We spent four nights on Phuket, an island in the southwest of Thailand. Phuket is a tourist wonderland, with amazing islands, nightlife, shopping, tours and more. And we did none of this! After waking up at our resort the first morning, we didn’t want to leave. So we didn’t.
The resort we stayed in was called Sala. It was on the northwestern part of the island. It was situated next to Mai Khao beach, a 7-mile-long pristine beach that is part of the Sirinat National Park. Since it was part of the park, no development was allowed directly on the beach. That meant no restaurants, lounge chairs, motorized boats, jet skis, vendors, etc. It was serene and quiet – and we had it almost to ourselves. The sea here was called the Andaman sea, and is part of the Indian Ocean. The water was warm like bath water. The sand was soft. There were no sea shells, rocks or reefs here. We walked on the beach for an hour and never came to the end. When we were tired of walking, we waded into the sea and would bob in the waves as long as we wanted. The colors were mesmerizing.
The resort we stayed in was something special. We had our own private villa, complete with a 40-foot pool steps from our bed. Our “bathroom” area was entirely outdoors. It featured a large stone bathtub at the end of pool under a chandelier, a large vanity with double sinks, and an outdoor rain shower situated under a large mango tree. We often found mango flowers and even a few mangos on the ground around the shower. Yes, even the toilet was outside hidden strategically by a wall, but still completely open to nature.
We arrived at night, and have to admit it took a bit getting used to. Everything in the resort was very dimly lit, including our room. I saw a lizard scampering on the wall behind the sinks, and was wondering what I had gotten us into. But, as soon as the sun was up the next day, we quickly got used to this outdoor living. We spent the hottest part of each day lounging around our pool, taking frequent dips to stay cool. It was paradise.
Our package included breakfast, which was served on shaded decks overlooking the beach. There was everything you could imagine on the breakfast buffets, and you could also order items from their menu. We enjoyed fresh fruits, juices, good bread and lots of other goodies each day. We ate late each morning, which easily tided us over until supper. In the late afternoons, we would walk on the beach and swim when the sun wasn’t as strong, then watch the sunset. The horizon was partly cloudy each day, but the sun still made some spectacular colors of purple, pink and orange as it set.
There were three seafood restaurants right outside our resort where we ate at each night. They were very rustic, and showcased their catches of the day in tubs in front of the restaurant so you could pick what you wanted before sitting down. We had grilled sea bass the first day, and mantis shrimp the next. We had previously seen these colorful blue lobsters which we were going to have our last night, but they didn’t catch any that day, so we had a gigantic king prawn instead. It was almost as big as a lobster. They also sold fresh fruit here, so we tried our first mangosteen. It was delicious, so we ordered it each night thereafter for dessert.
We are at the half-way point of our trip, and this was a great way to take a little break and recharge. We don’t regret at all not seeing the other sites around Phuket or exploring more. We will save them for next time. We would happily come back here in the future.
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