Bang Tao Beach Phuket
Bang Tao Bay (Ao Bang Thao) on Phuket’s northwest coast is a popular 8km stretch of white sandy beach. The greater Bangtao area still maintains a mixed local village atmosphere of Buddhist, Chinese, and Moslem residents milling about daily markets. The beach area also retains a local flavour with simple Thai food stalls and vendors set among cosy guesthouses of Bang Tao. The uniqueness of this beach is a series of pretty man-made lagoons converted from nineteenth century tin mining quarries. Today the upmarket Laguna complex has developed various resorts and golf courses around them near the beach.
The stunning beach at Bang Tao has also attracted international resorts such as Banyan Tree and Sheraton Grande Laguna, and the Laguna Resorts area is now a centre of many chic boutique resorts, villas, spas, restaurants and designer stores. The road into Laguna is lined with day spas, antique shops, decor and designer fashions alongside English pubs, global cafes, wine cellars and funky bars – giving a cosmopolitan feel to the area.
Adjoining Laguna Phuket Golf Club’s 18-hole course, Laguna Resorts has embarked on a successful residential estate with luxurious residences set among landscaped parklands and lagoons. Many other high-end developers have followed suit, resulting in a luxury property market attracting many UK , European and Asian expat buyers to the region.
At the Southern end of the beach, near Surin Beach, are a cluster of nice family resorts with shady beachfronts and a small ‘villagy’ street. Don’t expect a busy nightlife, but you have miles and miles of beach to stroll down.
The north end of Bang Tao Beach is little-developed so far. Although a new Shangri La resort is being built next to the beach, most of the remaining development is far back from the shore, giving the top end of the bay a much more relaxed feeling.
Layan Beach lies in a cove just north of Bang tao Beach and is home to two delightful Thai-owned resorts: Bundarika and Layan Beach Resort. This is a rather exclusive area, quite remote from the rest of the island’s tourist spots, and suitable only for those who want to hole up in their self-contained resort.
The coastline stretches north toward Naithon beach along a drive of untouched forest and cliff top scenery. The upmarket Trisara Resort and villas, offering six-star living, is a glamorous hideaway for many international celebrities. The Bang Tao – Naithon areas also have a good range of middle market and family accommodation close to the beaches. Small resorts can also be found among the rubber, pineapple, and palm plantations in the area for a quiet escape from the beach crowds in the season from December to February.
The Bang Tao area has something for everyone. Beach lovers are in their element with plenty of sun loungers and beach vendors selling everything from fresh coconut juice to sarongs. Quieter beaches can also be found with few facilities.
Surin Beach was once the exclusive playground for Thailand’s elite – it was the site of the island’s first gold course, built for King Prajadhipok Rama VII in the 1920s. Today, though no longer royally exclusive, Surin Beach still attracts the smart set with some of the island’s fanciest resorts and the kind of restaurants and night venues that attract people who tend to dress in wrinkled cotton in white or pastel colours.
But they are by no means the only people who go there: On any day, the Surin beachfront will be alive with friendly football matches, beach volleyball, kite flying, surfing, or equally relaxed with bathers enjoying sun rays on the sandy shore. Surin beach can be quite popular with Phuket locals. Meanwhile, Thai vendors still run their popular and traditional beachfront sala-style restaurants and bars offering tantalizing seafood dishes, cocktails and world-famous Thai hospitality.
