Phuket Information

Phuket is Thailand's largest island with an area of 543 square kilometers and nestles against the Andaman Sea coast 862 kilometers south of Bangkok. Phuket traditionally derives its wealth from tin and rubber. The island is blessed with magnificent coves and bays, powdery palm-fringed white beaches, sparkling island-dotted seas, genuinely hospitable people, comfortable accommodation, super seafood, tropically vegetative mountains, lovely waterfalls and parks, and delightful turn-of-the-century Sino-Portuguese-influenced architecture, which creates an en-chanting ambiance perfectly suited to total relaxation.

70% of the island is covered by forest. The western coast has several sandy beaches, while on the east coast beaches are more often muddy. Near the southernmost point is Laem Promthep (Brahma's Cape), which is a popular sunset viewing point.

Climate

Phuket's weather conditions are dominated by monsoon winds that blow year round. It is therefore always and humid. There are two distinct seasons, rainy and dry. The rainy season begins in May and lasts till October, during which the monsoon blows from the southwest. The dry season is from November through April, when the monsoon comes from the northeast. Highest average temperatures, at 33.4 degrees Celsius, prevail during March. Lowest averages occur in January, when nightly lows dip to 22 degrees Celsius.

Demographics

As with most of Thailand, the majority of the population is Buddhist, but there is a significant number of Muslims (30%) in Phuket, mainly descendants of the island's original sea-dwelling people.

Foreigner Visa for Thailand

There are four basic types of visas available for visitors and residents to Thailand.

Transit visa - valid for 14 days will be issued to those people arriving in Thailand without a visa. Technically you must have an onward flight ticket, but in practice this visa will be issued almost without question. Note: There are a few countries (not many) that do not require visas and will get a three month entry stamp on arrival - in general these countries are the ones that grant the same rights to Thai nationals visiting their countries.

Tourist visa - issued by Thai embassy abroad - these visas will be valid for 60 or 90 days (varies from country to country). Of note is that you may apply for more than one Tourist visa at a time and these multiple visas may be used up consecutively. Many quasi resident visitors to Phuket (who do not work - or want to avoid the red tape of a Non Immigrant visa) live for years on a tourist visa (and go shopping in Singapore or Penang every three months). So long as you are solvent and not engaging in any local business activity, there is nothing wrong with this approach.

Non Immigrant visa - issued at an embassy outside Thailand and valid for a 90 day stay, this visa may be extended within Thailand for periods up to one year at a time. There are three basic grounds to obtain and renew a Non Immigrant visa. 1) that you are employed (and have a work permit) in Thailand. 2) That you have Thai family. 3) That you are retired and can prove adequate pension or other financial means to support yourself. Ownership (or long lease) of property has no bearing on the extension of a Non-Immigrant visa. Lengthy form filling and copying of personal documents (in duplicate) are required both when you first apply and for every subsequent renewal of this visa. If you hold a Non Immigrant visa, you should obtain a Re-Entry permit if leaving the country if you do not wish your visa to lapse.

Resident visa - rarely issued and hard to obtain. These visas are issued on a very selective quota basis. Qualification requirements include reading and writing Thai, a fairly strong local financial status and some good (influential) Thai references.