Nakalay Beach | Nakalai Beach | Thavorn Beach

Nakalay Beach | Thavorn Beach

Name: Nakalay Beach | Thavorn Beach
Rating: 5

16/01/2019 Sepp Hatzl 2,663 views No Comments

Nakalay Beach Phuket is a south-southwest facing beach about half-a-kilometer long located about 4 kilometers north of crowded Patong Beach, and around 30 km from the Phuket International Airport (HKT) in the north. There is a long boat pier jutting into the shallow water to allow boats to drop passengers on a dry place. This is another one of those Phuket beaches which is supposed to be freely accessed, but isn’t. The Thavorn Beach Village Hotel and Nakalay Palm Phuket hotels own all the land around the beach and there is no public thoroughfare to allow people to access the beach directly without going through their hotel grounds.

As you can see in our video, Nakalay Beach Phuket is long, but it is filled with rocks and sharp shells, dangerous for feet. It is interesting to walk through the partially submerged rocks at low tide to see what sorts of sea life you can find there and in the tide pools on the west side of the beach. Some people snorkel when the tide comes in, but really, there are many other fantastic snorkeling spots on Phuket – go see some of them instead and give this a pass.

Nakalay Beach Clubs

Crocodile Bar looks like a bar – restaurant – beach club. Some info below.

Nakalay Beach Restaurants / Bars

Old Siam Authentic Thai – this restaurant right on Nakalay Beach doesn’t get overwhelmingly positive reviews. Social media reviewers mention the food wasn’t as good as expected, and the prices seemed high.
Crocodile Bar – at the far west side of Nakalay Beach is this small restaurant or beach club which appears to be new enough that there was only one rating for it – positive. That’s not a valid representation of diners’ opinion of the place, so if you feel daring, try it out and let us know what you think.
HeyHa Bar and Restaurant – just over 100 meters (109 yd.) inland from the beach, and still what looks to be the property of Thavorn Beach Village & Spa Hotel, is this little restaurant with the same predicament as the Crocodile Bar above – only one review. If you stop here, let us know how it was!

Nakalay Beach Accommodations

Thavorn Beach Village & Spa Hotel – this is a 4-star beach hotel with high ratings. There is no other hotel right on the beach. They have a nice fitness center, a great pool, and a day spa for beauty treatments, massage, etc. Staff get great reviews, and the rooms are said to be clean and nice. There isn’t so much privacy was one complaint. Walkways go right by rooms and people can see in your room. Rooms start around 4-7,000 THB per night.
Nakalay Palms – just above the beach is this smaller hotel, that is more affordable and occupies the far east end of Nakalay Beach. With rooms starting at 2,000 THB for a night, it’s a lower barrier of entry if you’re keen on staying near this beach.

Nakalay Beach Facts

Location in Phuket: On the west side of Phuket Island, north of Patong Beach before the big hill for Kamala Beach you can see the Thavorn Beach Village Resort & Spa on your left. This is another case of a resort blocking the public access to the beach, so if you’re a guest, no problem. If not, you’ll need to find another way to the beach. Longtail boats from Patong or other beaches can take you around to Nakalay if you really want to go, but the beach isn’t anything special, and you’ll probably want to go elsewhere.
GPS Data: 7° 55’ 29” N, 98° 16’ 30” E
Distance to Patong / Phuket Town / Airport in km: 6 / 18 / 30
Taxis available: Yes
Surrounding Beaches: Yae Beach is up the coast, and Kalim Beach is to the south around the rocky points.
Direction Facing: South-Southwest. Sunset may not be visible during every month of the year.
Beach Length: 520 meters (569 yd.)
Beach Width: Averages around 9 meters (10 yd.)
Estimated Beach Area: 4’680 m2 (5,597 square yd.)
Beach Quality: Nakalay is not one of the nicest beaches on Phuket Island, but certainly you could do worse! The sand is dark, and fine-powdered, there are a lot of rocks at the beach’s east end, and the south end has some big rocks you can climb on.
Ocean Bottom: The ocean is shallow for a while, and there are submerged rocks – the ocean here is not great for swimming or standing around unless the tide is in.
Restroom / showers facilities? For guests of the Thavorn hotel – yes. There are no public showers or restrooms.
Beach features: A small boat pier is present.
Lifeguard Available? No
Sunbeds Available? There are no sunbeds available, the people you’ll see on this beach are staying at the Thavorn hotel and usually come to the beach to have a quick look around, and don’t stay long.
Umbrellas? No
Public or Private? Entrance fees? The beach itself is public, but access to the beach is only through the hotel. You may get through if not staying here, or you may just choose to take a boat around to this beach if you’re serious about coming here. There isn’t anything special about this beach, and you’ll probably choose to go elsewhere.
Water quality: Good
Boat anchorage possible? Can use the dock/pier.
Boat dock and marina? Yes, a small dock.
Longtail boat rental possible? No
Speedboat/longtail boat tours possible? No/No
Sea inflow:: Unknown
Slope into sea until 1m deep: Unknown
Convenience shop available? No
Attractions: A couple kilometers east of the beach is the Kathu Waterfall and the Flying Hanuman zip lines for something to do.
Activities: Snorkeling is possible, but certainly not great.
FKK possible? Not permitted, but if empty…
Massage available? Yes
Picnic possible? No
Surfing? Not good for surfing right here, but there are some beaches within sight that might be better during a good swell.
Smoking? In November Thailand is cracking down on smoking at beaches around the country. In November 2017 in Phuket, Patong Beach is affected. Soon they expect to make it a country-wide smoking ban – so do stay up to date because fines are high and can include prison time.
Warnings: Anywhere the surf is good, the rip-tides can be dangerous. Do be very careful. Watch for lifeguard flags and ask what they mean if unsure.
Waste runoff into the sea? Unknown