Old Phuket Town is a tourist destination often overlooked by travelers. Although it is rich in culture and history, with spectacular cafes and Sino Portuguese style architecture to be admired and explored in a day. Old Town Phuket is a small town that can be explored by walking easily. The best time to visit all the places in Phuket town is morning and evening since the afternoon is hot and humid.
You will see a lot of Sino Portuguese-style shophouses on each side of the streets, colorful shops, charming restaurants, ornate cafes, and coffee shops. Getting around Old Town Phuket is amazing where you will get to see Chinese shrines and Buddhist temples with some museums, and art galleries. Old buildings are colorful with beautiful art paintings where you can take pictures for your Instagram.
The city center, Thalang Road, Phuket Walking Street, Dibuk Road, Jui Tui Shrine, Phuket Thai Hua Museum, and Soi Romanee are the top attractions you must visit in Old Town Phuket.
Thalang Road
Thalang Road is a popular tourist destination in Old Town Phuket. It has many cafes and restaurants serving Thai food, drinks, and coffee but Sunday Walking Street Market and China Inn are very popular. The China Inn Cafe serves delicious food in a charming Chinese-style shophouse, which was previously a handicraft shop.
Walking along Thalang Road in Phuket Old Town is the best thing to admire the old Chinese European-style antique houses. You will see colorful shophouses on both sides of the streets. It has a couple of small lovely guesthouses, nice boutiques, and small coffee shops where you can enjoy coffee and local food.
Old Town Walking Street
Phuket Old Town Walking Street is the most popular market in Old Town Phuket. It is a long and narrow commercial passage occupied by a great number of shops, guesthouses, restaurants, and bars. It is a must-visit place for people who want to have a deep insight into southern Thailand life.
It turns into a night market from 5 pm to 9 pm. It has numerous stalls selling souvenirs, gift items, clothing, jewelry, and handicrafts. It is a famous market for shopping. Plenty of small restaurants and cafes offer delicious local food, snacks, and drinks at reasonable prices. The Walking Street attracts every kind of visitor, all walking and trying out delicious street food and enjoying the nightlife of Phuket.
Dibuk Road
Dibuk Road is one of the most popular old streets of Phuket Old Town and you should definitely add it to your wish list. On Dibuk Road you will see beautiful buildings and shophouse architecture with typical passageways. Here are also many shops selling traditional sweets and bakeries. If you want to eat delicious Thai food, you must visit the newly renovated cafe ‘The Charm Phuket’. If you move a little further there is another food court called Lock Tien Restaurant serving unique and special Phuket dishes.
Dibuk Road is famous for having The On On Hotel which was featured in the movie “The Beach”. It is mostly visited by backpackers and tourists from all around the world. Enjoy mouthwatering Thai food and get a glimpse of local life by visiting these streets.
Ranong Road
Ranong Road is mostly popular for Phuket Town Central Market, Jui Tui Shrine, and The Airways Office. Here you will see old buildings and small houses where people live. There are local markets, and little shops selling all kinds of snacks, drinks, and candies.
There are small streets, and restaurants in traditional shophouses, where you can enjoy local food. You can walk in the streets and admire the wall paintings you might see on Instagram. You should not forget to visit Jui Tui Shrine, a Chinese temple. It is a beautiful temple and is mostly visited during Phuket Vegetarian Festival.
Phuket Thai Hua Museum
Phuket Thai Hua Museum is a beautiful Sino Portuguese Colonial building that used to be a Chinese School. The museum has galleries depicting the stories of Chinese people in Phuket. It also has an open-air courtyard where you will learn about the history and culture of Chinese people. The entrance fee to the Thai Hua Museum is 200 THB per person and it opens from 9:00 am to 5:00 pm every day.
Soi Romanee
Soi Romanee has a rich history. It is completely renovated and you will see colorful buildings having souvenir shops, clothing shops, ice cream parlors, coffee shops, and splendid guesthouses. It was a red-light district of Phuket town years ago.
The street is lively with live bands and tourists during the Old Town Phuket Festival. The street walls are beautifully decorated with paintings. You will see many vloggers and photographers taking pictures in colorful streets. You can walk in the peaceful streets and enjoy eating ice cream or have coffee in one of the coffee shops.
Old Town Phuket has so much to offer so add this to your bucket list when you visit Phuket.
