Karon Beach - Phuket
Karon Beach is the second largest of Phuket's principal tourist beaches. The slightly curving beach is long, broad, and not very shady. The southern end has a fine coral reef stretching around the small headland into Kata Yai and Pu Island.
Hotel Reservations - more than 600 hotels & resorts
Karon - always a favorite
Karon has been developed with a number of mid-range resorts, most set well back from the shore. Escalating construction of beer bars, nightclubs and discos, as well as a few high-rise hotels, tarnishes Karon's once proud reputation for environmental consciousness, and as a haven for families and couples who wanted nothing more than to relax on the beach and eat Phuket lobster.
But it still has a slower pace than Patong, and local fishermen still cast their nets in a charming lagoon at the north end of the beach. The sand is white.
There
are large resort complexes along the road back to the beach, among them
The Hilton Arcadia Hotel. The beach itself is 3 km long and wide and has
virtually no development, except for the Karon Beach Resort at the
southern end.
The southern point has a fine coral reef stretching toward Koh Pu (Island).
There are plenty of restaurants, bars, tour companies and other non-hotel businesses at the northern end, near the roundabout, and in the south, the small road connects the road back with the Beach Road.
The
narrow road between Kata and Karon has a number of small businesses as
well as the Dino Park mini-golf facility. Great for kids.
Karon is part of a scale-up of Phuket's beaches. Regular daily bus service to and from Phuket Town.
In the monsoon season may be dangerous to swimmers because of the strong currents. Please pay attention to red flags, put up when it is too dangerous. Several tourists die every year.
The southern part of Karon Beach is a great spot to watch the sunset. Try the beach restaurant just north of Karon Beach Resort - very affordable; it's been run by a local Thai family for 25 years.
