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Budget Travel

Ketho Dim Sum Restaurant in Kathu, Phuket

Ketho Coffee & Kitchen Dim Sum Restaurant

    Ketho Coffee & Kitchen is a dim sum restaurant very popular with locals for their breakfast, mostly for their dim sums but also for their soups and rice porridge.

    Ao Sane Beach

    Ao Sane Beach ⛱️

      Ao Sane Beach proves that Phuket still has some little beaches hidden from view where you can pretend nothing has changed in the past twenty years. Of course, there is no such thing as a ‘secret beach’ anymore, but you must make a little effort to get there.

      Wat Kathu in Phuket

      Wat Kathu – A beautiful Buddhist temple in Phuket

        Wat Kathu, or Kathu temple, is a not very well-known landmark among tourists, but local photographers know how beautiful it is. This Buddhist temple is on the way to Phuket Town and not far from Patong, but because it stands away from the main road, most people don’t even consider visiting it.

        Jui Tui Shrine

        Jui Tui Shrine (Kew Ong) ⛩️

          Jui Tui Shrine (Kew Ong) is one of the oldest and most important on Phuket Island. It plays a significant role during the famous Phuket Vegetarian Festival, usually held in October and November. The festival dates use the Lunar Calendar, and the festival’s exact dates change every year, so if you plan to travel to Phuket to see this event, check the dates before booking.

          Bang Pae Seafood

          Bang Pae Seafood

            Bang Pae Seafood is a great local restaurant, very hidden on the east coast of Phuket. It’s not so easy to find, and yet, it’s busy on weekends with a mix of Thai, expats and some tourists brought by local friends.

            The Pad Thai Shop in Karon Beach

            The Pad Thai Shop in Karon

              The Pad Thai Shop is a tiny restaurant on the side of the back road of Karon Beach. It’s so small and modest; you would drive past it without paying much attention if it wasn’t for its growing reputation and a large yellow signboard that says ‘The Pad Thai Shop’.

              Nai Dam Restaurant Phuket

              Nai Dam Restaurant in Kathu

                Nai Dam Restaurant in Kathu looks just like any restaurant by the roadside of Phuket. It’s not fancy, there are no exterior signs of luxury and even the restaurant signboard is hardly visible.

                Kalim Rimlay restaurant Phuket

                Kalim Rim Lay Restaurant in Kalim Beach

                  Kalim Rim Lay Restaurant is a little-known restaurant serving good honest Thai food and seafood at a good price. Best of all for some of you, it is located not far from Patong Beach, just past Kalim Beach. Rim Lay is a very relaxing spot to enjoy lunch or dinner with spectacular sunsets if you are lucky to get one as we did.

                  Baan Mae Taan Restaurant in Phuket Town

                  Baan Mae Taan Restaurant in Phuket Town

                    Baan Mae Taan is an excellent local Thai restaurant in Phuket Town. It is slightly away from the old streets of historical Phuket, where the tourist crowd always go for their selfies and therefore addresses more to a local clientele, and that is a good sign!

                    Boon's Local Thai Restaurant in Phuket Town

                    Boon Restaurant near Phuket Town

                      Boon is one of the most underrated local Thai restaurants in Phuket. It’s not fancy, the menu is not long, and lunch at Boon only costs a few baht, but the taste is unique. The restaurant is tiny, hard to spot, and so modest; we probably wouldn’t bother explaining to anyone how to go there. But after so many years, we realised that this place is very special to us: It’s what local Thai food is all about: simple, cheap, casual, and delicious.

                      Mookata Buffet in Phuket

                      Moo Kata Restaurants in Phuket

                        Mook Kata is an extremely popular and cheap buffet found in Phuket and all around Thailand. Here, you pick and cook yourself some raw ingredients displayed on a buffet-style at a low fixed price.

                        Phuket Viewpoints

                        Phuket Windmill Viewpoint

                          Phuket windmill viewpoint, also occasionally called wind turbine, is a panoramic hill in the very south of Phuket Island. From up there, you can enjoy a birdview of the very popular Ya Nui Beach on one side and the bay of Nai Harn on the other.

                          Doi Thepnimit Patong Phuket

                          Wat Thepnimit Phuket near Patong Beach

                            Wat Thepnimit Phuket is a monastic residence with a fantastic panoramic view over Patong beach. You can see its iconic white pagoda from the beach, if you know in which direction to look, of course, it’s pretty tiny.

                            Kopitiam by Wilai Restaurant in Phuket Town

                            Kopitiam by Wilai Restaurant in Phuket Town

                              Kopitiam by Wilai is a recently renovated restaurant serves classic Thai food in an old-style Chinese shop on the most popular street in Phuket Town. Thalang Road changed from just an old busy street to a full-scale tourist attraction, bars and restaurants have started to appear like flies on honey.

                              Phuket Indy Market - Phuket Town

                              Phuket Indy Night Market in Phuket Town

                                Phuket Indy Night Market is a fun, young, creative little night market in Phuket Town, located on Limelight Avenue, a small lane off Dibuk Road, not far from the well-known Raya Restaurant.

                                Super Cheap Phuket

                                Super Cheap Market Phuket

                                  Super Cheap is quite amazing: you could organize a giant treasure hunt in it. We were writing a ‘Phuket Price Check’ story, trying to find 10 simple items we had written down on my list, but gave up halfway when we suddenly realized there was no way we could spot half of them.

                                  Shrine of Serene Light in Phuket Town

                                  Shrine of the Serene Light in Phuket Town ⛩️

                                    The Shrine of the Serene Light is a beautifully decorated Chinese Temple on Phang Nga Road, one of the most famous streets of Phuket Town. It used to be ‘the little hidden Chinese temple’ tucked away at the end of a small path, right under your nose. While most Thais knew all about it, only a few foreigners were aware of its existence, and those who knew would proudly whisper its secret location to newbies like an old secret passage to some mystic temple.