Phuket Road
Phuket Road runs through the eastern side of Phuket Old Town and ends at Saphan Hin, linking the historic centre with the waterfront park area. The junction of Phuket Road and Phang Nga Road is a key Old Town landmark, marked by two restored Sino‑Portuguese buildings facing each other: the former Standard Chartered/Chartered Bank building and the yellow police station with the Promthep Clock Tower, both now part of “Museum Phuket” (Peranakannitat Museum).
The clock tower was designed in the early 1900s, but a working clock wasn’t installed until the 1970s, after decades of delay and a failed shipment from Penang; today, the tower houses small exhibits and access to the clock mechanism.
A short walk northeast brings Surin Circle and its separate Sino‑Portuguese‑styled clock tower, another recognised city landmark and photo stop. The Old Town’s principal historic streets also include Thalang, Dibuk, Krabi, Yaowarat, and Phang Nga, forming a compact heritage district around Phuket Road.
At the southern end, Phuket Road reaches Saphan Hin Public Park on the bay, a popular open space for exercise, events, and waterfront walks, and the site of the tin‑mining monument commemorating early 20th‑century dredging technology introduced to Phuket.
What to See and Do on Phuket Road
Museum Phuket
Set in the restored former Chartered Bank and the yellow police station with the Promthep Clock Tower at the corner of Phuket Road and Phang Nga Road, Museum Phuket (Peranakannitat Museum) is the most photographed Sino-Portuguese ensemble in town.
Bang Neow Shrine
One of the principal Chinese shrines on Phuket Road and a key venue during the annual Phuket Vegetarian Festival, Bang Neow has been on this site for over a century.
Hok Nguan Kong Shrine
A smaller, quieter shrine just off Phuket Road — worth a stop for the carved details, the resident temple cats, and the calm courtyard.
Kio Thian Keng Saphan Hin Shrine
At the southern tip of Phuket Road near Saphan Hin Park, this seaside shrine is one of the oldest on the island and a focal point during the Vegetarian Festival’s seafront ceremonies.
Saphan Hin
Phuket Road ends at Saphan Hin, a waterfront public park used for exercise, weekend events, and the tin-mining monument that commemorates the dredging technology that shaped early-20th-century Phuket.
What to See and Do on Phuket Road
Phuket Road runs from the Sino-Portuguese heart of Old Town down to Saphan Hin Park on the bay, and most of what’s worth stopping for sits along the way. Three of the road’s Chinese shrines (Bang Neow, Hok Nguan Kong, and Kio Thian Keng) play key roles in the annual Phuket Vegetarian Festival, and the heritage corner at Phang Nga Road has the most photographed colonial buildings in town.
Museum Phuket
Museum Phuket (Peranakannitat Museum) occupies two restored Sino-Portuguese buildings facing each other at the corner of Phuket Road and Phang Nga Road: the former Standard Chartered Bank, which opened a Phuket branch from Penang in 1911, and the old yellow police station with its Promthep Clock Tower. The tower stood without a clock for over 50 years, finally fitted in the 1970s thanks to Phuket Lions Club donations. Free entry, 10am to 8pm, closed Sundays.
Bang Neow Shrine
Bang Neow, founded in 1904 and one of Phuket’s oldest Chinese shrines, sits behind a dragon-shaped arch at the Bang Neow intersection on Phuket Road. The current building is the third iteration after two earlier shrines burnt down. It is one of the most active sites during the annual Phuket Vegetarian Festival, with some of the largest processions and a rare bladed-ladder climbing ritual. Vibrant red lanterns and dragon-wrapped pillars make it photogenic year-round.
Hok Nguan Kong Shrine
Hok Nguan Kong Shrine, opposite the Metropole Hotel near Surin Clock Circle, is a quieter Chinese temple about halfway between Old Town and Saphan Hin. Founded over 80 years ago, its main object of worship is a black sandalwood statue of Ju Su Kong, a Song Dynasty Buddhist priest deified for his work building roads and bridges. Look for the four golden-dragon-wrapped pillars at the entrance arch. Free entry, 8am to 6pm.
Kio Thian Keng Saphan Hin Shrine
Kio Thian Keng sits at the seafront inside Saphan Hin Park at the southern end of Phuket Road. Built in 1995 on reclaimed land that was once a tin-mining-era port, it is younger than Phuket’s other major shrines but no less important: the final night of the Phuket Vegetarian Festival ends here with a loud, smoky farewell procession. Look for the 5-metre Burmese-jade Guan Yin and the row of eight Taoist god statues facing the sea.
