the league.
League expansion
It was announced at the end of the ...
.
In 2009, the club is formed as
Phuket F.C., sports_nicknamed The Southern Sea Kirins, and admitted to the Regional League South Division. Club home games are to be played at
Surakul Stadium
Surakul Stadium (; ) is a multi-purpose stadium in Phuket Province, Thailand. It is currently used mostly for football matches. The stadium holds 15,000 and was built in 1959.
The stadium co-hosted the 2008 AFF Suzuki Cup. The use of the Su ...
. Sirirak Konthong was named as the first-ever coach of Phuket. In 2010 Phuket won the Southern Regional Division 2 and finished second in the Division 2 Champions League after losing to Buriram FC in the final anyway the club was promoted to
2011 Thai Division 1 League
2011 Thai League Division 1 is the 14th season of the League since its establishment in 1997. It is the feeder league for the Thai Premier League. A total of 18 teams will compete in the league.
League expansion
It was announced at the end of the ...
.
In 2015, the club is relegated to
2016 Regional League Division 2 Southern Region.
In 2017, Phuket F.C. decided to dissolve the club due to financial problems about unfair contract cancellation.
In 2018, Phuket F.C. collapsed and combined with
Banbueng F.C.
Banbueng Football Club (Thai: สโมสรฟุตบอลบ้านบึง) is a Thai association football, football club based in Chonburi Province. The club participates in Thai League 3 Lower Region, the third tier of Thai football ...
In 2019 the club was renamed to Phuket City. However, the club was renamed back to
Banbueng F.C.
Banbueng Football Club (Thai: สโมสรฟุตบอลบ้านบึง) is a Thai association football, football club based in Chonburi Province. The club participates in Thai League 3 Lower Region, the third tier of Thai football ...
due to the take over of Banbueng's boards again. They have moved their ground back to
IPE Chonburi Stadium in
Chonburi
Chonburi ( th, ชลบุรี, , IAST: , ) is the capital of Chonburi Province and Mueang Chonburi District in Thailand. It is about 100 km southeast of Bangkok, on the coast of the Gulf of Thailand. Its name means 'city of water'. Chonb ...
too.
In 2020, Patong City participated
2020–21 Thai League 3 Southern Region
The 2020–21 Thai League 3 Southern region is a region in the regional stage of the 2020–21 Thai League 3. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the season must be postponed to start in late 2020 and end in early 2021. In addition, the Thai League 4 h ...
for, the first time in the professional league of club history.
Attractions
*Two Heroines Monument (อนุสาวรีย์วีรสตรี), is the monument in Thalang District, a memorial statue of
Thao Thep Kasattri (Kunying Jan) and Thao Sri Sunthon (Mook), who rallied islanders in 1785 to repel Burmese invaders.
*Thalang National Museum (พิพิธภัณฑสถานแห่งชาติ ถลาง), established in 1985, on the 200th anniversary of the Thalang War.
*
Hat Karon (หาดกะรน) is the second largest of Phuket's tourist beaches, approximately from town.
![Karon Beach, Phuket](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/0e/Karon_Beach%2C_Phuket.jpg)
*
Wat Chalong (วัดฉลองหรือวัดไชยธาราราม) has a statue of Luang Pho Cham, who helped the people of Phuket put down the Angyee in 1876 during the reign of Rama V.
![Wat Chalong - Phuket](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/bf/Wat_Chalong_-_Phuket.jpg)
*
Old Phuket Town in Phuket town, around Thalang, Dibuk, Yaowarat, Phang Nga, and Krabi Roads. The architecture is Sino-Portuguese-style.
*
On On Hotel in downtown Phuket Town which was shown in the movie ‘The Beach’ with Leonardo DiCaprio in 2000.
*Aquaria Phuket opened on August 24, 2019.
*Freedom Beach, one of the prettiest beaches on the island, with incredibly soft white sand and clear blue waters. It is just a few minutes away from Patong Beach, accessible by boat or hiking.
*A day trip to the Phi Phi Islands takes about 50 minutes when departing from Phuket by speedboat and these islands are a beautiful sight worth taking in.
Local culture
*Thao Thep Krasattri and Thao Si Sunthon Fair (งานท้าวเทพกระษัตรี - ท้าวศรีสุนทร) is held on March 13 every year to commemorate the two heroines who rallied the Thalang people to repel Burmese invaders.
*
Vegetarian Festival or Nine Emperor gods Festival (
Hokkien Chinese language: 九皇勝會, ''Kiú-Hông Sēng-Huē'' or 九皇爺, ''Kiú-Hông Iâ''; Phuket Chinese people Call 食菜節, ''Tsia̍h-tshài'' (เทศกาลกินเจ (กินผัก-เจี๊ยะฉ่าย)), is held on the first day of the ninth Chinese lunar month (end-Sep or early-Oct). Phuket islanders of Chinese ancestry commit themselves to a nine-day vegetarian diet, a form of purification believed to help make the forthcoming year trouble-free. The festival is marked by several ascetic displays, including fire-walking and ascending sharp-bladed ladders.
