Tripping Phuket: Patong and Its Sights

We spent all 3 nights at Crown Hostel, run by Peter & his wife. It felt very much more like crashing at a friend's place than public accommodation. Peter gave us great rates (less than THB1,000/pax) for the 3 nights, and he offered much needed advice on where to go and what to do.


Peter giving advice on Phi Phi packages

It was also quite an experience to sit and listen to him tell stories of the Tsunami incident which hit 2 years ago, and how Patong has been recovering. If anyone is looking for a decent place to stay, with really clean toilets, and only necessary amenities, Crown Hostel located at Soi Saen Sabai is the place I'll recommend (not like I've tried anywhere else actually). As long as your expectations aren't high, you'll not regret it.

As our accommodation was located at the very heart of Patong, most of our time was spent wandering Bang La Road, Rat U-Thit Road & Thaweewong Road. What a commercial hub it is!

The Atmosphere
First thing I noticed was that there are probably more tourists than locals walking the streets at any given time, I kid you not! And my best guess is that of all the foreigners, 95% (or more) are Caucasian. Of this group of Caucasians, 19 in 20 are men aged between late-20’s & mid-40’s. And almost all of them have one thing in common – their arm wrapped around the waist of a local Thai girl. I shall not comment further. And please do not quote me on any of the statistics here.

Another common sight all day through is the hoards of Tuk-tuks and taxis around. They park their vehicles neatly along the sides of streets and solicit business in a direct sales fashion. “Hello sir, you want Tuk-tuk?”. If not interested, just smile politely and say no thanks. It’s safe to say that you’ll never have to worry about not having transport, unless you don’t have any cash either. Mind you, bargain and confirm the fare before getting in.

You'll also find lots of small shops selling clothes, bags, suits, souvenirs, perfumes and other forms of interesting trinkets. Bars & restaurants are a-buck-a-dozen as well, although not necessarily value for money. Massage parlors galore, with women sitting/standing around outside touting in their very Thai accent - "Hai sir... euu wann mahssargge?"

Bang La Road

During mornings & afternoons, this street is like any other.


It's a totally different scene when light turns to dark. They close the road for everybody to come out and play.


One of the agogo bars just off Bang La Road. Went in for a quick peek and didn't quite like the concept so we moved on (honest!).

Thaweewong Road
Running parallel to Patong Beach, it was really nice walking the stretch.

Unfortunately even though Crown Hostel was a mere 10 minutes walk away, this was as close as we got to the beach throughout our stay. Everything on the beach is chargeable, from the water sports right down to relaxing on the deck chair and/or using their umbrellas. I wouldn't be surprised if they one day decided to charge a fee for walking on the sand.

The highly popular Banana Club is also located along Thaweewong Road, but we didn't get a chance to try it out first hand due to horrendous budgeting... so instead we hung out at bars with live bands.


The Port is where we had most of our alcohol moments.


You'll also find McDonalds in this area, and Häagen-Dazs just a few doors down.

And this little roadside stall...

...serving...

...banana pancake. Delicious!


Oh and look out for this signpost - "Drunk People Crossing". If you're wondering if it's really that bad, ask us about the drunkards singing (or screaming) their hearts out on the streets at 4am in the morning when we innocent angels are trying to sleep.