Best Beaches in Thailand ~ What's your Favorite?

What are the best beaches in Thailand? Well I guess that's kind of subjective. I've been to many Thailand Beaches and I've enjoyed them all. However, I do have a list of what I think are some of the best beaches in Thailand.

I've judged some of the best beaches in Thailand on various things like the view, the color and clarity of the sand and water, if the beach is swimmable, the available amenities like hotels, restrooms, beach umbrellas, etc. I also judge if the beach is clean, if the beach is too busy, and finally the overall feeling I get. I then rank each beach in the category listed above with a range of 1 through 10 with 10 being the best.

For location and map of lodging areas please visit the Physical Map of Thailand page.

Patong Beach Phuket

Patong beach is not my absolute favorite Thailand beach but I really enjoy it because it offers many things which are personally important to me.

View 8 -The view is nice as the beach slowly curves around the bay it's set in.
Sand & Water 8 -Color of the water is a nice light blue, the sand is whitish but not super white and clarity of the water is not bad but not clear because of the constant waves.
Swimming 7 -Swimming is not good but you should still be careful during rough tides. There is no coral or little fish to see during snorkeling.
Amenities 10 -There are plenty of amenities here. It is a full featured Thai beach. Sit at a bar near the beach, go back to your hotel room, restrooms, umbrellas, people selling food, drinks and other items (which some people love or hate) and plenty of beach toys.
Cleanliness 9 -Out of busy beaches in Thailand, this one appears to be very clean.
Uncrowded 6 -This Thai beach can be very busy but hey it's the most popular in Phuket. The end part of the bay has a little quieter area with a small rocky outcrop with calmer water too.
Overall 8.5 -Overall feeling here is good.

Kata Beach Phuket

View 9
Sand & Water 9 -The water is very clear and blue. The sand is almost perfectly smooth and white.
Swimming 7 -Still be careful during rough tides but overall pretty safe.
Amenities 8
Cleanliness 9.5
Uncrowded 9 -This is a great beach for families and getting away from Patong area.
Overall Feel 9 -Very Nice!

Kata Beach Reviews

Karon Beach Phuket

I like the area around here and actually enjoy going during the rainy season and watching the mist rise up against the mountain sides while breathing in the cool clean air! You'll love the peace and quiet and you can walk forever on this beach. One of the best hotels I've stayed at was right here. A moderately priced hilltop hotel named, Pacific Club Resort, with a rooftop swimming pool with an AMAZING view of Karon Beach and Phuket mountain side. You can walk forever on Karon Beach as well.

View 8
Sand & Water 8 -The sand is a beautiful golden color (mildly white in some areas) and the grains of sand are fairly coarse but not too bad.
Swimming 6.5 -Be very careful swimming here in certain seasons.
Amenities 6.5
Cleanliness 8.5
Uncrowded 9
Overall Feel 8.5 -There are better beaches in Thailand but the mountain backdrop make for a fantastic scene.

Nai Harn Beach

This is a nice small strip of beach very close to one of my most favorite places in Thailand, Laen Prom Thep Cape. I talk a little about Prom Thep Cape under the Thailand temple page.

View 8.5
Sand & Water 8
Swimming 4 -I gave it a 4 because this beach is unswimmable and very dangerous because of the currents that hit during the monsoon season from May to October.
Amenities 6 -It's a little remote here.
Cleanliness 9
Uncrowded 9
Overall Feel 8

All in all, what I love most about Phuket is that it offers stunning views of the various sandy bays from many hill top locations.

It reminds me of Hawaii in many ways but Phuket is better because you're in Thailand! Phuket has some of the best beaches in Thailand for sure.

Now the Tsunami of Dec 26th 2004 did hit the Western side of Phuket pretty hard and much of it was badly damaged but Phuket is better prepared now; it has completely come back to life as if it never happened. However, it did happen and you should always be aware if you plan on staying on the Western side of the island or even in Krabi or Phi Phi Island areas. I usually like to sleep in hill side hotels or resorts back off the beach a little when I go to these areas but that's just me.

Koh Samui

Samui has the best walking beaches. From Samui you can launch by boat to any of the neighboring islands like Koh Phangan. The roads around the northern end of Koh Samui annoyed me because they are dirty and not fully built but the resorts in that area are great. The mid-priced Samui Peninsula Spa & Resort is a perfect example of this.

Cheweng and Cheweng Noi Beaches

View 7 -The view is not bad, just tons of people and hotels everywhere. However, there is plenty of room for walking along the extremely wide beach.
Sand & Water 9.5 -The water is very clear and the sand can be blindingly white. As mentioned the sandy beach front is very wide and great for walking.
Swimming 9.5 -One of the safest swimming Thai beaches I've seen. You could walk a very long way before going up to your waist in the clear water. If you drown here you've got problems.
Amenities 9 -Tons of amenities but I need more shade! More umbrellas please! You will get hot here if you cannot find shade as the beach front is too wide.
Cleanliness 8.5 -Seems as if they took pretty good care of the beach considering all the people.
Uncrowded 5 -Very crowded but not as bad as Waikiki, Honolulu.
Overall Feel 8.5 -There are better Thailand beaches but you'll be hard pressed to find them.