*
Ghost Festival
The Ghost Festival, also known as the Zhongyuan Festival (traditional Chinese: 中元節; simplified Chinese: ) in Taoism and Yulanpen Festival () in Buddhism, is a traditional Taoist and Buddhist festival held in certain East Asian countrie ...
or ''Phóo-tōo Festival'' (
Hokkien Chinese language: 普渡節; Full name is ''Û-lân-phûn Sēng-Huē'' (
Hokkien Chinese language: 盂蘭盆勝會)), is held on the middle day of the seventh Chinese lunar month. Intrinsic to the Ghost Festival is ancestor worship. Activities include preparing food offerings, burning incense, and burning joss paper, a papier-mâché form of material items such as clothes, gold, and other goods for the visiting spirits. Elaborate meals (often vegetarian) are served with empty seats for each of the deceased in the family. Other festivities may include, buying and releasing miniature paper boats and lanterns on water, which signifies giving direction to lost souls.
*Phuket King's Cup Regatta (งานแข่งเรือใบชิงถ้วยพระราชทาน) is held every December. The Kata Beach Resort hosts yachtsmen, largely from neighbouring countries who compete for trophies.
*Laguna Phuket Triathlon (ลากูน่าภูเก็ตไตรกีฬา) is held each December. The triathlon (a swim, a bike race and a run and a fun run) attracts athletes from all over the world.
*Phuket Travel Fair (เทศกาลเปิดฤดูการท่องเที่ยวจังหวัดภูเก็ต), starting 1 November, is usually called the Patong Carnival, from the place where celebrations happen. Colourful parades, sports events, and beauty competitions for foreign tourists are major activities. A popular festival, the Patong Carnival opening drew over 30,000 foreign and Thai tourists.
*Chao Le (Sea Gypsy) Boat Floating Festival (งานประเพณีลอยเรือชาวเล) falls during the middle of the sixth and eleventh lunar months yearly. The sea gypsy villages at Rawai and Sapam hold their ceremonies on the 13th; Ko Si-re celebrates on the 14th; and Laem La (east of the bridge on Phuket's northern tip) on the 15th. Ceremonies, which centre on the setting of small boats adrift similar to the Thai festival of Loi Krathong, are held at night and their purpose is to drive away evil and bring good luck.
*Phuket Bike Week is the biggest motorbike event in Asia. Motorcyclists with their motorcycles and spectators from many countries like France join this event in every year. The event highlights include a motorcycle exhibition, bike parades "Ride for Peace", custom bike contests, live entertainment, Mr. Phuket Bike Week competition, bike accessories and apparel from local and international venders.
Twin towns and sister cities
Phuket province has a number of
sister cities
A sister city or a twin town relationship is a form of legal or social agreement between two geographically and politically distinct localities for the purpose of promoting cultural and commercial ties.
While there are early examples of inter ...
. They are:
:
Nice
Nice ( , ; Niçard dialect, Niçard: , classical norm, or , nonstandard, ; it, Nizza ; lij, Nissa; grc, Νίκαια; la, Nicaea) is the prefecture of the Alpes-Maritimes departments of France, department in France. The Nice urban unit, agg ...
, France (1989)
:
Las Vegas
Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Vegas ...
, United States (1997)
:
Yantai
Yantai, formerly known as Chefoo, is a coastal prefecture-level city on the Shandong Peninsula in northeastern Shandong province of People's Republic of China. Lying on the southern coast of the Bohai Strait, Yantai borders Qingdao on the ...
, China (1997)
:
Port Blair
Port Blair () is the capital city of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, a union territory of India in the Bay of Bengal. It is also the local administrative sub-division (''tehsil'') of the islands, the headquarters for the district of South An ...
, India (2005)
:
Hainan
Hainan (, ; ) is the smallest and southernmost province of the People's Republic of China (PRC), consisting of various islands in the South China Sea. , the largest and most populous island in China,The island of Taiwan, which is slightly l ...
, China (2005)
:
Nakhodka
Nakhodka ( rus, Нахо́дка, p=nɐˈxotkə) is a port city in Primorsky Krai, Russia, located on the Trudny Peninsula jutting into the Nakhodka Bay of the Sea of Japan, about east of Vladivostok, the administrative center of the krai. Po ...
, Russia (2006)
:
Suining
Suining (; Sichuanese Pinyin: Xu4nin2; Sichuanese pronunciation: ; ) is a prefecture-level city of eastern Sichuan province in Southwest China. In 2002, Suining had a population of 658,798.
Geography and climate
Suining is located in the cen ...
, China (2016)
:
Macau
Macau or Macao (; ; ; ), officially the Macao Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (MSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China in the western Pearl River Delta by the South China Sea. With a p ...
, China (2018)
Gallery
File:Thao Thep Kasattri and Thao Sri Sunthon.jpg, Monument to Thao Thep Kasattri and Thao Sri Sunthon in Phuket
File:KataNoiBeach.jpg, Kata Noi Beach
File:"Big Budda" Phuket 2014 february - panoramio (4).jpg, Big Buddha monument overlooking Phuket
File:Palm tree at dawn, Patong beach.jpg, Patong
Patong ( th, ป่าตอง , ) refers to the beach and town on Phuket's west coast. It is the main tourist resort on the island of Phuket, and is the centre of Phuket's nightlife and shopping. The beach became popular with Western tourists, e ...
Beach
File:Koh hae, Thailand.jpg, Ko Hae Island
File:Promthep Cape 04.jpg, Phromthep Cape and Kaeo Yai Island
File:Phuket 2014, december - panoramio (4).jpg, Mai Khao, Thalang District
References
External links
* Forbes, Andrew, and Henley, David
''Phuket’s Historic Peranakan Community''*
{{Authority control
Islands of Thailand
Provinces of Thailand
Southern Thailand
Andaman Sea
Strait of Malacca