Welcome to Phuket , Thailand - 2025 journeys !!

Sawadikap!

I know that some Hivers in the ASEAN HIVE COMMUNITY are from Thailand, and I just want to say — I absolutely love Thailand!
The food is cheap and delicious, there are countless beautiful places to explore, and the people are always friendly and polite.
Shout-out to all my Thai friends in this community — you are truly awesome!

After spending a few days in Bangkok, my wife and I continued our journey to Phuket. This island is incredibly popular for its stunning beaches, exciting tourist spots, vibrant nightlife, and, of course, more amazing Thai food and culture.

We checked out from our hotel in Bangkok early in the morning. Instead of taking the MRT, we decided to book a Grab ride to the airport — mostly because we were just too lazy to walk that early

We skipped breakfast, but ended up having some fast food brunch at the airport while waiting for our boarding time.

Bangkok Airport is quite big, but to be honest, I still think Singapore’s Changi Airport is much bigger and more impressive . We had to walk a fair distance to get to our boarding gate, but everything was well-organized and easy to navigate.

The flight from Bangkok to Phuket took around 1 hour and 30 minutes — a smooth and easy journey overall.

We arrived at Terminal 2 in Phuket, which handles domestic flights.

Let me share something important: Grab rides in Phuket are super expensive! In some cases, the fare might cost as much as your hotel stay — and honestly, I don’t think it’s worth it.

So here’s a budget-friendly tip for you:
👉 Head to the end of the domestic terminal, and you’ll find a bus stop there. You can take a local bus for just THB 100 per person to various destinations around Phuket.

🚍 But be careful — there are three different buses, each going to different areas of the island. Make sure you check the destination before boarding!

At that time, we were staying near Phuket Old Town, so we took the bus heading in that direction. It was easy, cheap, and a great way to get a feel of the local vibe.

At first, I thought Phuket wasn’t that big — I imagined it to be similar in size to Labuan Island near our place in Borneo. But I was totally wrong! Phuket is actually a very large island.

It took us over an hour to reach our destination, and I’m really glad we decided to take the local bus. It gave us the chance to enjoy the scenery and get a feel for the local environment along the way.

After arriving at our place where we’d be staying for the next three days in Phuket, we headed out for dinner at a nearby café.

It was a nice and cozy little restaurant, with a warm, welcoming vibe. I had the feeling it was a popular spot among local students, probably because of the chill atmosphere and affordable, tasty food. I think you ll also agree with me if you see the photo that i share :

Look at the warm and welcoming decoration , i feel like i become a student who enjoying this little cafe :

And here’s a look at the menu — it seemed like this café wasn’t really expecting many tourists, probably because it’s located quite far from the main attractions.

Since the menu was entirely in Thai, I had to rely on Google Translate’s photo feature to figure out what to order

For dinner, I ordered this dish (photo below!). Honestly, I almost forgot to take a picture because I was so tired and hungry at the time

But it turned out to be delicious — maybe it was partly because I was starving, but the chili variation they used was really flavorful and unique. I truly enjoyed it, and if I ever get the opportunity, I’d love to learn how to make this dish myself.

machine at the homestay/hotel — perfect timing! So we spent the evening doing some much-needed laundry after a few days on the road.

I guess that’s all for today’s sharing.
Thanks for stopping by — I hope you enjoyed following along with today’s little journey.
See you tomorrow!