Koh Samui Information

Lamai Beach

Not as good as Cheweng Beaches but it makes up for it with small crowds and cheap prices.

View 7
Sand & Water 8 -The water clarity and sand coarseness of this Thailand beach can range widely. At worst mud flats at best close to Cheweng beaches.
Swimming 8 -Pretty safe and nice.
Amenities 7 -This beach is great for backpackers as it has tons of cheap restaurants, guesthouses and bungalows. It also has a few nice hotels as well.
Cleanliness 7.5 -Not bad and it's getting better.
Uncrowded 8
Overall Feel 8

Not too far from Lamai Beach is an interesting out cropping of natural rock formations called the Grandpa and Grandma stones (Hin Yai and Hin Ta in Thai).

Hua Hin

Quiet, relaxing, beautiful and cheap. This is where the King of Thailand has his second home. I really enjoy the open feeling I get in Hua Hin. I don't know what it is about this seaside town but I really like the way streets are set up for one.

This is my favorite mainland Thailand beach destination, I just wish it was a little closer to Bangkok. Kite Boarding is popular activity and something I used to do with friends on occasion here.

View 8 -I love the backdrop of the tropical hills in the distance and the coastline is so open and huge here.
Sand & Water 9 -The sand is very fine and the color is gold to very white. The water is clear but choppy because of the wind but hey it's great for kite boarding!
Swimming 9 -Most of the beach is good for swimming but be careful in some areas.
Amenities 7 -You don't really have beach bars as some hotels can be pretty far, also few beach chairs and umbrellas. The beach is sooo long and wide that you might not see someone selling something for a long time or at all.
Cleanliness 8.5
Uncrowded 10
Overall Feel 9 -This Thai beach is pure meditation for the mind.

Koh Chang (Elephant Island)

A short ferry ride from the mainland. This is the first place I learned to ride a motorbike. On the back side of this island are great places to take photos among the rocky shoreline.

I believe there is an entry fee to the island as much of it is a national park. I remember many mosquitos at night. This island has a raw feel to it and I think backpackers would really like it here.

White Sand Beach (Sai Khao)

View 8
Sand & Water 9
Swimming 8
Amenities 8
Cleanliness 8
Uncrowded 8.5
Overall Feel 8

Koh Chang Info

Pattaya Beach Thailand (Chonburi)

Sometimes your favorite Thai beaches are the ones that have easy access to where you live and where you're used to going. I lived in Bangkok most of the time so I ended up going to Pattaya Beach almost every weekend with my wife.

You can spend as much or as little as you want in Pattaya, it has something for all budgets. I used to stay in nice hotel one block from the beach for 700 Thai baht a night and there are some even lower. There is also a great seafood restaurant on Walking Street.

Pattaya Beach Thailand (Naklua Beach)

View 7 -Not the best view but it's still Thailand! The city has made a walking path in front of the beach which is really quite nice.
Sand & Water 6 -The water is not the clearest and the sand is not white but it's not a bad beach. Also the tide goes way in and way out reviling ugly mud flats.
Swimming 6 -It is safe to swim here. I've been here a million times but never had the desire to really go in the water.
Amenities 9 -Almost anything you need or want.
Cleanliness 6 -It's not dirty but it's nothing to write home about either.
Uncrowded 7 -It gets busy but for some reason you're always able to find room.
Overall Feel 8.5 -There are better beaches in Thailand but I still like relaxing here!

Pattaya Beach Review

In-between Pattaya Beach and Jomtien Beach is a small marina, pier, and cape area with a light house worth looking into.

Jomtien Beach

Feels remote but it's close to everything you need. There are many great hidden restaurants around. The beach here is better than Pattaya but not as many amenities.

Koh Lan. Hidden Koh Lan

This little island off of Pattaya is strange because the water of this beach has very clear water and looks like southern Thailand beaches. Most people don't bother going here but it's worth a short boat trip.

The fractions of Thailand beaches listed here are barely a sample. Krabi area is awesome as well. There are so many little beach areas (some without names) to be explored.Also don't forget the parks near the Thai beaches are just as beautiful and great for BB-Q's and getting some shade from the sun.

What are your favorite beaches in Thailand?

What's Your Favorite Thailand Beach?

Do you have a story on a Thailand beach? Maybe you'd like to share a story about a location few know about or maybe you just want to share your best beach day. Share it, I want to hear it!

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What Other Beach Goers Have Said

Click below to see others best beaches in Thailand comments...

Bamboo island Not rated yet
It's real paradise on earth. Crystal blue water, white sand beach and corals for snorkeling. Just a delight. Only thing - you can visit for a day and no ...

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