1 Wat Chalong
Buddhism is overwhelmingly the dominant religion of Thailand, practised by at least 90% of the population. Temples (known locally as Wats) are where Thais go to worship and seek spiritual guidance but they are also a focus for social and cultural activities, and are often spectacular examples of Southeast Asian architecture. The largest and most impressive temple on Phuket is Wat Chalong located on the south of the island on Chao Fa West Road. It is well sign-posted.

2 Big Buddha
If you look southwards from Wat Chalong the skyline is dominated by an enormous statue of the Lord Buddha. Forty-five metres high and finished in white marble, it is the largest such image in Thailand. Up close it is massively impressive and the elevated site offers panoramic views of the island. The shrine is still a work-in-progress but the Buddha image is ninety-five per cent complete and the construction scaffolding has now been removed. A museum is planned and there is even talk of constructing a cable-car system from Patong to the site.

3 Promthep Cape
Continue on to the southernmost point of the island and you will find Promthep. This viewpoint with excellent parking and restaurant facilities offers outstanding views of sandy beaches framed by rocky headlands lapped softly by the azure waters of the Andaman Sea. At sunset, the skies become a horizon-wide kaleidoscope of slowly changing pastel shades; quite unbelievably beautiful.

4 Old Phuket Town
Much of Phuket’s development has taken place in the last ten years and the building style is resolutely modern – some say, stridently so; but parts of Phuket City are little changed from a hundred years ago. At that time the island was a busy trading port and supported a thriving tin mining industry. The then captains of industry built their prestigious homes in the Sino-Portuguese style. Narrow housefronts ornately decorated with red and gold, the mystic signs representing sacred guardians of the access, yielded to storied accommodations with tall ceilings and interiors often incorporated delightful gardens. Nowadays the streets in the Chinese quarter have transformed themselves into busy thoroughfares featuring antique shops, speciality restaurants and more. Well worth a visit.

5 Patong's Bangla Road
Many people come to Phuket just to revel in the razzmatazz of Patong’s hotspots but even if your tastes are generally more moderate, you really should not miss the opportunity to visit this international icon of the hedonistic lifestyle. A short street in the heart of downtown Patong, Soi Bangla packs more than a hundred bars, restaurants and discotheques into a single traffic-free, brightly-lit celebration of glitz which operates from dusk until dawn. Walking up and down or dropping into throbbing cacophonous homages to Mammon like the Tiger Disco or Rock City will leave you with vivid memories as enduring as those of the beautiful beaches you enjoyed in the daylight hours.

Please come back.