Great Family Activities For Kids: Phuket

PHUKET: MORE THAN A BEACH

Travel tips for kids extracted from kidsGo! Phuket
By Mio Debnam, illustrated by Tania Willis




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Will you be holidaying in Phuket? Well, you’ve come to the right place!

Phuket, which is known as the Pearl of the Andaman Sea, is not all beaches and spas – there are lots of interesting things to do there!

For example, you can feel on top of the world at the Kok Chang Safari, swaying regally through the jungle on the back of an elephant. Afterwards, have a cool drink with the resident gibbons or feed the elephants some well-earned bananas.

Fancy a bit of heart pounding adventure? Then head to the Phuket ATV Park and roar around on a quad bike! If you’re over 8, you’ll be allowed to drive on your own, but kids aged 4-8 must hitch a ride with mum or dad. Wear sneakers and prepare to get muddy!

Bet you’re feeling hungry by now – Well, you can get all sorts of yummy food from all over the world in Phuket, but you should definitely try some Thai food, too. If you are adventurous, you can learn to cook it and then eat it for lunch! Some of the dishes you try may be spicy – which thanks to the small green and red chillis known as ‘birds eye chillis’ can make your mouth feel like it’s on fire. If that happens, don’t swish your mouth out with water – that just spreads the chilli oil around. Instead, slowly drink a glass of icy cold milk or have a mouthful of rice. Did you know, that chillis evolved their spicy taste to stop creatures, other than birds, from eating them? Luckily, birds can’t detect the chemical that makes the chillis taste spicy to us. This is good because they help to spread the seeds in their droppings.

The food isn’t the only thing that’s hot in Phuket – the weather is steamy too. Luckily, you can cool off by jumping into the sea.

At the Aqua Zone on Patong Beach you’ll be able to jump off huge floaties, or have a go on their water trampoline. Fancy something even more fun? There’s the Splash Jungle Water Park, with its waterslides and wave pools, but our favourite water activity is going kayaking in Phang Nga Bay with the John Grey Sea Canoe Company.

Imagine sitting on a boat with the ocean breeze in your hair and sea eagles gliding nearby. Imagine exploring magical limestone caves (called hongs) in a sea kayak. Doesn’t that sound good? You’ll also get to swim or just relax. Then, at sunset, you’ll make and release a floating candlelit offering to the Gods – then visit one last cave by starlight. If you’re lucky, the ocean will be glowing with a mysterious green underwater ‘fire’ called phosphorescence!

There’s lots of other cool stuff to do too. For example, you can visit a cashew nut factory, play mini-golf, learn to cook Thai food, explore a museum, or go ziplining. You’ll find these suggestions and more in kidsGo! Phuket.

Happy Holidays!


Mio Debnam
Mio Debnam is currently working as a writer/editor, having ‘retired’ from the world of journalism, where she worked as the Editor in Chief of two daily children’s newspapers for several years. Over the years, she has had stories and articles for both adults and children published, as well as a middle-grade fantasy novel, four picture books and several educational readers. She’s also the author of a new series of travel guidebooks for curious children: kidsGo! New York, London, Hong Kong, Sydney, Bali and Phuket in 2011 by Haven Books.


Text © copyright of Mio Debnam and kidsGo! Travel Series (an imprint of Haven Books)
Illustrations © copyright of Tania Willis and kidsGo! Travel Series (an imprint of Haven Books)
Reproduced here by Yummy Mummy with the permission of Haven Books Limited<