Forget Phuket. You've landed at its airport, now hang a hard left. Aim north, traveller, not south. And don't stop until you've crossed the bridge to mainland Thailand.
Login or signup to continue reading. I do just that. Within 20 minutes I'm in green, jungled Phang Nga province. Real Thailand. Palms and sea pines instead of jet-skis and high-rise.
Empty beaches. Three-hundred kilometres of under-tourism. The Andaman Sea flickers behind a curtain of tall son talay sea pines. Natai, the first mainland beach, stretches into the distance. Seafront eateries, small resorts, a turtle sanctuary and not a speedboat in sight. But I'm aiming further, to Khao Lak, a loosely defined area that stretches up the coast well beyond its original namesake beach.
She adds, chuckling, "Back then, first I had to ask how to pronounce Phuket politely. This isn't Khao Lak's first tourism rodeo but it still looks like an Andaman coast, not a wannabe Cancun. Its resorts are tucked behind the frontal dunes and screened by casuarinas while the busy highway with its restaurants, markets and dive shops sits well inland.
I'm travelling solo in monsoon season, heading slowly north, exploring. My poolside suite comes with midnight fireflies and a monsoon moon racing the clouds. But first things first: at the in-house Beach House restaurant I top-off a day of good travels with my favourite tropical treat, grilled lobster, a chilled Singha and mango sticky-rice dessert.
