The Ultimate 7 Day Trip in Phuket, Thailand
We stayed is the most enchanting tropical resort in Thailand called Banyan Tree.
Banyan Tree is the oldest luxury hotel in Phuket and such a paradise. It’s part of a large complex of golf, lakes, six resorts and a beach located on “Laguna”. You will find stunning beaches, rich ancient culture, vibrant nightlife and lots of new construction with all the amenities to attract tourists and invest in there. Also in town you will find very inexpensive hairdressers and massage therapists.
We avoided the busiest season by going in April when the weather is perfect and the towns are not crowded with tourists.
It’s good to keep in mind the weather, we had an occasional shower in the afternoon, however between May and October it’s when it rains the most and you may want to avoid going during that time if you wish for sunny skies..
Banyan Tree about 10 miles from the Phuket International Airport (HKT) and it took about 40 minutes by car to get to the resort.
Our Villa
They offer different kinds of villas and we chose the “Spa Villa”, it was amazing. We immersed ourselves in a tranquil atmosphere all the way! It came with a beautiful view of the lake, jacuzzi, spa beds in the pool, outdoor bathtub, complementary bikes, boat dock right next to the villa and covered buggy, waiting area, a couple of bikes plus so much more.
To get from the villa and the resort amenities, you simply call for a buggie and within 5 minutes, someone will show up and they will escort you to where you need to go.
It had a king size bed, bathroom with steam and people came in a few times daily. Had air conditioning, outside shower, outdoor bath tub and a stunning separate outdoor glass dining/family room building with TV air conditioning and fantastic views of the lake, pool, gardens and villa.
When you open the electric window drapes (videos are on story highlights on Instagram), you will see that the bedroom is surrounded by water making you feel like you are floating on an island!
We savored new culinary delights and enjoyed innovative experiences daily around the resort and also in all our activities.
I have to say that breakfast was the most complete that I have ever experienced, see the many pictures I took of just breakfast! We treated our taste buds to exquisite Japanese, Thai, and other stations around the world. So many ways to cook rice, pineapple etc. From their egg combination station which offered different ways of cooked eggs daily to different fruits, yogurts, soup station, donuts station etc. They have everything you can think of and then some. They get so creative with flavors, it's impressive to see how many ways you can cook an egg! At breakfast you can also enjoy hot Asian dishes celebrating the vibrant flavors of local and fresh ingredients.
I always bring some art work with me on my trips and I love displaying different art prints in different places. Here you see the "Mademoiselle Pink" art print matching my fresh flowers on the Spa Villa glass room in the backyard where we stayed. It was a paradise there and I encourage you to visit the blog. All art prints with or without embelilsments are prints of my original paintings and you can find those mini prints on the "Gift Shop" site tab if available.
At their “Saffron” restaurant you select from the rice cart what kind of rice you want even if you ordered a dish with noodles! Here you savor authentic Thai flavors and enjoy Surf &Turf specialties at the water court while you listen to live music and enjoy stunning lagoon views. They also offer free pontoon rides to the other resorts. We took it to the shopping and restaurant area and on the way back we were dropped off at our villa dock.
Night arrival on Sunday
Day 1 Monday
Rested, went to the pool, walked the beach and had a massage. After that we had dinner on a floating restaurant. A couple was at the resort celebrating their 50th wedding anniversary and arranged for fireworks after dinner, how perfect, we enjoyed those as well by the lake, it was magical!
Day 2 Tuesday
We got a tour guide and visited Old town Phuket. There we saw some temples, saw wild monkeys that were hanging out with people, did a little shopping and visited a chestnut and peal factories plus we visited the “Chinpeacha House” which was built in 1903. The first house built in concrete in Chino-Portuguese style in the area. Local Phuket people called this style of house as “Angmor Lounge” (Angmor means Western). Today the house is 112 years old and the 5 generation of owners live on the upstairs floor so the first floor where everything is still original can be seen by visitors.
Chinpeacha House
Chestnut factory
Day 3 Wednesday
From the resort you can take the boat or trolley to other resorts in the Laguna area. There are 6 different resorts there. We took the boat and went to the shopping stop. When we returned, the boat dropped us if at our villa dock.
We also walked on the beach but since there were strong currents and the ocean was not great, so we decided the spa pool instead which is is massive and the water is so refreshing and there is also a sense of calm over there with spa music.
Day 4 Thursday
We went to see the Phuket Elephant Sanctuary. Make sure to take Dramamine because it’s a very long and a million curves on the road!
Once we got there we prepared the fruit, fed the elephants, and then came back to the resort, rested did spa massage then had dinner.
Make sure you wear bug spray everyday or ask for it if you forget.
Day 5 Friday
We adventured into Laguna town on the little trolley that takes you to the different resorts then we had lunch in Laguna town. We picked a restaurant from Georgia ( the country) called Tbilisi and it was really good.
At night we saw the Phuket “FantaSea” a theme park with a variety of attractions, including a cultural theatrical show with illusions (with 15 elephants, birds, and other animals, even chickens performed if you can believe it), a theme buffet restaurant and a shopping street. Make sure you leave your phone at home because otherwise you will have to turn it in at the show area, it’s illegal to bring phones to the show. We did not know and had to leave our phones there and picked them up after the show.
Day 6 Saturday
We had breakfast, it’s all you can eat everyday and they have the best breakfast that I have ever seen at a luxury property, that's why I have to talk about it again! They had a Thai station, Japanese station, Western Station, British breakfast, lots of fresh cut fruit, donut station, bread area, different fresh squeezed juices area, dumplings area, egg station, cheese and fresh cut, smoked salmon, smoked tuna, smoked beef, pineapple cooked in different ways and the list goes on and on. I don’t have the pictures of everything here but I hope you’ll enjoy the ones I have. They go to great lengths to make it memorable for you and the service is outstanding.
Manu
Many breakfast options.
This resort should be on your bucket list for sure, you will live the recreation and wellbeing activities there.
I did the Thai Herbal Tea Workshop with doctor “Pai” and it ended up being just me because no one else had signed up for that class. They offer lots of activities including Thai Cooking Classes a few times a week, Herbal Massage Oil Worshop, Natural Herbal Inhaler Workshop and Herbal Potporri Workshop at the Nature House. They also have snorkeling tours, bike tours, kayak sightseeing, all fitness classes from yoga to HIIT workouts, stretching and meditation, breathing exercises as well. This is a complete resort with several facilities like a Nature House, Fitness pavilion, Outdoor activities and Wellbeing Centre.
After the Herbal Tea Workshop we went to the shopping mall at Central Phuket to buy a few souvenirs and had lunch there.
After that we came back relaxed, had our daily massage and did the Watercourt restaurant for Surf & Turf for dinner.
Day 7 Sunday
In our last day we enjoyed coconut drinks ( inside the coconut) at the main pool - they have a bar inside the pool then more treatments and after that we went back to the villa and enjoyed room service inside the glass house. After that it was time to pack, get in the cab go to the airport to take out night flights home.
Thank you for reading the blog. Have you every been to Thailand before and if not, is it on your bucket list? I would love to know.
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xoxo Ceci Mason