The north-west corner of Phuket is the island at its emptiest. Nai Yang is a curve of sand shaded by tall trees inside Sirinat National Park, with a row of simple beach restaurants and a small village — all about ten minutes from the airport terminal.
Mai Khao continues north from it for around eleven kilometres, the longest beach on the island. Apart from a few large resorts there is almost nothing on it, and you can walk for an hour without passing a sunbed.
Top things to do: Nai Yang & Mai Khao
Nai Yang Beach
Calm and shallow at the southern end in the dry season, with a reef offshore. Eat grilled seafood with your feet in the sand; it is a favourite of Thai families at weekends.
Walk Mai Khao
The sand is coarse and the beach shelves steeply, so this is a place for long walks rather than swimming. Sea turtles have historically nested here, and a conservation project in the area releases hatchlings.
Watch the planes
The airport runway ends at the beach between Nai Yang and Mai Khao, and aircraft pass low overhead. Access to the best-known photo spot has been restricted at times — follow local signs.
Sarasin Bridge
At the island’s northern tip, the old bridge to the mainland is now a pedestrian walkway with a viewing tower over the channel — a pleasant sunset stop.
How to get to Nai Yang & Mai Khao
- From the airport: 10 minutes to Nai Yang, 15–20 minutes to most Mai Khao resorts.
- To the rest of the island: everything else is far — allow about an hour to Patong or the Old Town.
- To Khao Lak and the Similan pier: this is the closest part of Phuket to the mainland; Thap Lamu Pier is roughly an hour north.
Insider tips
- A national park entrance fee may be charged at the southern entrance to Nai Yang Beach. Keep the ticket.
- Mai Khao’s steep shore and currents make swimming unsafe much of the year. Resorts here are built around their pools.
- This is the smart place for a first or last night around an awkward flight time.
Best tours & tickets for Nai Yang & Mai Khao
These well-reviewed experiences are the easiest way to see Nai Yang & Mai Khao:
Private transfer (price per vehicle) from €26 per group Phuket Airport: Private Hotel Transfer with Meet & Greet
A pre-booked car between Phuket airport and your hotel, with a fixed price agreed in advance. After a long flight it removes the one negotiation every visitor dreads.
- Driver meets you on arrival
- Fixed price per vehicle
- Air-conditioned car to any Phuket hotel
Speedboat snorkelling day (in season) from €109 Similan Islands Early-Bird Tour from Phuket and Khao Lak
The best-reviewed Similan day trip, leaving early to reach the islands before the bulk of the boats. It is a long day from Phuket — expect a pre-dawn pickup — and it only runs while the national park is open, roughly mid-October to mid-May.
- Three snorkelling stops
- White-sand beaches
- An early start, ahead of most other boats
Observation-only sanctuary visit from €50 Phuket: Elephant Sanctuary Canopy Walkway Tour
The hands-off choice. You watch elephants from a long raised walkway as they roam and bathe freely in the forest below, with a guide alongside. Rated 4.9.
- Watch elephants roam and bathe from a canopy walkway
- No riding, no bathing with visitors
- Visit the island’s first elephant hospital
Nature day trip or overnight from €125 Phuket: Khao Sok and Cheow Lan Lake Tour with Lunch
A very long day — or a far better overnight — to the rainforest and karst-rimmed lake of Khao Sok on the mainland. Choose the two-day version if you can.
- Cheow Lan Lake
- Bamboo rafting on the one-day option
- Two-day option with a floating raft-house stay
