The slogan of Phuket Old Town —
"Visit the old town, tell the past, experience the local lifestyle, the charm of Thung Kha town."
The land of the Andaman pearls, Phuket is rich in both land and sea resources. This is a tourist's paradise that you should visit once in your life. In addition, Phuket's old town community gathered all the cultures together. Getting into the old town, you will see the ancient shophouses lining both sides of the road. It is a trace of the prosperous history during the reign of King Rama V, the blooming period of tin mining. Experience the attractiveness of Sino-Portuguese architecture and admire its classic beauty. Since then, the villagers in the old town started to conserve and develop the old town in order to benefit the children in the future.
Phuket's old town is an ancient community with more than 100 years of history. In the prosperous mining era, foreigners, including Chinese, Indians, Arabs, and Europeans, came to trade and live in Phuket (similar to other port cities in the Malay peninsula such as Penang, Malacca, and Singapore). The entry of the diverse nationalities created a combination of lifestyles, art and culture, food, and architectural styles. Sino-Portuguese architecture was widely popular in the Malay peninsula and was broadly constructed in the Phuket old town.
A Sino-Portuguese building was built for the first time in Phuket old town around 1903. "Baan Chinpracha" is a traditional Sino-Portuguese building that is still in very good condition.
Sino-Portuguese buildings, also known as Sino-European buildings, are 2-3-story storey buildings with a narrow width and long depth design that are mostly found in the old town. Its main feature is a shophouse, a mixed-use commercial-residential building. The front area is the shop; the back area is for residential.
In addition, this building also has an important feature, the "Arcade" or "Ngor Kah Kee" (Hokkien), which is an arched walkway that is continuously connected as a pedestrian walkway. It’s a shelter for rain and sunlight, which is suitable for Phuket’s weather.
Phuket old town located at the heart of Phuket town. There are many routes for tourists to walk and enjoy. It can be divided into 6 main routes: 1) Phuket road, Ratsada road and Ranong road, 2) Phang Nga road, Phuket road and Montri road, 3) Thalang Road, 4) Krabi Road and Satun Road, 5) Dibuk road, Yaowarat road, Trok Soon U-tit and Soi Romanee, the last street is 6) Kasatree road
In the old town, there is street art scattered in many alleys for you to discover. Besides, the old town also has the "Peranakan" or Phuketian call "Ba-Ba", another identity of Phuket exhibited at the "Peranakannitat Museum." The museum displays the story of the Peranakan people, their history, the Baba costume, ceramic art, and food.
Phuket Old Town Community-Based Tourism CBT’s trip slogan is as follows:
"Visit the old town, tell the past, experience the local lifestyle, the charm of Thung Kha town".
This trip is a cultural tour, experiencing Phuket's old town (the former Thung Kha town) in a different and more profound way. You will discover many unseen things hidden in this old town; for example, visiting the last smithy in the old town; cooking the local cuisine such as Mee Hokkien and Baba’s food; drinking coffee and tea; and having snacks while watching the performance of "Khun Annie," the owner of the nickname "Guzheng Angle," who is visually impaired but can play beautifully and impressively the Gu Zheng (a Chinese musical instrument).
Accordingly, the tourism management of Phuket Old Town aims to use tourism as a tool to restore, conserve, and pass on to the next generation. Hence, Phuket Old Town got the "Thailand Tourism Awards" or "Kinnari Awards"; the outstanding award (in 2019) and the excellent award (in 2020) for community attractions. These are another success of the community.
Furthermore, today's Phuket old town community has another goal. The fine arts department and Phuket province have a plan to register the old town as a world heritage site with UNESCO, which is still progressing.
Phuket's old town is a living old city. It stands out for its unique Sino-Portuguese architecture (similar to that of the world heritage site of Penang-Malacca, Malaysia) and mining. And it has been developing until it has become an important tourist city today.
Phuket Old Town invites you to come and discover the smiles and friendships that exist here. For more information, please contact (+66) 8 4305-3960 (Mr. Somyot Patan),
Facebook page: oldphukettowncbt
Website: Phuket Old Town Community Based Tourism
Phone: 08 4305 3960
- Dress appropriately for the event and location.
- Do not drink alcohol and intoxicants
- Do not make a loud noise during the night
0 THB/Person
