Cruising Phuket – Part One

When our very good friends, Kate and Martin, visited us in Thailand we got the chance to be their tour guides, taking them to many gorgeous places in and around Phuket. We visited Koh Phi Phi Don and Phang Nga Bay with its spectacular karsts; we went elephant trekking and of course took in the atmosphere of Patong’s famous night life! This is part one of their time in Thailand.

I must say we were a little excited about the prospect of seeing our friends as it had been half a year since we had seen a familiar face from home. So with barely restrained giddy excitement we hired a car and picked them up from the Phuket International Airport. After excited hellos and hugs all round we led them out into the muggy heat of Phuket, and whisked them away for dinner by the beach at Ao Chalong, where Thorfinn was securely anchored.

The following day we went ashore to do some sightseeing and re-provision Thorfinn for our upcoming island adventures. We started with a visit to the Big Buddha.

The Big Buddha

There you can see a giant marble buddha, a huge golden Buddha and my favourite – the golden monk statues. They are so intricately made, and their wrinkled faces look very life-like.

Then it was off to Kata Beach for a beer and Karon Beach for a bit of market shopping before going to Patong Beach for lunch. After lunch, we stopped at a wet market for fruit, vegetables and prawns before heading back to Ao Chalong. At Ao Chalong, we had a drink at the Phuket Cruising Yacht Club and then returned to the boat to prepare for our early morning departure.

Koh Phi Phi Le

At Maya Bay, we picked up a mooring. We had a fairly large swell which made the anchorage uncomfortable. Therefore, after a bite to eat – and one of us regurgitating that lunch for the fish – we moved on. We motored past the Viking Cave and around to Koh Phi Phi Don.

Koh Phi Phi Don

We stopped for a snorkel and lunch on the east coast of Phi Phi Don before moving further north and anchoring off Long Tam Beach. We snorkelled and relaxed with a couple of cocktails before heading to the beach for dinner.

The next day after snorkelling in the morning, we were picked up by a long-tail boat and taken around to Phi Phi Village.

Phi Phi Village is a touristy little place with masses of tourist-packed boats arriving and departing constantly. It can seem a little chaotic, especially around the wharf area – and this was low season!  But, we found a nice little restaurant on the beach and had a very relaxing lunch before the guys decided to get massages, and we girls went shopping.

We found Dwayne and Martin having a beer and a chuckle after their massage. Apparently, Martin had been indecently propositioned. Well, you can’t come to Thailand without at least the offer of a happy ending!

We were dropped back to Thorfinn on the long-tail boat, and we decided to pull up the anchor and go to a nearby island to check out the snorkelling.

Koh Yung

The snorkelling was nothing special, but it was a beautiful little beach, and we decided to stay there and have a barbecue for dinner. I returned to the boat to get the provisions for dinner and whip up a batch of Piana Colada cocktails. So with my trusty Nutri-Bullet (a recent purchase Kate brought with her from Aussie), I mixed up a basic pina colada and added a couple of sweet bananas… viola Piana Colada! We drank our yummy cocktails from coconuts and enjoyed the tranquillity.

Railay Bay

Dwayne and I first visited Railay Bay in 2010 for my brother’s wedding. It is a beautiful spot, and we were pretty excited to be able to share it with Kate and Martin. There are no cars on Railay, so it is all foot power! We walked from the beach, where we were anchored, through to the other two nearby beaches that make up the small peninsula. On the way, Kate and Martin saw their first wild monkeys. A few took a particular liking to Martin.

We found a spot for lunch before returning to the beach for a swim and a paddle on the boards. Cocktails on board were followed by a beautiful sunset on shore and a meal enjoyed under the stars on a calm and balmy night.

The following day we went to shore for banana pancakes – a must-have when you visit Thailand – before cranking up the iron sail and heading towards Phang Nga Bay and exploring Thailand’s geological wonders… the karsts and hongs.

Next up – Phang Nga Bay’s beautiful hongs!