Phuket’s Premier Resort Destination
Laguna Phuket is a massive resort complex on the northwest coast of Phuket, covering over 1,000 acres between Bang Tao Beach and Layan Beach. It’s not a single hotel. It’s an entire destination with seven resorts, hundreds of private villas, two golf courses, dozens of restaurants, and some of the island’s best beach clubs. The area has transformed so completely that it now functions like a self-contained town, with international schools, medical clinics, and a year-round expat community. What was once abandoned tin mining land is now where Phuket’s luxury tourism began.
History of Laguna Phuket
The land where Laguna Phuket stands today was once a tin mining site. For decades, mining operations stripped the earth bare, leaving behind flooded pits and scrubland. When the tin industry collapsed, the land became worthless. Nobody wanted it. The lagoons you see today are actually old mining ponds, remnants of that industrial past. If you’re curious about this era, the Phuket Mining Museum in Kathu tells the full story of how tin shaped the island’s fortune.
In the late 1980s, developers saw potential where others saw wasteland. Instead of filling in the lagoons, they built around them. That decision shaped everything. The first resorts opened in the early 1990s, and Laguna Phuket became one of Asia’s first integrated resort destinations.
I started my career at Banyan Tree Phuket in 1994. Back then, there were only five hotels in the whole complex. People thought it was too remote. Too quiet. The nearest proper restaurant was a long drive away, and guests rarely left their resorts. If you wanted anything beyond hotel dining, you drove to Kamala Beach or Phuket Town.
Now it’s the opposite situation. Laguna is so popular that new villa projects appear constantly. The Laguna Lakelands development will effectively double the size of the community with seven residential neighbourhoods. Fine dining restaurants open every year. The area that felt isolated in 1994 has become the place everyone wants to be, and increasingly, where people want to live permanently.
The Beach
Bang Tao Beach stretches for six kilometres along the Laguna resort area, and this beach is a big part of why the complex works so well. It’s wide, swimmable most of the year, and now lined with beach clubs and restaurants where you can spend an entire day without moving. The sand is good, the water is clean, and there’s enough space that it never feels overcrowded even in high season. All seven Laguna resorts have direct or easy access to the beach, and the shuttle system means you can reach any part of it without walking far.
The Hotels
The original five Laguna hotels have grown into seven resorts plus countless private villas and residences. The current lineup includes Banyan Tree Phuket, Angsana Laguna Phuket, Dusit Thani Laguna Phuket, SAii Laguna Phuket, Cassia Phuket, Laguna Holiday Club Resort, and the newest addition, Homm Suites Laguna, which opened in mid-2025, targeting extended-stay travellers and families.
Banyan Tree also launched Veya, a wellness-focused “resort within a resort” with dedicated wellbeing pool villas and no children allowed in that zone. SAii completed major room renovations in late 2024, finally updating the old Laguna Beach Resort infrastructure. Most resorts still share facilities, so guests can dine or use pools across the complex.
Restaurants and Dining
The restaurant scene around Laguna has completely changed how the complex works. Twenty years ago, you ate at your hotel or drove to Patong. Now Boat Avenue and Porto de Phuket, just outside the resort gates, have become the main social hub. People staying at the resorts walk out for dinner instead of eating in.
Boat Avenue is chaotic and energetic, packed with everything from steakhouses to ramen shops. Long-standing favourites like Little Paris and Little Siam continue to do well. Porto de Phuket next door is more upscale and quieter, anchored by a massive Central Food Hall that’s essential for expat residents. Inside Laguna itself, Canal Village has gone quiet by comparison. It functions more as a service hub now with the BDMS Wellness Clinic, currency exchange, and a few shops. The resort restaurants still serve good food, but they’re no longer the only option.
Shopping
Canal Village inside Laguna was once the main shopping area, but that’s changed. It’s quiet now, sometimes described as having a ghost town feel in the evenings. It works for basic services, the clinic, laundry, Jim Thompson, and currency exchange, but the energy has shifted elsewhere.
Just outside the Laguna gates, Boat Avenue and Porto de Phuket have taken over. Boat Avenue is fully built out with little room for new development. Porto de Phuket added more upscale retail when Central Group opened their Food Hall. Villa Market handles groceries for the villa crowd. The shopping matches the relaxed feel of the area, nothing like the chaos of Patong or the scale of Central Phuket in town.
Beach Clubs
This is where Laguna has changed most dramatically. Several beach clubs now operate along the Bang Tao beachfront within or near the complex.
Catch Beach Club remains the biggest name, still dominating the high-end party scene with international DJs and major events. Prices match the reputation. Xana at Angsana has shifted toward family-friendly day use and seasonal festivals rather than hard partying. Rava Beach Club opened in August 2025 at Banyan Tree, claiming to be Thailand’s longest beach club at 180 metres of beachfront. It’s more sophisticated than the party spots.
Carpe Diem is the grown-up choice now, focusing on high-end Mediterranean dining rather than loud music, and they’ve added a pool with beach bed packages. Maya Beach Club does well with its themed décor and dinner shows. Nora Beach Club at Amora Beach Resort offers a more accessible, family-friendly option. Nomad, next to SAii, is smaller and more casual, a good sunset spot without the full club experience.
Golf
Laguna Golf Phuket is the complex’s 18-hole course, winding through the resort with lagoon views and plenty of water hazards. It’s relatively short but technical. Green fees run around 4,500 Baht for visitors, including caddy and cart, or about 3,000 Baht for green fee only. Caddy fees are 350 to 400 Baht, and cart rental is around 700 to 750 Baht.
Banyan Tree Golf refers to the same course. Banyan Tree guests get privileged access, but there isn’t a separate 18-hole Banyan Tree course. The setting is genuinely beautiful, and it stays busy during high season. Book ahead if you’re visiting between November and March.
Spas
Banyan Tree basically invented the luxury spa concept in Asia, and their spa at Laguna is still one of the best in Phuket. With the launch of Veya, they’ve doubled down on wellness with an entire resort dedicated to wellbeing programs. Other Laguna resorts have strong spa offerings too. Angsana takes a more contemporary approach, Dusit Thani draws on Thai wellness traditions. This area probably has more spa therapists per square kilometre than anywhere else on the island.
Getting Around
Laguna runs a free shuttle system that still works well. The shuttle boat operates daily from 10 am to 9 pm, departing every 30 minutes or so. It connects all major hotels and Canal Village through the lagoons. The shuttle bus runs longer hours, from 6 am to midnight, with open-air trolleys looping through the hotels, golf course, and Canal Village.
The system works if you’re staying inside Laguna. For anywhere else, you’ll need a taxi, Grab, or rental car. The airport is only 20 minutes north. Patong takes about 30 minutes heading south. Note that Srisoonthorn Road is currently under major expansion, causing traffic delays, but the work should improve flow by 2026.
