Phuket is the biggest island in Thailand located approximately 860 kilometres south of Bangkok.

To get to the island, fly into Phuket International Airport (HKT), Thailand's most travelled airport outside of the Bangkok area. The airport is located on the northern part of the island and services nearly 3 million passengers on roughly 29,000 flights from carriers including Etihad Airways, Korean Air Lines, and Thai Air Asia.

Some of the best beaches and, not surprisingly, most visited tourist areas are in Patong which sits on the island's western coast.

Phuket has exceptional outdoors activities including surfing, fishing, beach sports, sailing, scuba diving, horse and elephant riding, golf and more.

Make sure to leave some empty room in your suitcase. Between the purchasing power and extensive shopping options, most visitors end up leaving the island with a lot more than with which they entered.

Time permitting, take the quick trip (less than 5 kilometres) to Wat Chalong. Wat Chalong is the most important and ornate of the 29 Buddhist monasteries on the island.