Bang Tao Beach - Phuket's unique beach for a relaxing holiday

Bang Tao Beach is Phuket’s largest beach, and that’s what makes it unique. It has found room for condominiums with perfectly developed structure, and almost pristine corners, where not only tourists, but even locals are not met very often. Especially in low season. It is located between the beaches of Nighton and Surin.

For those looking for peace and tranquility, there is no better place than Bang Tao. It is not only spacious, but quiet and sparsely populated. The best part is that on the neighboring Surin Beach, lying to the south and separated from it only a rocky coastal promontory, life thunders in all its diversity.

Description of the beach

Bang Tao Beach is quite different from the entire west coast of Phuket Island. It does not have a highway next to it, a neighborhood that even the protected Nai Yang has not escaped. And for Caron, Patong and Kata Beach this highway has become the axis around which the entire local tourism industry revolves. This is why all the hotels on this beach belong to the so-called first line.

Bang Tao Beach is a single natural entity. However, on tourist maps, it is divided into three parts. The southern, which is Bang Tao, and the central, the longest, named Laguna Beach, are separated by a small stream. The border with the northern part – Layan Beach is not visible at all and can be considered conventional.

South part

Bang Tao Beach in Phuket is special also because the southern part is inhabited by natives. There are no hotels, it’s an authentic stretch of coast with a mass of moored fishing boats. It is a hundred meters long, it is uncomfortable to swim there, and there are no sun loungers or sun loungers on the shore.

The touristy of Bang Tao proper starts right after. And you’ll notice it both by the abundance of vacationers on the sand and by the jet skis splitting the waves. On the shore there are covered sheds, where everyone is offered a session of traditional Thai massage. A little further from the shore are built bars and restaurants, from the verandahs of which the music flows – usually not too loud and unhurried. Around the points of catering mass of all sorts of shops, where they sell souvenirs and all sorts of things that can come in handy on the beach – air mattresses, balls, flip-flops and Panamas. You’ll also find excursion bureaus here.

Bang Tao Beach in Phuket is beloved by Russian tourists. That’s why there you will find a lot of signs with familiar letters, which duplicate the advertising banners in Thai.

Central-part

The so-called Laguna Beach, separated from Bang Tao by a shallow creek, is much quieter than the southern part of the beach. As you move north, the number of massage parlors, bars and restaurants decreases, at the conditional border with Layan Beach you can already feel like you’re on a desert island. The owners of jet skis and other water attractions do not like this part of the beach. Also, just behind the hotels, inland, there are fields and woods.

North part

Bang Tao Beach in Phuket is a semi-wild place when you consider its northern part, the so-called Layan Beach, sheltered from the Andaman Sea by Kala Island. Only a small section of the beach is occupied by sunbeds and umbrellas. Do you want to sunbathe, swim and fish from the shore? That’s where you are.

Infrastructure

If you seek comfort and crave entertainment, you should stay on the southern part of the beach, where the tourist infrastructure is most developed. On the opposite side of the resorts is Soi Ao bangTao 2, along which there are cafes and stores. There you can catch a cab and drive to the supermarket Tesco Lotus and McDonald’s restaurant on Route 4025. There is a bank next to them, but on the opposite side.

South of this fork is a Muslim village with a mosque. For tourists it is interesting with a large number of small hotels and cheap hostels. There are innumerable little stores and cafes along the way, right up to Surin Beach. The biggest outlets are the Seven Eleven supermarket and the so-called Superchip. There are two weekend markets.

There are massage parlors on the beach itself, where they charge 200 to 250 baht per session. You can learn how to scuba dive in a diving center, rent a jet ski or take a ride on longtails. In the evening, tourists are entertained by a young elephant walk on the beach.

Hotels

Hotels on Bang Tao Beach are expensive, mostly resorts with their own areas. There are also villas, which can be rented for 200 thousand per month. Such scarcity of proposals is explained by the cataclysm in 2004, when during the tsunami all the small houses and hotels were destroyed. Most of the buildings are on the southern part of the beach. The most recent is the Amin Resort, which has a cab stand next to it. Next door is the Bangtao Beach resort.

Hint! Find the most suitable hotel at hotellook.ru or roomguru.ru. And you can see the best of them in the selection below.

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The cheapest accommodation is found in the Muslim village. There are condo hotels with rooms, a night in which costs 1000-15000 baht. Rent a room and the locals. The farther away from the sea, the cheaper the accommodation, but on average a monthly rent will cost 10-15 thousand.

Moevenpick Resort Bangtao Beach Phuket

The Moevenpick Resort Bangtao Beach Phuket and Laguna Beach Resort Hotel are located in the central area, next to a whole complex of ponds. Their area is very well landscaped and you can not leave it for the whole vacation, you will find everything you need to relax on it. If you don’t know, what to do at Bang Tao Beach, we advise you to visit the neighboring golf club.

How to get to Bang Tao

Bang Tao is quite far from the island’s iconic tourist spots. It takes at least forty minutes to drive to the capital, Phuket Town. Patong is about the same. So, if you are going to visit this section of the coast, plan a full day trip or expect to settle there. This will be a good choice for those who are not interested in shopping, and the purpose of rest is relaxation on the beach, away from the noise and temptations of civilization.

Car or motorbike

So how do you get to Bang Tao Beach on your own? To do so, rent a car or a motorcycle (read more about how to rent a scooter in Phuket). The main island highway connecting Phuket Airport and the capital is Thep Krasattri Highway, and the main landmark for turning to the west coast beaches is the Monument of Heroes, located near Talang village. From here you take Highway 4025 and continue until you see McDonald’s. After McDonald’s you turn right on Soi Ao bangTao 2. At this fork there is also the Tesco Lotus supermarket. This is the street where you drive west until the sea looms ahead. If you miss the fork of McDonald’s, you will get to Surin Beach, which is not a disaster – if you turn north on the coastal highway, you will reach the southern part of Bang Tao, where the local fishermen hang out.

Municipal-transport

To go from Phuket Town to Surin Beach. The ticket for bus costs from 50 baht. The coastal highway to Bang Tao takes about forty minutes.

Taxi or shuttle service

This option is good for those driving from Phuket Airport. Bang Tao is about twenty kilometers away. The trip costs about seven hundred baht, it depends on your ability to haggle.

You can also book a transfer from Phuket airport to Bang Tao Beach in advance. Its main conveniences are waiting and meeting with the driver at the airport exit, holding a sign with your name in his hands; help with loading / unloading of luggage and the availability of a child seat. Read more about this service read here.