Saphan Hin
Saphan Hin Park anchors the southern end of Phuket Road. By day it can look quiet, with a wide promenade, an empty parking lot and the abandoned shell of Lucky Plaza. After 6pm it transforms into Phuket Town’s main evening park: joggers, families picnicking, food carts selling barbecued chicken, som tam, and Khun Burm’s famous fried insects. Three permanent sculptures from the 2025 Thailand Biennale remain on the lawns, alongside the tin-mining monument near the cape.
Where to Eat on Phuket Road
Phuket Road runs eastward through Old Town to Saphan Hin Park, and the dining along the way is unusually varied for one short stretch: heritage Hokkien noodles, southern Thai seafood, Italian, traditional Thai desserts, a Turkish-influenced music bar, and a cat café just off the corner. Three of the restaurants here (Mee Ton Poe, Ko Ang Seafood, and La Gaetana) carry Phuket Michelin Guide listings, which is unusual density for one street.
Lhong Khao
Lhong Khao sits at 40 Phuket Road in a restored shophouse, serving Thai-Chinese cooking the owners call “Lhong Khao style.” The name translates to “rice warehouse,” a nod to Phuket’s Chinese merchant past. Signature dishes include braised pork ribs in clear herbed broth, crab curry with vermicelli in a vibrant yellow coconut sauce, and Hokkien-style stir-fried greens with dried shrimp. 350 to 880 baht per head; closed Tuesdays.
Ko Ang Seafood
Ko Ang (โกอ่างซีฟู้ด), Michelin-listed and family-run, serves uncompromising southern Thai seafood on the way out to Saphan Hin. Chef-owner Ko Ang shops five markets every morning, and the front ice display often holds finds you won’t see elsewhere: horseshoe crab, sea cicada, red ant eggs. Order the sour fish curry with coconut shoots, steamed fish in soy, or shrimp paste with stinky beans. Evenings only, 6pm to midnight.
Mee Ton Poe Hokkien Noodles
Open since 1946 at the clock circle on Phuket Road, Mee Ton Poe earned a spot in the 2021 Phuket Michelin Guide for its Hokkien noodles: big yellow noodles with pork, seafood and vegetables under a thick brown gravy and a soft-boiled egg. Don’t skip the pork satays. It’s casual, cheap, and still feels like the local breakfast spot it has always been. 9am to 6:30pm.
Kanom Jeen Saphan Hin
Down at the Saphan Hin end of Phuket Road, Kanom Jeen Saphan Hin (ขนมจีนสะพานหิน) is where Phuket locals come for cold rice noodles drowned in southern curries: beef, chicken, crab, fish, or the punchier tai pla (fish-guts). You pick your curry from a row of stainless pots, then build a balance of fresh and pickled vegetables on the side. Open, breezy, spotlessly clean. 9am to 7pm.
La Gaetana Italian Restaurant
La Gaetana, at 352 Phuket Road across from Bang Neow Shrine, has a Michelin Plate and is one of Phuket’s longest-running Italian restaurants. Owners Gianni and Ake serve a long menu (lamb, fish, osso buco, fresh pasta) plus daily blackboard specials that are usually worth ordering. The two small dining rooms book out fast for a reason; reservations are essentially required. Evenings only, closed Wednesdays.
Wanlamun
Wanlamun (วันละมุน) is Phuket Town’s most-loved Thai dessert shop, open for decades and serving an astonishing range of sweets most travellers have never seen. Skip the banana pancakes; this is the place for bua loi (rice-flour balls in coconut milk), tubtim krob with coconut ice cream, look chok in sweet milk, and Phuket’s own iced dessert oh-aew (โอ๊ะเอ๋ว). The illustrated menu makes it easy to point and try.
Papazula
Papazula sits at 15 Phuket Road opposite Casa Blanca Hotel, just steps from the Sunday Walking Street. The narrow facade hides a surprisingly large space: two floors, a stage for the house band, a long bar, and a back terrace over the canal. Food leans Turkish-influenced alongside Thai dishes, but the draw is the live music, the well-judged decor, and a sociable evening crowd. Open noon to midnight.
Racharod Dimsum Bangkok (Phuket Branch)
Racharod Dimsum Bangkok’s Phuket branch sits next to Quip Hotel about 1km north of Old Town, easy to spot from the bright yellow sign and the stainless steamers at the entrance. You point at trays at the counter (pink prawn dumplings with crab roe, purple steamed buns, crystal dumplings dusted with gold leaf, century egg with pickled ginger) and bamboo baskets arrive at your table. Open 7am to 3pm; rice porridge and congee on the menu too.
B Cat Cafe
B Cat Cafe is technically just around the corner on Thepkasattri Road, easy to fold into a Phuket Road afternoon. Fifteen to seventeen resident cats split between B Shady Restaurant on one side and the cat lounge on the other. Entry is 50 baht if you order food, or 189 baht standalone (drink included). A useful break between Thalang Road and Phuket Road. Closed Wednesdays; 10am to 8:30pm.
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