Top 10 Phuket Hotels 2018

UPDATE - new top 10 list now published - see Top 10 Phuket Hotels 2023.





Time for a new Top 10 Phuket Hotels list, but I've made it a "Top 12" this year. There's only 1 new hotel in this new 2018 list - much of the top 10 is similar to 2017 although slightly re-arranged. For each hotel there are links for checking online rates and availability - try using Agoda.com to book your hotels in Phuket. As for previous top 10 hotel lists, I base this on Trip Advisor rankings which may not be perfect and do change all the time. You'll find links to reviews for each hotel. Hotels get scores out of 10 on both Agoda and Booking so you can compare, and reviews are only left by people who have actually booked the hotel, so you can see if real hotel guests agree with the TA ratings!

1. Trisara Phuket Villas & Residences

Trisara was top of the top 10 for 3 years running, dropped to number 2 last year and is now back on top! I would really really love to stay here a few days and do nothing at all! Are you listening Trisara social media manager?! Trisara offers private pool villas by a private beach to the north of Bang Tao beach in the north of Phuket island. Trisara is what I'd call a "private, luxury, superb view view, relax and unwind" style hotel. Only 48 villas, acres of space, no crowds. There are also "private residences" (houses) with 2 - 6 bedrooms, ideal for families, big groups, or even wedding parties. Or just for a relaxing getaway for a romantic couple. The location - miles from any busy areas, so youll need your own transport or have to get taxis everywhere.

• Trisara - Information, Reviews & Booking

2. The Chava Resort (Surin Beach)

The Chava hit the top 10 in 2015, hit number 1 last year and now number 2. Surin Beach always has something in the top 10. The Chava Resort is actually a collection of 2 - 5 room apartments (this seems to be called an "apartment resort"), some are run directly by the hotel, while some are privately owned and privately rented. Rooms are really enormous, not normal hotel size, good for families and groups. Like Trisara, it's a place with sea views, slightly up in the hills, not by the beach but really only a few minutes walk from the beach.

• Chava Resort - Information, Reviews & Booking

3. Andara Resort and Villas (Kamala Beach)

Andara remains firmly at number 3, same as 2016 and 2017. This is a 5 star resort, another resort on the hillside, located near Kamala Beach, another one with luxury villas. It also features on my best family hotel list, but with individual villas and private pools, will suit couples as well as families. Andara resort is in the hills, not right by the beach. Some (not all) of the villas have great sea views. There is a definite trend of non-beachfront luxury in recent years. Maybe because the beach areas - certainly the main beaches - are too full, and also because beachfront land is very, very expensive. Cheaper to get land in the hills. If you want luxury and seclusion, Phuket has plenty of it, but not right by the beach and not in the main tourist areas.

• Andara Resort & Villas - Information, Reviews & Booking

4. BYD Lofts (Patong Beach)

BYD Lofts remains very popular - it's been in the top 5 for the last 5 years. Unlike the top 3 on this list - if you want a room near the heart of Patong Beach, close to the action and in the middle of the busiest beach area in Thailand, BYD Lofts offers serviced apartments with the hotel featuring a rooftop pool (and a view over the beautiful concrete jungle of Patong). There are 1 or 2 bedroom apartments of various sizes. I rarely venture into Patong myself - not my style, but Patong beach is very convenient for visitors, with huge numbers of restaurants plus shops/the big Jungceylon Mall and tour agents near you. And bars and nightlife too.

• BYD Lofts - Information, Reviews & Booking

5. Navatara (Rawai Beach)

Navatara first appeared on the list at number 7 in 2015, up to 6 last year and now creeping up to number 5. Navatara opened in 2013, but with hotels opening all the time I'd not even heard of it until doing the top 10 list in 2016! Navatara has just 37 rooms, is built "Thai style", some rooms have direct pool access, all rooms look pretty big! A small, Thai style resort away from the main beaches, but not too far - sounds like what a lot of people ask me to recommend! Not by the beach, about 500m from Rawai beach and a few minutes drive from Nai Harn beach and Phromthep Cape. A very nice corner of Phuket.

• Navatara - Information, Reviews & Booking

6. Como Point Yamu

Another very new resort (opened in 2014) with a great scenic location, if you don't mind being miles from anywhere! A few years ago when Cape Yamu started being developed we took a drive to explore and I was not happy. A beautiful natural headland covered in concrete and cranes. Of course now it looks totally amazing and I'd be very happy to stay a night or three here. Oh, by the way - it's not at all cheap! Cape Yamu is on the east coast of Phuket (a long way from the main west coast beach areas), and the views are truly superb. There are 79 rooms plus 27 private villas. With this kind of resort you always see reviews from people who have not looked at a map. YES, it's a remote location. For sure there are not many restaurants around this area - if you want to see Phuket or eat out you need a taxi or a rental car. What you pay for seclusion and luxury.

