The Rai Resort Rawai

The rooms at The Rai Resort Rawai measure from 22 to 65 m² and sleep between two and six guests. Four of them look over the garden, and each has air conditioning, a private bathroom with shower and a flat-screen TV, while the other two face the pool.

A family suite of 65 m² sleeps up to six guests, and two bungalows of 45 m² take up to three and up to four guests. Two deluxe rooms of 30 m² and a 22 m² standard double complete the selection. Beds vary by room, and one of the rooms offers a choice of bed set-ups.

The resort has an outdoor swimming pool among its gardens, with palm trees and tropical flowers around it, along with a terrace, and it has both family rooms and non-smoking rooms. Air conditioning is available in public areas, and car hire and a laundry service are offered.

Free WiFi is available in all rooms, with internet services and WiFi in public areas too. Free parking nearby is available for guests who drive, pets are allowed, and the resort is a smoke-free property. Staff speak English, French, German, Romanian and Russian, and there is grocery delivery. Car hire and the laundry service are both available during the stay, and the grounds include a garden and a terrace.

Rawai is a fishing village at the southern tip of Phuket, a quieter part of the island than Patong, with its own beach and a working pier. Life here moves at a slower pace, and this side of the island suits guests who want quiet evenings over the nightlife of Bangla Road.

Chalong Beach is 900 m away, and Chalong Pier, the ferry terminal, is 1.9 km away. Big Buddha Phuket, a large seated Buddha statue on a hilltop, is 2.7 km away, and Chaithararam Temple, known as Wat Chalong, is 3.5 km away and is one of the most important Buddhist temples on the island. Kata Beach lies further along the coast, a popular sandy bay. Phuket International Airport is 33 km away.

Most sights are spread across the island, so a car or scooter makes the day easier. A good plan is a morning at Wat Chalong and the Big Buddha, then an afternoon at Kata Beach, with the evening at Phuket FantaSea, a cultural theme park with shows. The temples are best visited earlier in the day, and the quiet of Rawai is a contrast with the busier beaches further along the coast, such as Patong, where the nightlife is concentrated.