A luxury beach holiday in Phuket with friends

It has been a while since I last visited Phuket, Thailand. There was a period of time when I would go there often since its less than a 2 hour flight from Singapore. Since my gym trainer was organising a sports retreat for his clients with a group of more than 10 persons, I decided to experience what it was like to travel with so many people and also stay in a luxurious villa. 

We booked our Phuket villa on HomeAway Singapore, my first time doing so! After deciding between 5 luxurious villa properties we settled for a villa at Layang Beach with 7 bedrooms, 3 pools, with multiple lounge areas. The pictures on HomeAway looked as luxurious as how it was when we checked in. We must have taken a good half hour to explore the area and every room. In addition, the villa manager arranged for airport transfer, in-villa massage, as well as a in-villa chef to cook for us, which was super useful since we had such a big group. The experience of having home cooked Thai food in a huge villa was lovely, a personal feel indeed.

Shopping in Phuket

The great thing about Phuket is the fact that there is something for everyone. If you are a beach person, you can enjoy either hanging out at Patong beach, or taking a boat ride out to visit the islands. If you are a spa person, you have an endless selection of spas to choose from. The only thing lacking perhaps would be time. And for those who would not find a holiday complete without shopping, you're almost spoilt for choice here at Phuket. Of course, you would not expect to find the same variety of fashion that you would Bangkok, but at least some shopping is better than none at all!

Get to experience their street side shopping in Patong Beach which opens from morning till late at night. It might be best to shop along the streets later in the day when it is cooler. The best items to get would be your beach wear such as sundresses, bikinis, and surf shorts. Expect to pay for a sundress at USD10 to USD30 depending on the material and bikinis at USD10 and above.

Apart from the street side shopping, Jungceylon is definitely the mall you must visit when you are at Phuket. It is the largest and newest mall located at Patong Beach.

Things to look out for if you are coming from Asia – Carrefour carries toiletries at a much cheaper rate as brands. Look out for brands such as Neutrogena, Oil of Olay, Johnson & Johnson. Carrefour is also the place to shop for all types of tom yum paste, curry chicken paste, Thai instant noodle to bring back to your home country. Boots, a popular personal care chain store from UK can also be found at the mall. I just love their Botanicals range!

The basement of Jungceylon mall is an interesting enclave. It is a must for those who cannot bare the heat of the street side shopping. Look out for interesting local crafts, souvenirs, and clothes. If shopping does not interest you, you might also consider going for Thai massage or foot reflexology at decent rates.