Phuket and Krabi are popular beach destinations of Thailand. With many direct flights from Singapore, it’s no surprise that it makes a good weekend getaway from the city.

Where do you go in Phuket? Well, the most popular place must be Patong Beach and Walking Street, isn’t it? After this trip, my perspective of Phuket changed completely and we also learnt many new things about Phuket which you probably don’t even know!

I was invited by Tourism Authority of Thailand (Singapore) to join this media trip called “Family Fun in Thailand” to showcase what Thailand has to offer for families. We flew into Phuket via Silkair and was glad to be able to fly with the new Boeing 737 MAX 8.

Sawasdee Phuket!

#1 Join the locals for some Dim Sum!

We arrived at (จ่วนเฮี้ยง สาขา 2), a well known dim sum restaurant which has been around for more than 60 years! Guess what, they are only open for 5 hours per day, from 6am  – 11am!

#2 Enjoy authentic  Southern Thai cuisine at Blue Elephant

Blue Elephant at Phuket serves up Southern Thai food which has some Peranakan influences. Southern Thai food is not easily available in Bangkok so if you want  a quality and authentic version, Blue Elephant is the place to be! Take a look at our dishes.

Novotel Phuket Phokeethra is located near to the historic old town of Phuket, making exploration easy and convenient.  The rooms were spacious and clean and the comfy bed definitely gives you a good night sleep.

Thalang  Road is the heart of Old Phuket Town. Looking at the shophouses, it does remind you of places like Penang, Malacca and even Singapore’s Chinatown. In fact, I’m surprised that the presence of the Peranakan community here is quite strong.

#5 Stop for coffee or Peranakan snacks at i46 Old Town

i46 old town makes a good pit stop for you to chill out over some coffee or snacks.  Check out their internal courtyard and learn about the history of their shop.

#6 See the original, untouched version of the historic  shophouses

It’s always interesting and fascinating to see the original version of the shophouses. You get to see how the houses were built, how they prepare their meals and how they get water (from the well)!

#7 Take photos of the street arts

There are so many street arts around Old Phuket Town and you can take photos of them or with them for memories. In fact, it’s part of the town council’s restoration efforts and local and international graffiti artists have since left their mark there, giving more life and colour to this old town.

#8 Learn and eat at  COFFs&BURGH

We had our final community tour of the old Phuket Town at Coffs&Burgh cafe. Some of us got to cook their version of “Hokkien Mee” and locals told us that this version we had was the best in the whole of Phuket Town. We were honoured to be able to try and you too have to drop by to try it for yourself!

#9 Visit Sunday Walking Street

Make sure you are around on Sunday to visit the Walking Street which is only open on Sunday. It’s filled with lots of shops selling handicrafts, clothes and street food!

One of the locals told us to try the unique street food here.

The charcoal biscuit and charcoal bread. I only managed to try the charcoal biscuit and it was indeed interesting and delicious. Unfortunately, I didn’t have the chance to try the charcoal bread due to the long queue.

#10 Dinner at Raya Restaurant Phuket

Raya Restaurant is one of the best restaurants in Phuket and you can’t miss them! If there’s only one dish that you need to try here, get the Crab Meat with Curry & Coconut Milk. It’s so good that we had to get a second serving!

#11 Bring your kids to Vanich Farm

Vanich Farm offers agro-tourism activities. including the production of corn milk, green cornfield, rice paddy field, and various flower plots.

We get to see how farmers work in the past and present and I must say that it’s really tough labour intensive work here! This is why we are always told not to waste food!

We had lunch at Vanich Farm with the fresh produce here. Oh, every dish is so delicious and of course, the fried corn fritters were the most popular item here.

Off to Krabi!

#12 Visit Thalay Nai

We took a boat to visit Thalay Nai, a coastal fishing village known for the lobsters and sea grapes (green caviar).

Will the price of green caviar increase tremendously next time? Do give it a try next time you see it. It is available at some night markets around Thailand.

Love the beauty of nature.

It’s time for sunset soon!

We stop midway for some live lobsters before heading back to land.

I like this picture featuring the local community in a local boat.

#13 Grilled Seafood Dinner by Ao Nang Beach at The Last Fisherman Bar

We headed to Ao Nang Beach, the popular beach resort of Krabi but our motive here was for grilled seafood dinner. We were literally sitting on the beach enjoying the grilled seafood.

#14 Stay in a resort hotel,  Dusit Thani Krabi Beach Resort

This resort is so big that we had to move around via buggies. Thankfully, we can easily request for the buggy to send us to wherever we want within the resort.

Staying at this resort, you practically can just stay here to chill out and enjoy the nature.

#15 Go for island tour in Krabi

You can’t visit Krabi and not go for the island tour, at least for your virgin trip to Krabi.

Here we are at Koh Tub and looking across is Koh Gai. During low tides, you can literally walk over the island. So cool!

Celebrity family Darren & Evelyn Lim having fun with their family!

I love this shot! Doesn’t it look like some wallpaper?

This is Koh Gai, and yes, Gai means “chicken”.

#16 Go snorkelling

One activity to do while island hopping is going for snorkelling! Have you tried it before?

Modern vs traditional boats.

Having some fun at Koh Poda before we head back to the hotel to clean up, check out and fly over to Bangkok!

Sawasdee Bangkok!

Our last 2 nights in Thailand was hosted at Radisson Blu Plaza Bangkok, located at Sukhumvit Soi 27. I love the chic and classy decor of this hotel.

Before that, we had a workshop discussing the future of family fun tourism and on what really is required for a family to really enjoy their holiday in Thailand.

Caught up with Wilson Ng from PlacesandFoods.com!

Our celebrity representative from Singapore!

Here’s a photo of the second Singapore team, consisting of agents and media!

Love shots like this!

I just love taking photos of boats along Chao Phraya river.

We had our last dinner of the trip at Never Ending Summer. I heard a lot about this place but didn’t have the chance to visit till now.

Oh my god, the food here is insanely delicious. What have I been missing out! I will do a proper review of this restaurant soon!

The desserts are not to be missed as well. Make sure you leave some space for your stomach.

Planning a trip with your family? Download Family Fun Thailand App  or check out the  website  for discounts and privileges  throughout Thailand.