Phuket Trip Day 1

    This was my first trip overseas since the only adventure to The Philippines some 4 years ago. So apparently I wasn't too familiar with organising this trip to Phuket. We decided that Patong will be the place to stay as it is the most famous beach in Phuket island. 

    As on 9th of May 2014, KLIA2 has been fully functionable with Air Asia agreeing to transfer their airline operations to the new terminal, which was just a couple of kilometers from KLIA. 

    I managed to web check in 4 days before the flight through the AirAsia website which can be found here. By doing so, I obtained my boarding pass which made things simple for departure. All we need to do is to print the boarding pass beforehand and BRING IT ALONG to the airport. 

    Due to the air ticket prices, I found out that the most economical way for this trip would be a Penang-KL-Phuket journey, with the arrival to KL and departure from KL 2-3 hours apart. Luckily I only brought along a handcarry baggage (cabin bag) so there was no worries about luggage check in and stuff like that. 

    There were plenty of reviews you can find online regarding experiences and guidelines on how to get around in Phuket but I was indeed lucky to be able to get in contact with one of the agents in Phuket. Got to know it from my friend who just returned from there. I STRONGLY recommend you to contact her as she offers a pretty good price for everything. She is also very helpful.

You can contact her through Whatsapp

    We arrived at the Phuket International Airport at 530pm Thailand time after some 30 minute flight delay. We took 4 flights and 3 of them were delayed by 30-60 minutes. Typical of Airasia huh? No maps? Don't worry, they are aplenty and free in the arrival hall. 

I got this one, which was quite extensive. Indeed a good guide and easy to bring around !

    The driver, which was arranged by my agent, was already waiting outside the arrival hall with my name on the cardboard. The airport transfer to her shop, in which we only decided on the packages was roughly 40 minutes. You have to adjust your watch as Malaysia time is quicker than Phuket time by around 1 hour. The taxi transfer was 600 baht/ car. Hotels are charging for 800 baht. You might opt for a mini bus service for only 180 baht but we preferred to pay more for the time, comfort and convenience.

    And so we decided on 2 packages as we had only 2 full days for tour. The James bond island 4 island package was 1000 baht/pax (which was RM102.50) while the Phi Phi Island package was 1100 baht/pax (the extra 100 baht was for speedboat. Normal boat takes extra 20 minutes for the journey). 

    We arrived at the hotel at 730pm and by 8pm we were hitting the streets for essential stuff. 7-11 is all over the place. As easy as hitting a 'Datuk' in Malaysia when you throw a stone. Joking~ A stretch of 1 kilometer can boast 4 7-11s and some 24 hour marts. Seriously, it's that many.

The Gallery hotel is a MUST stay. Only paid some RM265 for 3 nights. Clean and comfortable

    One unique thing that you can find in Thailand 7-11s is their toasted bread. They would automatically toast it for you unless you request otherwise. It tastes yummy. You might also want to try out their cup noodles. 'Mama' tomyam flavour is the best and you can try out the minced pork flavour not found in Malaysia. We purchased a SPF 110 banana boat sunblock for 490 baht and a couple of hats to brace the sunshine.

The jungceylon Mall which is quite grand, just opposite Bangla Road

    Time was still abundant so we headed to the red light district of Patong - Bangla road. Don't worry, you won't see Banglas there, as you will do in Malaysia. The street is just an ordinary street in the day and will come to live from 8pm onwards. You can witness sexy looking ladies (or ladyboys?) by the bars. Some are busy pole dancing right on the table directly infront of you if you are drinking. There will be lots of people promoting their sexy show/ pingpong show which I was not even bothered to take a second look. 

Occasionally, there will be performances on the streets. 

    Overall, Patong beach is awesome at night. There are lots of eateries with people always asking if you are hungry and promoting their restaurant. It is kinda annoying because literally every restaurant is promoting by this method! 

    Departed from home at 10am and reached hotel at 7pm. So it's time for a good rest!