Is Kamala Beach good for families?

It is one of the better family beaches in Phuket in high season. The bay is shallow and gently sloped, the water is usually calm between November and April, and the atmosphere is quiet compared with Patong. The main practical drawback is that there are no public toilets on the beach itself, so you rely on the hotels and restaurants behind it.

How far is Kamala Beach from Patong?

About 9 kilometres over the headland, which is usually twenty minutes to half an hour by road depending on traffic. It is also one of the quicker west coast beaches to reach from the airport, at roughly 25 to 30 minutes.

Are there toilets on Kamala Beach?

Not public ones directly on the sand. The beachfront hotels, restaurants and beach clubs have facilities and that is what most visitors use. If you are planning a full day here with children, it is worth factoring in.

Where is the best food at Kamala Beach?

The cluster of hawker stalls toward the northern end of the beach is the local favourite, selling Thai food from several regions at village prices. The village behind the beach also has some very good sit down Thai restaurants, and the southern end has the beach club and resort dining.

Is Kamala Beach safe for swimming?

In high season, generally yes, and it is calmer than most west coast beaches between November and April. From May to October the southwest monsoon brings swell and rip currents here too, so the calm reputation does not hold year round. Read the flags and stay out of the water when a red flag is up.

Kamala Beach, Phuket: Quiet, Calm and Family First

Overview

Kamala Beach is what people picture when they say they want Phuket without Patong. It runs for roughly 2 kilometres along the west coast about 9 kilometres north of Patong, and although those two beaches are twenty minutes apart by road they feel a generation apart in character. Kamala is low key, largely low rise, and it belongs as much to the village behind it as to the visitors on it.

The beach divides loosely into ends. The southern part is where most of the resorts and the beach club scene sit, and it is busier and more serviced. The northern end is quieter, shaded by trees, and this is where you will find the cluster of hawker stalls that is one of the real pleasures of Kamala Beach: chicken satay, spicy salads, curries and grilled fish from vendors selling food from across Thailand at village prices rather than beachfront ones.

Kamala is also the base for a good deal of the higher end development in the hills behind, including jungle resorts like Keemala, while the beachfront itself has stayed relatively restrained. It is a working village with a school, a mosque and a market, and it reads that way.

What to expect on the sand

The sand is soft and the bay is shallow and gently sloped, which is the main reason Kamala has a reputation as a family beach. Sunbeds and umbrellas are available in front of the hotels and in the southern section, and there is decent natural shade at the northern treeline.

One practical note that guidebooks tend to skip: there are no public toilets directly on Kamala Beach. The beachfront hotels and restaurants have facilities, so in practice you use theirs, ideally while buying something. Plan around it if you are here with children for a full day.

Food is a strength. Beyond the hawker stalls at the north end, the village behind has genuinely good Thai restaurants including Talung Thai, and the beach club scene at the southern end centres on Cafe del Mar, which is the busiest thing on this stretch of coast and worth knowing about whether you want it or want to avoid it.

Swimming, surf and safety

High season, November to April, is when Kamala is at its best and it is one of the calmer bays on the west coast in those months. The water is generally settled, the gradient is gentle, and it suits weak swimmers and children better than most of the beaches further south.

The green season, May to October, changes that. The southwest monsoon reaches Kamala as it reaches the whole west coast, bringing swell and rip currents, and the bay that was flat in January can be genuinely hazardous in July. Lifeguards operate in season and the flag system applies: green calm, yellow caution, red stay out. Do not treat the calm reputation of Kamala Beach as a season independent fact, because it is not.

Our guide to the best time to visit Phuket breaks the year down if you are picking dates around water conditions.

Location and getting there

Kamala sits between Surin to the north and Patong to the south, about 9 kilometres from Patong over the headland and roughly 25 to 30 minutes from the airport, which makes it one of the more convenient west coast beaches to reach on arrival.

There is roadside and car park space along the beachfront and it is far less contested than Patong. Motorbike parking is easy. Songthaews run along the coast road, and taxis and app based rides are straightforward, though as everywhere on the island fares are usually negotiated rather than metered.

Two nearby landmarks are worth knowing. The coast road south climbs over a headland with a well known viewpoint looking back along the bay, which is the best photograph of Kamala you will get and takes five minutes to reach. Inland behind the village sits Phuket FantaSea, the long running cultural theme park and show, which is the reason a fair number of families end up staying in Kamala in the first place.

Good to know

Entry is free and the beach is public along its length.

Kamala is a Muslim village and the beach is used by local families, so it is worth dressing and behaving a little more conservatively here than at Patong. Sunsets face west and are reliably good. If you want a lounger, pool and service, resorts here sell day access on our day passes page, and the beach clubs along this coast are covered in the best beach clubs in Phuket roundup. Every other beach on the island is listed on our Phuket beaches page.