Phuket Town – A Walking Guide to Old Phuket Town

Street names to remember:

1. Thalang Road

Thalang Road (east) is where you probably will start and spend a lot of time. It’s charming and a popular Instagram playground, especially if you visit during the Sunday Walking Street Market.

Don’t miss the little coffee shop at the intersection called Chino Cafe Gallery (L). Not only do they serve a good coffee with sweet Phuket round cakes, but you also can admire some excellent photographs hanging on the wall, all taken by Phuket photographers (apparently, there will be a gallery soon on the second floor).

Walk further to find three famous restaurants, Wilai and Kopitiam (M) are two small local and affordable restaurants serving excellent Thai food. The famous China Inn Cafe (N) has a more elaborated but expensive meal in a superbly renovated Chinese-style shophouse, which also happens to be a handicraft shop.

Near China Inn, Cafe (N) is a little Chinese shrine hidden inside an unassuming entrance. From there, you will walk past many Muslim fabric shops and tool shops whose owners are trying to continue their trade, just as if nothing ever happened in Phuket. Look around for all the charming little guesthouses, bookshops, lovely small boutiques and plenty of little coffee shops.

Don’t miss Oasis Walking Street, a long and narrow passage connecting Thalang and Phang Nga Road! It’s full of stalls selling original souvenirs and local snacks and is a great escape from the heat or the rain. Read more about Thalang road.

2. Soi Romanee

Just off the famous Thalang road is Soi Romanee (P), with all the colourful buildings that make it the most photographed street in Phuket. However, the most beautiful part of Phuket Town was the red light street and the gambling area. You can now stay at one of the small guesthouses or have a drink at a cafe while watching the permanent Instagram competition going on here.

Don’t miss a chance to visit some temples: at the end of Soi Romanee (P) is Wat Mongkol Nimit (Q), a significant place for Phuket people, where locals frequently hold ceremonies. It’s a beautiful temple with a golden Chedi (stupa) in the back and some beautiful heritage houses monks use as dormitories.

Go back through Soi Romanee (P) and turn left again into Thalang road, where you can admire a few more renovated shophouses, especially the Honda motorbike showroom combined with a new coffee shop.

3. Phang Nga Road

The three highlights of Phang Nga road are the Shrine of the Serene Light (W), the amulet market and the On On Hotel (V). On On Hotel (V) has an exciting story, and almost everyone saw it in the movie The Beach, but not many people know that the hotel is not in Bangkok as shown in the film, but right here in Phuket Town. Until recently, the On On hotel was almost as bad as in the movie and only cost 200 baht a night! In 2013 it was entirely renovated with great skill and sense, keeping the hotel’s spirit and still relatively cheap, but it is not a beautiful budget hotel.

Adjacent to On On Hotel, the Shrine of the Serene Light (W) also has an anecdote. For a long time, the shrine hid in the back of a building, and only locals knew about it. It was a secret no one wanted to share. Finally, they did a great job renovating and widening the ornamented gate, and the shrine itself was left mostly untouched, and it is now a famous landmark.

Opposite on the same street is the amulet market (X), an extended covered alley where amulet aficionados come mostly on weekends to exchange and discuss amulets. It is a mysterious topic for us, but some rare charms have very high value depending on their age, origins and the monk who gave them.

Keep walking until the end of Phang Nga Road until you reach The Clocktower building (S), which I think used to be a police station and is now the Peranakanittat Museum. Across the street is the old Standard Chartered Bank (R) which is also a museum.

4. Dibuk Road

Continue on Dibuk road to enjoy more shophouse architecture with their typical archways, designed to keep walkers sheltered from sun and rain. Keep your eyes open and look for the shops selling some typical Phuket sweets and bread. If you happen to be on this part of Dibuk road at dinner time, don’t miss a chance to try excellent Phuket food at the newly renovated ‘The Charm Phuket.’

Then at the intersection of Dibuk and Yaowarat Roads, you will find a trendy local food court called Lock Tien Restaurant (I), serving some unique Phuket specialities. Opposite Lock Tien have a beautiful shop called Pink Flamingo Cafe (J), found inside an old corner shop that was initially the former headquarter of the Kian Nguan Mining Company when tin mining was Phuket’s primary industry? Read more about Dibuk Road (a lot more!)

5. Yaowarat Road

To reach Yaowarat from the bus station, walk against the traffic flow toward the fountain circle (C) and turn left. If you are lucky, on the left, you will find a dark passage leading to the mysterious Limpanon House (D), a fantastic abandoned Sino Portuguese Mansion. Unfortunately, lately, the gate appears to be closed, but there is a way to admire the mansion from above. (contact us on Instagram to find out how).

