Our Travel Adventures: 2010 - Phuket, Thailand

8 Days to Phuket, Thailand

5 - 12 Jul 2010

The 5th Annual Conference of Standard Financial Planner (SFP) was held at Le Meridien Phuket Beach Resort, Patong Beach, Phuket from 5 - 8 July 2010. After the conference we extended our stay at Phuket for another 4 nights at the Royal Crown Hotel & Palm Spa Resort using the Revelation Rewards voucher that we bought for RM180.

Day 1 (5th July 2010) Kuala Lumpur (LCCT Terminal) to Phuket International Airport

Our Air Asia flight AK826 departed at 12:45PM from LCCT Terminal and arrived at Phuket International Airport at 1:00PM. On board is a group of fellow Financial Planners from SFP. A shuttle was arranged to pick all of us from the airport to the hotel.

After checking in we had the whole afternoon free until our welcoming dinner. We took the opportunity to venture around the hotel and took some pictures of this beautiful resort.

Le Meridien Phuket Beach Resort is set amidst 40 acres of lush foliage. The hotel features six meeting rooms, two lagoon-size swimming pools, four tennis courts, a pair of air-conditioned squash courts, a world-class spa, a variety of land and sea sports facilities, and a discovery centre for kids. 10 restaurants and bars allow for a gastronomic journey around the globe. The 417 rooms and 54 luxury suites - newly renovated Deluxe Garden View and Deluxe Pool View Rooms - are enriched with local Thai design.

Le Meridien Phuket Beach Resort has its own private sandy beach

Le Meridien Beach

Le Meridien garden

Day 2 (6th July 2010) - 1st day of conference

Day 3 (7th July 2010) - 2nd day of conference

SFP Planners with their fanciful costumes during Conference Gala Dinner

SFP CEO Paul Khoo

SFP advisers work hard and play hard as well

With Professional Investment Services (PIS) CEO Robbie Bennetts

With SFP beauties, Michelle and Ms Pang

SFP planners are great singers too

PIS CEO Robbie Bennetts entertaining us

Our group for the case study

Day 4 (8th July 2010)

After breakfast we checked out and took a taxi to Royal Crown Hotel & Palm Spa Resort where we stayed for another 4 nights on our own. After a short rest we ventured out into Patong town.

Having our Thai buffet dinner at one of the hotels in Phuket town

Day 5 (9th July 2010)

View of Phuket town from our room at Royal Crown Hotel & Palm Spa Resort. Because of its high ground the hotel was spared the catastrophe of the 2004 tsunami

View of Phuket town from our room at Royal Crown Hotel & Palm Spa Resort

At the lobby of the Royal Crown Hotel & Palm Spa Resort waiting for our day tour of Phuket, We joined the day tour together with another couple staying in the same hotel. One of the hotel's staff is our tour guide.

Our first stop is one of the many nice beaches in Phuket

The water here is crystal clear

Our tour include a stop at the cashew nuts factory

We also stopped by a honey factory

At night we took the hotel shuttle to Jungceylon, the biggest and newest shopping centre in Patong.

The Jungceylon Shopping Complex is the latest addition to the vibrant entertainment scene in Phuket. During the 16th century when Phuket was a prosperous port town surrounded by the Andaman Sea it was known as Jungceylon.

The Jungceylon Shopping Complex is more than just a shopping mall, it also has excellent dining, entertainment and leisure facilities. Among the entertainment options here are a state of the art cinema, bowling alley, karaoke lounges, elegant restaurants and a number of bars and pubs.

The mall has been designed using Sino-Portugeese architecture and features large areas of lush green vegetation, a serene lake and a traditional Chinese Junk which helps to combine the exoticness of Phuket with a modern shopping mall. This area also has a catwalk that is used for fashion shows and other events that are regularly hosted at the Jungceylon.

The mall is home to a collection of exclusive designer brands and also has a special section dedicated to traditional arts and crafts. Among the major tenants that can be found here is the world renowned Robinsons Department Store and the Carrefour Hypermart.

Among the many stalls in Jungceylon

Day 6 (10th July 2010)

Today we joined the day tour to Phang Nga Bay and James Bond Island.

Map of our tour of Phang Nga Bay

Entering the mangrove cave. We had to lie down flat in the canoe in order to go under the rocks. The inside is pitched dark. We can only go through during low tide.

Once inside the mangrove cave we had a wonderful time canoeing among the mangrove trees

Approaching the exit of the cave

Imagine the tight space we had to go through.

Canoeing back to our boat

The boat dropped us in another calm bay for more canoeing

After all the exercise with the canoes we had a wonderful seafood lunch on board our boat

The Thai style fish, fried prawns and sotong were mouth watering. Yummy!

Fried noodles and fried rice were also served for those who need more carbohydrate in their diet

Approaching the spot to view the famous James Bond Island

Disembarking form our boat

James Bond Island is locally known as Koh Tapu or Nail Island. This island was found and has become reputable in James Bond Film "The Man with the Golden Gun" featuring Roger Moore was filmed there way back in 1974. Ever since, it was inevitably became famous throughout Thailand and the world. With its beautiful scenic landscape, this James Bond Island or Koh Tapu obviously turned the previously unknown charming Phang Nga province into one of major tourist attractions in Thailand.

Wonder how long more the James Bond Island can stand with the constant beating from the waves

Lili doing her levitation exercise

This huge rock just split and slide down many years ago.

Day 7 (11th July 2010)

Today is our free and easy day. We ventured into Patong Beach and also did some shopping at Jung Ceylon

For a couple of dollars the young girls can get their hair weaved

Stall selling various Thai handicrafts in front of Jung Ceylon

The street is closed to traffic in the evening. This is where the action is at night with all the loud music from the many drinking outlets on both sides of the street.