• Point Yamu Resort - Information, Reviews & Booking

7. Renaissance Phuket Resort (Mai Khao Beach)

Renaissance is one of the Marriott owned resorts north of Phuket Airport at Mai Khao Beach. Renaissance has been on this blog before as part of the Best Luxury Phuket Resorts list and was also in the Top 10 Hotels for 2017. Mai Khao beach is still really quiet and unless you stick to only the various Marriott hotel restaurants you'll need transport or taxis to get to other places. Rent a car, explore, drive just a few minutes from here and you're over the bridge into Phang Nga province. Ideal for a few days of relaxation or a quiet base for exploring the Phuket area!

• Renaissance - Information, Reviews & Booking

8. Amari Phuket (Patong Beach)

The Amari Phuket Resort was one of the first big holiday resorts in Phuket, opening way back in 1984. I'm surprised an old hotel like this can make the top 10! But Amari keeps renovating rooms and adding to the resort and they have a couple of very well regarded restaurants. Great location to relax at the far south end of Patong Beach - far enough from the madness, but you can still walk to the busy center of Patong in 15 minutes. A brand new "ocean wing" opened in 2016. Last time I looked at Amari, everything looked perfect. If you ask me to suggest a hotel in Patong - this one!

• Amari Phuket Resort - Information, Reviews & Booking

9. The Surin (Pansea Beach)

The Surin (formerly called The Chedi) reopened with the new name about 7 years ago, but The Chedi had been there for nearly 30 years already, with it's ridiculously good location on a private beach between Surin and Bang Tao beaches in the north of Phuket. I'd stay here! Another that is a little remote but you can get to Surin or Bang Tao for restaurant options. And it's not ridiculously expensive. The beach is not quite private, it's shared with the very fancy Amanpuri.

• The Surin - Information, Reviews & Booking

10. Ayara Kamala

And the only new entry into the top 10 - Ayara Kamala Resort - not quite at Kamala beach actually, it's on the headland south of Kamala along with several other properties/hotels and villas. Great views, quite exclusive, just a dozen or so villas. The area is called Millionaire's Mile. A couple of kilometers to walk to Kamala beach, I assume they have some kind of free shuttle!

• Ayara Kamala - Information, Reviews & Booking

11. The Pavilions (Layan Beach)

Just sliding out of the top 10, but worth a mention, The Pavilions was included a few years ago on my Top 10 Romantic Hotels list. The resort promotes itself heavily as a couples paradise - with individual villas, plus 2,3 and 4 bedroom villas. Located on a hill with sea views looking towards Bang Tao and Layan beaches, but not really near the beach at all. There are apparently 2 award winning restaurants and (quote from their website) the largest hotel pool in Phuket.

• The Pavilions - Information, Reviews & Booking

12. The Shore at Katathani (Kata Noi Beach)

The Katathani Resort has been open for many many years at quiet Kata Noi beach to the south of Kata beach. The Shore is their newer luxury "pool villa" development, which opened in 2010 catching the popular wave of private villa style hotels - as you can certainly see from this top 10! And these villas look great. They are all private pool villas, some with seaview (note: if you read the reviews, you can see that the view does vary from villa to villa). A great hotel for couples. Most of the reviews are from couples and I see lots and lots of honeymoon reviews. Well, you have to spoil yourselves once before real life starts!

• The Shore at Katathani - Information, Reviews & Booking

That's the Top hotels in Phuket as of early 2018. Have you stayed at a hotel that's not listed, but you think it should be? Go and give it a big review and get it's ranking up! Phuket has been on the mainstream tourism route for well over 25 years now and you can find a mix of old and new resorts, big hotels, guesthouses, villas, apartments, hillside, beachfront, busy areas, quiet areas. It's not a cliché .. There is actually something here for everyone. Doing some research is very important especially regarding the hotel location. Look at a map, please! In recent years, as this list shows, many new top class resorts have opened in more secluded areas and the trend is for sea view hillside (not on the beach) villas. Land prices and rents are so high that beachfront is a mega investment. Phuket has a big luxury market now, and most of this top 10 could be called luxury by my standards, but at the same time small hotels, guesthouses and "backpacker price" places are also plentiful.

Check agoda.com for hotel booking. There are many reviews on agoda for most of the hotels listed on this blog. Please do read the reviews, and do think carefully also about what suits you - location, resort size, hotel style, price(!), do you want something for couples, or suitable for families / kids, close to the airport or close to nightlife etc. Some like it quiet and secluded, others want noisy fun. Check the menu on the side of this blog page for more hotel information pages to help you make the right choice!

Check the new top 10 list for 2022 - see Top 10 Phuket Hotels 2023.