On the opposite side are antique shops worth stopping at. One is an old Kanom Jeen shop (Y) run by a young guy who was smart enough to keep the shop in its original condition, making it an exciting photo opportunity. Next to it is also an ancient pharmacy (Y) with surprising dry roots and ingredients kept in a hundred wooden drawers. If you plan to take photos there, know that the owner can but grumpy as he probably gets more photographers than shoppers in a day, so buy something if you plan to take photos! 😀

Continue straight until you reach the Thalang intersection. If you don’t have much time, turn right into the famous Thalang Road and jump to #6. If you continue straight, things get a little less exciting, but you will be able to admire a few more heritage mansions.

Next to Flamingo Shop (J) are several other shops worth mentioning where some elderly ladies sit all day, selling some delicious Phuket speciality cakes and pastries. Try the famous Ice Kachang, shaved ice with syrup on top and red beans inside, a perfect way to cool down from the heat and long walks. On the opposite side is the ancient Lock Tien food court, a place worth stopping at for a light local lunch.

If you cross the intersection and continue on the other side of Yaowarat road, you will find three small mansions well maintained. One of them is the lovely Endless Summer coffee shop and boutique (K). Many shophouses around old Phuket Town became coffee shops, heritage hotels and guesthouses.

6. Krabi Road

Turn left to enjoy the superb shophouses all along Krabi road, notably the surprising Thai Hua Museum (E). You can stop and visit it; it describes how Phuket became what it is today.

If you continue further, you will reach the Satun road intersection, where you will find two major Phuket landmarks:

The Blue Elephant Restaurant (F) is a magnificent mansion built in a vast park that used to be the governor’s residence. It is now a fancy Thai restaurant and an upmarket cooking class. The price for a meal is relatively high, but you are welcome to drink at the bar or even browse the souvenir shop for free.

Just next to it, the Chinpracha mansion (G) is a privately owned museum that appeared in several famous movies. It is relatively modest, but you should visit it as it might disappear anytime as the owner passed away not long ago.

To go back, turn right before Blue Elephant (F) into Satun road. From there, take the next right back into Dibuk Road, where you will find Luang Amnart Nararak Mansion (H), another beautiful Sino Portuguese still in its original condition.

7. Ratsada Road

If you choose to walk back through Phuket road, you will step back to two buildings that are impressive in an unusual way. The first one is the quirky Thavorn museum (T), hidden inside the Thavorn hotel, probably the first hotel on the island. The museum consists mostly of a weird collection of old toys, photos and a mountain of objects from a vague past time of Phuket, most of which are the old apparatus used and the hotel’s history. It’s rather fun and very dusty!

Behind the Thavorn Museum, don’t miss the next U-shaped street on your left as a fantastic old mansion (U) still stands proudly beyond a wall. Most of the time, the villa’s gate is open, so if you are not shy, walk in and act normal, just as I did countless times to get my photos. After this mansion, you will be pretty much on your way back to the fountain circle (C).

8. Phuket Road

Phuket road doesn’t have many significant landmarks, but it connects Thalang Road to Ratsada road. It is mostly known for the Casa Blanca hotel, Quip rooftop bar, and the excellent One Chun local restaurant mentioned in the Phuket Michelin Guide. And the much-loved Wanlamun Shop, a very local place serving a surprisingly large amount of delicious Thai sweets.

9. Ranong Road

If you come to town on a local blue bus, you will arrive on Ranong road, next to the Phuket City Market (A), which could be your list’s first or last item. The market consists of the main building where the buses stop and the old open-air market just across the street. Both are fun to explore as you will see veggies, fruits and spices you might never have seen before.

Don’t miss the Thai Airways office (B) in the same area, a superbly renovated white Sino-Portuguese house. Unfortunately, you can only take exterior photos from the parking, as the building is not open to the public.

If you continue walking following the traffic flow, you will reach the Jui Tui shrine (Z), a significant Chinese temple, during the Phuket Vegetarian Festival. Further, the unique Lor Rong market (a) sells Phuket foods and confectioneries.

Tu Kab Khao

Address: 8 Phang Nga Road, Phuket Town (the restaurant with a giant lobster hanging on the side)
Open: Daily 11 am – 12 midnight
Phone: 076 608 888
Speciality: Southern Thai Food
Price: Affordable

Raya Restaurant

Address: 48/1 Dibuk Road, Tambon Talat Yai, Phuket Town, Phuket 83000
Open: 10 am – 10 pm
Phone: 076 218 155
Price: a little expensive

The Charm Dining Gallery

Address: 93 Dibuk Rd, Tambon Talat Nuea, Mueang Phuket District, Phuket 83000
Open: 11 am – 9 pm, Wednesday closed
Phone: 076 530 199
Price: a little high

Torry’s Ice Cream

Address: 16 Soi Romanee, Tumbon Talad Yai, Mueang Phuket District, Phuket 83000
Open: 11 am – 6 pm, Saturday and Sunday 11 am – 9.30 pm
Phone: 076 510 888
Speciality: ice creams with a local touch