Depending on the season, arriving in Phuket tells a different story. From November to April, most ships drop anchor off Patong Bay, and it is from the tender that Thailand's largest island introduces itself: a curve of pale sand, hills covered in greenery and a beach resort waking up. During the rainy season, ships instead dock at the deepwater port of Ao Makham, about ten kilometres from the provincial capital. Either way, the port call opens onto an island that lives between the Andaman Sea and its temples.

The bay where it all begins

When passengers go ashore by tender, the trip to the shore takes just a few moments. The great crescent of sand then stretches out before you: about three kilometres of sand lined with casuarinas, colourful longtail boats pulled up on the beach and fruit vendors setting up their stalls from the early morning. The street running along the sea lines up cafés, shops and massage parlours. The atmosphere remains lively, sometimes exuberant, but you need only walk toward the ends of the bay to find a calmer pace.

The old town and its Sino-Portuguese façades

About forty minutes by road from the west coast, the old town offers a completely different setting. Its Sino-Portuguese shophouses tell of the era when the tin trade attracted Chinese merchants and European administrators. Thalang Road is its heart: restored pastel façades, wooden shutters and cafés set up in former trading houses. You wander from a gallery to a noodle stall, looking up at the ornate cornices. It is the island's most endearing face, and often the one passengers regret not having seen sooner.

The Big Buddha and Wat Chalong

Two sites dominate the excursions offered to cruise passengers. On a ridge in the south of the island, the Big Buddha, clad in white Burmese marble, rises 45 metres; the esplanade around it offers a sweeping panorama of the bays and hills. Below, Wat Chalong remains Phuket's most visited temple. Its pavilions with tiered roofs house murals devoted to the lives of locally revered monks. The two sites are easily combined in half a day, the road between them passing through plantations and villages.

Planning according to your landing point

Taxi fares are negotiated before departure, and organized excursions remain the simplest way to link several sites in a single day. Bring clothing that covers shoulders and knees for the temples, as well as water: the humid heat makes itself felt from the morning on.

The flavours of a crossroads island

Phuket owes its blended cuisine to its merchant history. Markets and small restaurants serve curries fragrant with coconut milk, stir-fried noodles inherited from the Chinese communities and tropical fruit sold by the piece. In the old quarter, several cafés occupy century-old houses; sitting down in one for half an hour is as much a part of the trip as any monument.

Before heading back on board

At the end of the day, from the deck, the island changes its face one last time. The hills darken, the resort's lights come on one by one, and the Andaman Sea takes on the coppery hue that precedes dusk in the tropics. Many passengers leave wanting to return for longer, for the southern beaches, the neighbouring islands or simply another morning on Thalang Road.