12 miles from Ao Chalong
The southeast corner of the bay offers anchorage in 8-10 metres on sand. This bay offers one of the best beaches on Phuket. For a passing yacht looking for a beautiful beach, with activity – but at a quieter pace than Patong, Kata is difficult to beat.
There is a public road that follows the beach from north to south. Behind the beach road, Club Med covers almost half of the bay.
On the south side is Beyond Resort (formerly Kata Beach Resort), a 400-plus room hotel, co-host to the Phuket King’s Cup Regatta since 1998. This 4-star resort is the largest of many reasonably priced resorts here. On the road behind the hotel frontage are numerous restaurants, bars and shops within easy walking distance.
Beside Kata Beach Resort is The Boathouse, a long-time favourite of the yachting community. Its former owner and designer, ML Tri Devakul, was one of the Phuket King’s Cup Regatta founders. The Boathouse used to call itself “a restaurant with a few rooms attached” and it still affords a similar experience and has a beach club. Reservations are a ‘must’ in high season. The wine cellar is excellent, with upwards of 250 labels.
Diving and snorkelling around Koh Pu (Crab Island) is good. A note of caution, however: the passage between Koh Pu and the headland is not recommended without local knowledge; there are rocks awash in the channel.
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