Phuket Cruise Port

Phuket, Thailand

The holiday island of Phuket attracts millions of holidaymakers every year to take advantage of its warm weather, sandy beaches and natural beauty, which is also what attracts plenty of cruisers.

Although Phuket is a province of Thailand and costs of 33 islands, in terms of cruising and the tourist trade, Phuket refers to the main island of the chain, the island of Phuket, which also just happens to be the largest island in Thailand.

This part of southeast Asia has really developed not the leading cruise region of Asia, which has led to many cruise lines offering the chance to visit Phuket all year around, which is no surprise as it was somewhere I always wanted the visit before getting the chance in 2024.

The island also has a thriving nightlife, which does give it a reputation of only been a party island but there is so much more to Phuket than that including mouth watering street food, peaceful religious sites, elephant sanctuaries, idyllic tropical beaches and some incredible shore excursions.

In this review, I take you through all that you need to know about visiting Phuket on a cruise holiday, from where you dock, to what you can do and give you our rating for all of the key aspects.

Cruises To Phuket

Our Visit

I visited the island in November of 2024, when me and my wife enjoyed a day there on a repositioning cruise sailing between Singapore and Mumbai on the Celebrity Millennium cruise ship.

We dropped anchor just off of Patong Beach, from where we tendered onboard local boats to the tender jetty at the southern end of the seaside holiday resort.

We started off by actually leaving the island as we book a shore excursion to take us on a long boat ride to the incredible rock formations and Panyi Village in the stunning Phang Nga Bay.

This was an incredible excursion and is something I would recommend anybody visiting Phuket to do and thankfully despite it been a long excursion, we had 12 hours in Phuket and that allowed us plenty of time when we returned to explore Patong on our own.

After been dropped off at the bus station, where shore excursion starts and end, we walked to the nearby Malin Plaza street food and gift market to grab something to eat before walking around the back streets of Patong towards the infamous Bangla Road.

This is probably the part of Phuket that everybody knows it has become famed across the world for either good or bad reasons depending on your position.

It is a party street full of nightclubs, bars, adult entertainment and more and whilst it would be the sort of place I would usually avoid and as someone is teetotal and married, I’m not exactly that target market for the venues there, it was fascinating to walk down it during the day when things are quite a big calmer and more relaxed.

Bangla links the shopping malls in the centre of town with the beach, so we would take a quick walk onto the beach after leaving Bangla, before walking along the seafront and back to the tender jetty at the far end.

Phuket Cruise Guide

If you are trying to decide whether a cruise itinerary visiting Phuket is one you should book, or if you have already booked a cruise calling into Phuket and want to make the most of your time on shore, this is the guide for you.

Type of Cruises Available

The island doesn’t offer any turnaround around facilites, so it is only open for those calling in there on cruises of the region.

Thankfully, there are plenty of options for those wanting to do just that as Southeast Asia has really developed over the past decade or so into one of the world’s top cruise regions, especially during the northern hemisphere winter.

You can visit the island on round trip itineraries from ports in the region such as Singapore, Bangkok and Bali or on repositioning cruises from the likes of Mumbai, Hong Kong and Tokyo.

A number of lines offer fly cruise options, especially from Singapore.

Phuket Cruise Port Location

There are two locations for cruise ships visiting Phuket to arrive at, with the majority of cruise lines arriving in the high season, between November to April, dropping anchor in Patong Bay and those arriving in the off season docking at the Ao Makarm port near to Phuket Town at the other end of the island.

For those arriving at Patong Bay, you will have to tender in to shore but this is done on large motorboats, which makes the process relatively quick and straightforward.

If you are scheduled to have an overnight stay on the island, the chances are that you will stay docked at Ao Makarm no matter what time of the year it is.

Phuket Cruise Facilities

If you drop anchor in Patong, there are no facilites over than a covered floating walkway to where you board your tender boats but that is all you need and the fact you land just a short stroll from all of the resorts attractions make up for it.

For those docking at Phuket port, there are some basic facilites and taxis to take you to Phuket Town, around 20 minutes away, but as this is a commercial dock for much of the year, the facilites are limited and with you not in walking distance of much, for me, you are better off choosing an itinerary dropping anchor in Patong.

Phuket Attractions

For this section of a review, I tend to focus on what is available near to where you dock, or tender in to, but with a couple of areas you can arrive in, and the distance between them, it is a bit trickier for Phuket.

Also, if you dock at the deep sea port, you will need transport to get anywhere and due to the size of Patong, some things will need a taxi or tuk-tuk ride to get to.

So, for this I will count anything you can walk to or enjoy a short taxi ride to as attractions you can do easily without a shorex, whilst anything needing a longer trip or a coach ride been a shore excursion.

One of the highlights for some or the low light for others in the aforementioned Bangla Road which whilst tacky, over the top and to be honest hedonistic is an experience in its own right and is something that attracts tourists from across the globe.

