A Walk Along Ratsada Road, Phuket Town
Ratsada Road runs a few blocks north of Thalang and Dibuk, the streets most visitors photograph. It’s rougher around the edges. The Sino-Portuguese buildings here aren’t as restored, the paint is more faded, and fewer cafes have moved in. That’s part of why I like it.
The main reason to come is the Thavorn Museum and its attached cafe. The Thavorn Hotel opened in 1960 as Phuket’s first proper hotel, and the family never threw anything away. What started as a storage room of old equipment became a real museum after a 2024 renovation. It’s still eccentric, just better organised now.
Behind the museum, hidden down a side alley, there’s an abandoned mansion with no official name. We call it Ratsada Mansion. The building used to be part of Phuket’s first shopping centre, back when that meant something. The facade is crumbling, but the bones are still there. Most people walk past without noticing.
The street’s newest arrival is Hotel Midtown Ratsada, built inside an old department store. The conversion kept the shophouse feel while adding proper rooms and a small pool. It’s one of the better budget-to-midrange options if you want to stay in Old Town.
Thavorn Museum
The Thavorn Museum sits inside Phuket’s oldest full-service hotel. The collection started accidentally. The family kept old projectors, laundry machines, and mining equipment in back rooms for decades. After the 2024 renovation, it’s now a proper museum with over 1,000 pieces, but the personal feel remains.
The displays cover Phuket’s tin mining days, early cinema, and domestic life from the last century. A vintage mobile movie truck and a rare Froghead Tuk-Tuk are the standout items. There’s also a room of old toys being prepared. Entry is 120 Baht. It’s less formal than the Thai Hua Museum and more interesting if you like objects over wall text.
The Library
The Library Phuket looks like an old library from the street, but behind the back door is one of Old Town’s fun late-night bars. It used to be at the Quip Hotel and is now tucked next to the fountain waterfall on Ratsada Road. The crowd is mostly young locals and a few expats. The cocktails are excellent, with creative house specials and a good list of classics. Bartenders love to show off their flair skills, and there’s a DJ playing most nights.
Coffee Talk Coffee Shop
Coffee Talk Cafe operates as the museum’s entrance and living display space. Hundreds of vintage objects fill the cafe: guitars, radios, antique lamps, old movie posters, and two restored classic cars serve as tables. These pieces come from the hotel’s golden years, carefully collected and preserved over decades. It’s one of the more unusual cafes in Phuket. You can sit with a coffee surrounded by decades of collected objects, then walk into the museum if you want to see more. After browsing the cafe’s collection, you can enter the museum itself to explore further displays.
Ratsada Mansion
Ratsada Mansion is one of those hidden places in Phuket Town that I always enjoy showing to friends. It’s an old Sino-Portuguese building, now abandoned, tucked behind the Thavorn Museum on Ratsada Road. No one really knows its official name, but people started calling it Ratsada Mansion. The facade is worn and faded, but you can still spot the beautiful old details. It used to be part of Phuket’s very first shopping mall with an escalator, which is hard to imagine now. A great little stop if you enjoy exploring the lesser-known parts of town.
Phuket Amulet Market
The narrow alley called Phuket Amulet Market is a handy shortcut linking Rassada and Phang Nga Roads beside the Shrine of Serene Light. Dozens of tables overflow with Buddhist amulets and talismans, studied through magnifying glasses by collectors of all ages. Items in stone, bronze, bone, or precious metal are believed to bring safety, luck, or love; prices range from ten baht to small fortunes. Vendors are friendly, speak English, and remain open from 8 am to 7 pm daily.
Hotel Midtown Ratsada
Hotel Midtown Ratsada is a great-value stay right in the centre of Phuket Old Town. The rooms are simple, spacious and very clean, with friendly staff always ready to help. There’s a small pool, gym and parking, which is rare in this part of town. The Midtown Café serves a good breakfast and casual meals in a space full of local history. You’ll also find great restaurants and quirky bars just a short walk away. It’s not fancy, and some walls can be a bit thin, but for the price and location, it’s a very smart choice.
Ratsada Road Map
Other Streets of Phuket Town
