We had mixed expectations about Phuket. One thing was certain, everyone who visited Phuket or Thailand were speaking highly about their travel experiences, so I was cautiously excited :). We stayed at Mom Tri’s Villa Royale resort for 3 nights. Our room was in the beach wing of the hotel and we had a nice view of the ocean.

The bar and restaurant were very nice and we were regulars at their happy hour 🙂 Kata Noi beach was relatively small, at least smaller than the neighboring Kata beach, which was nice because it didn’t feel as crowded. The ocean and the beach were excellent, clean, calm and warm. Can’t ask for more.

No trip is complete without a visit to Phi Phi Island – that must be the thought of every tourist on the island :). Even though we took the sunrise tour to Phi Phi to avoid the crowds, the main beach was already packed when we got there. The boat ride started in the dark. A few minutes into the ride, the sun started to peek out. It was such a serene and peaceful moment, even on the rockiest boat rides of my life. The tour included a few typical activities: several beaches, snorkeling stops, lunch buffet on an island with some beach time afterwords, and a local flavor – Monkey beach, which we observed from a distance.

We tried a couple restaurants around the hotel and the food never disappointed.

Towards the end of the trip, we had to raise a glass for my cammy. It served me well for 5 years until we got caught in a torrential rain in Phuket and the backpack with the camera got soaked. I was surprised because it got way wetter in the past and I never had any issues, but with time the weather resistance must be deteriorating. The water damage was so bad that Canon didn’t want to even try to repair it.

Overall, we enjoyed our three days in Phuket. The sad part was that I had two weeks of work ahead of me in Bangkok and Malaysia, but we managed to have some fun on the weekends. More to come!