Phuket by songthaew or bus · By songthaew or bus in Phuket
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By songthaew or bus in Phuket
By songthaew or bus in Phuket
Public transport within Phuket is limited to a radial network connecting Phuket Town to the beach towns. There are a few full-size buses, but most lines are operated with songthaews, basically converted pick-up trucks serving as buses. The fare is 25-35 baht up on distance, and there are no set stops — they pick up and drop off as requested. Most local bus services operate at half-hour intervals and stop at around 18:00.
Most operate from the local market at Ranong Road (Talad Sod or Ban San); those to major beaches go via Phuket Town bus terminal. The main lines connect to Patong, Kata-Karon, Chalong Bay, Rawai-Nai Han beach, Cape Panwa (for the Aquarium), Mai Khao, and Surin-Kamala. There are no "cross-beach" connections, and eg. traveling from Surin to Patong (15 min by taxi) requires an hour-long detour via Phuket Town.
Upon your return, though, often the bus will drop you off not at the main terminal but at a bus stop somewhere in the middle of Phuket Town, where travelers will immediately be set upon by the rip-off tuk-tuk and taxi drivers. Tourists beware!
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Phuket Travel Guide from Wikitravel. Many thanks to all Wikitravel contributors. Text is available under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0, images are available under various licenses, see each image for details.