Phuket Airport - Western Thailand's air gate

2024 Author: Harold Hamphrey | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 10:06

If your destination on your ticket is Phuket International Airport, then you will land at Phuket Airport. This is the only air harbor on the entire island of the same name, which is the largest in Thailand. The airport in terms of size and throughput is considered the second after the capital. This is not surprising: after all, there is no direct railway connection between Bangkok and Phuket, and the journey by bus will take about 11 hours. It is much easier to cover the distance of 862 km by plane - then the travel time will be only an hour or even less. It accepts the hub and international flights, in particular from Moscow. How to get from the airport to the resorts of the island, how to find the right terminal on the way back - read this article.

Fly to Paradise Island

Phuket Airport (Thailand) has international status, and therefore consists of two terminals - for external and internalflights. Passenger aircraft daily plying along the route is Moscow - Phuket. However, during the tourist season, which lasts from October to April, many charter flights connect the island with the cities of our country. To make the flight more budgetary, you can use the services of low-cost airlines: Orient Thai, Knock Air or AirAsia. Then the road from Bangkok can cost you only 40-70 dollars. And even expensive airlines such as Thai Airways, Etiyad and Emirates offer very interesting offers in their pricing policy. For example, you can order a "single ticket" from Moscow to Phuket with a stopover in Bangkok for a few days. Cheap tickets to Phuket are available from Singapore and Kuala Lumpur (the journey to this Thai island will take about one and a half to two hours). As an alternative, you can consider such a landing point as the airport "Krabi". Phuket is located just seventy kilometers to the east. There are regular bus services to the island from there.

Airport infrastructure

The capacity of this air harbor is about twenty flights per hour. Airplanes here receive a landing strip three kilometers long and 45 meters wide. Therefore, the second most important air gate in Thailand is Phuket Airport. The flight schedule gives an idea of how connected the island is to countries such as Malaysia, Singapore, Hong Kong, Vietnam, Indonesia, China, South Korea, Japan, Nepal, Australia, Germany, Russia,Finland, Switzerland, France, Belgium, Israel, Norway, Sweden, Finland, Denmark. No less significant is the internal terminal. It connects the island of Phuket not only with the capital, but also with the northern part of the country. Every year, about five million passengers use the services of the airport. As in many other air harbors, the departure and arrival halls are separate. There are duty-free shops in the neutral zone of the international terminal. You can pass the time before departure in one of the many cafes. Three chapels (Christian, Islamic and Buddhist) are at the service of believers.

Remoteness from the main resorts

Phuket Airport is located on Mai Khao Beach, in the northern part of the island. This location was not chosen by chance. The sea here is shallow, the only road connecting the island with the mainland along the Saracen bridge passes nearby. It would not have been possible to build a resort here anyway, but an airport on "waste" lands - please. Thus, you still have to get to the main administrative center of the island. And the city is separated from the airport by 35 kilometers. However, Phuket City is also far from being a resort. Most foreign tourists prefer to rest in Patong, Karon, Kata. And this is even further. A taxi to Phuket City costs 400 baht, and to beach resorts - all 600. However, the difference in pricing depends not so much on mileage, but on the fact that foreign tourists are willing to pay that kind of money.

Phuket: how to get from the airport

If you came to Thailand on a tour, youthere is no need to think about how to get from the airport to the hotel. The transfer is included in the price of your tour. But if you are traveling on your own, you need to think about how to get to your destination. The taxi stop is located right next to the exit from the arrivals hall of the international terminal. This option is convenient, fast, but expensive. Cross the road. Opposite the exit you will see many minibuses

. They go to different resorts on the island.

The inscriptions on the windshield are duplicated in English - so it's hard to confuse and sit in the wrong place. A minivan ticket to Phuket Town costs 80 baht, to resorts - about 120 baht. This option is good because a minibus, like a taxi, will take you to the hotel. The downside is that on the way you will be taken to the tourist center, where they will offer to buy excursions. And this type of transport is sent as it is full.

How to get from the resorts of the island to Phuket airport

Unfortunately, the way back is not so easy. You can take a tuk-tuk to Phuket Town. From there, there is a scheduled bus. The prices for it are purely symbolic, but a tuk-tuk will cost you a tidy sum. You can just take a taxi. And it is better to "google" on the Internet in search of local companies that transfer tourists to the airport. Most of the popular hotels in Phuket resorts provide this service.

How not to get lost when flying

Phuket Airport consists of three floors, and both terminals are international and fordomestic flights - are located in the same building. It is worth arriving two and a half hours before departure. If you are an advanced tourist, register in advance (online). Then you can reserve comfortable seats on the plane. At the entrance you will find the usual procedure for passing through metal detectors. Sometimes long queues accumulate there, so the process itself can take about half an hour. There is a board in the check-in hall, which shows the number of the flight desk. Check in your suitcases and get your boarding pass. Go through passport control. There is a VAT refund point just behind the border guards.