I spend most of my working life telling people to get on a boat. So I should acknowledge clearly: not everyone does, and Phuket still has enough on land to fill a week for someone with no interest in being on the sea.
Here is what I would do with a week in Phuket if the water was off the agenda.
A full day in the Old Town, done properly, is one of the better things available in southern Thailand. Start at the morning market before 7am, when the local vendors are setting up and the shophouse cafes are serving their first coffee. Walk the full circuit of Thalang Road, Soi Rommanee, and the streets around the China Inn. Look at the Sino-Portuguese architecture — genuinely beautiful and well-preserved. Find the street art that appears on nearly every alley wall.
Have lunch at one of the shophouse restaurants that have been operating since before the tourist economy arrived. Come back in the evening for the Sunday Walking Street if the timing works. Old Town rewards multiple visits and is the single thing I would send someone to before anything else if they only had one day and no interest in the sea.
The 45-metre white marble Big Buddha on Nakkerd Hill is visible from most of the southern island and the view from the base — 360 degrees, covering coast to coast — is among the best on the island. Go in the early morning for the light and the relative quiet. The drive up through the hills is itself worth doing.
The viewpoint circuit of the southern island — Three Bays Viewpoint, Phromthep Cape, Windmill Viewpoint, Samet Nangshe in Phang Nga — makes an excellent day by car or scooter.
The elephant sanctuaries within day-trip distance of Phuket offer a genuine and moving experience. An afternoon watching rescued elephants in an environment designed for their wellbeing rather than tourist convenience is a different experience to any beach day. Look for sanctuaries that do not offer riding and whose income model supports genuine rescue and rehabilitation.
Phuket has a good market calendar. The Sunday Walking Street in Old Town, the Night Bazar in Phuket Town on Thursdays and Fridays, Chillva Market on Thursday to Sunday evenings, and the Naka Weekend Market on weekends near the bypass road. Each has a different character and different food. Between them, they cover most of what the local food and craft economy offers.
The rubber plantation roads through the island’s interior, the Sirinat National Park mangroves in the north, the sea turtle nesting areas at Mai Khao, and the viewpoint above the Bang Tao lagoon system — these are the parts of Phuket that most tourists never reach because they require a car and a willingness to leave the beach zone. They are worth reaching.
I will still argue that the best day on Phuket involves the sea. But the second-best day might be in the Old Town at 6am with a bowl of noodles and the light coming low through the shophouse street.
➤ When you are ready for the water, we will be here
— Captain Mark
Exceptional, uncrowded island day trips from Phuket. Family-owned and operated since 2004.
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