Away from the seedier parts of it, there is some decent sports bars, live music and the iconic Thai boxing arena for those looking for some fun, although this is best for those with a late departure or an overnight stay as it comes alive at night.

When you arrive at Patong Bay, you will instantly spot the huge sandy beach that awaits your arrival and for many that is all that they need for their day onshore.

If you do just want to head to the beach for the day, there is lots to do there including jet ski hire, boats rides, pedaloes, sun lounges and there are a couple of convenient shops just behind the beach to grab some snacks and drinks.

Just a short taxi ride from Phuket Town and the deep sea port, Andamanda waterpark has something for everyone! Whether you’re looking to relax in the lazy river, splash around in the wave pool, or try out the various flumes, it’s perfect for both adults and kids.

If like me you love to try local food when on holiday, and that is something that many head over to Asia to experience, I would recommend heading to the Malin Plaza market as it offers a good range of food, is open day and night and is just a short walk from the tender jetty.

If you arrive at the deep seaport, simply taking a shuttle and enjoy a walk around the old town of Phuket Town is a great way to spend your time.

It features a mix of Sino-Portuguese architecture, markets, museums and plenty of interesting sights that give you a more authentic Phuket experience than you get in one of the more touristy resort areas.

Phuket Shorex

There are plenty of options for those wanting to explore the rest of the island and to even head across the mainland, starting with the shore excursion that I did on my visit there.

We booked a journey to take a long boat down a jungle river and out into the Phang-Nga Bay where ‘James Bond Island’, made famous in the Man with the Golden Gun film, and the floating Panyi Village are found.

Although Panyi was disappointing commercial, it was still fascinating to walk around the homes, schools and mosque of the community that has lived above the sea for 100’s of years whilst the long boat ride was an incredible experience, especially going down the jungle river, past mangrove forests and surrounded by eagles.

Another option is to take a best of Phuket style coach tour that takes you for a door of exploring the best that the island has to offer.

There are few different options for this, but many will head to a viewing point, such as Cape Promthep for you to grab some great photos, you will then often visit one of the island impressive temples with Wat Chalong been a popular choice.

Plenty of tours will often take you to a traditional Thai village where you can see the traditional way of living for those from Phuket and then enjoy some local cuisine before often taking a scenic journey back to Patong via the coastal road.

There are plenty of temples and spiritual sites found all over Phuket and many can be visited on an excursion but for me the best option would be one that takes you the Phuket giant Buddha statue.

Not only is it an incredible feat of engineering, but it offers a fantastic view of the rainforest, coast and sea.

Another popular option for those visiting the island is to head to an Elephant sanctuary as not only can you get up close to these majestic animals, but you can often interact with them. With most of the animals been rescued from abuse in the tourist trade, you can help cover the cost of giving them a good home.

Whilst there is a great beach within walking distance of the tender jetty in Patong, it is a crowded and very tourist heavy beach so if you want to take advantage of the crystal-clear waters that surround the island, any head further afield.

A popular choice is to take a traditional wooden boat down the coast to the Phi Phi islands, which is a popular location for snorkeling.

As I mentioned earlier, many travel from across the world to stay at luxury hotel resort son the island and if you want that experience whilst on a cruise, you can do as many ships will offer shuttles to a nearby hotel resort where you can relax around the pool, enjoy the amenities of the hotel before heading back to the ship.

Best Time To Visit Phuket

Although it is possible to visit Phuket all year around, I would recommend visiting between November and April as this is the main season for the region.

Many ships based in Europe and North America during the summer head to Southeast Asia for the northern hemisphere winter and so you have lots more options when it comes to the itineraries, ships and lines that are on offer.

You will also drop anchor in Patong Bay, which for me is the much better option when visiting Phuket and was the option that I choose to do for my visit then.

Transport

If you arrive at Patong and only want to stay in resort, it is a very walkable place, so you likely won’t need to use any transport.

There are some buses in both Patong and Phuket Town but these are aimed at locals and not too useful for tourists.

If you arrive at the deep seaport or you want to go off and explore some more of the island and to not book on an excursion, your best option is to take advantage of the numerous tais that will meet your ship and beg for your business.

Some will be your traditional car taxi, some will be tuk tuk’s but the growing trend in Phuket is either use a ride share service or to take a songthaews, which are pick up trucks with the back turned into bench seating.

Phuket Cruises From UK

If you want to visit Phuket directly from the United Kingdom, it is something that is actually possible despite the huge distance between the two.

Unfortunately, the itineraries are few and far between and will need you to take either a World Cruise or a long repositioning cruise, with ships moving from the UK to Australia the most prevalent.

Phuket Cruises From Southampton

If you do find an itinerary that you want to do, and you have the budget and money to do it, it will likely be from the port of Southampton.