Would like some good advice/tips on a good last minute family holiday package deals to Phuket for second week of Feb (non-flexible)for a first timer with young kids.
Also is it better to go to a hotel and upgrade there (non-peak travel) or book from here itself?
Thanks in advance!
Oops. I told a lie. I stayed at Kamala, next to Surin. It was a 15min tuk-tuk from Phuket, but before midday you had to encourage a driver, as they were pretty comfortable chatting in the shade.
Try
hotelscombined.com.au
wego.com.au
The quiet places are boring but good for relaxing, it gets boring if you plan on doing it more than 3 days.
Karon is below Patong, Kata is below Karon, they are both nice places to stay. Personally, I prefer Kata, its got resturants around that you can go to and its even got pubs if thats your sorta thing but no hanky panky going on..
I'm planning on going in April to Phuket with my wife and 1 year old and will be getting a baby sitter (300 baht per hour) to stay with us when we go on the daily activities.
If you're looking at places to stay, try asiawebdirect.com, at the moment, they have a 5% off deal, asiawebdirect is owned by the same mob that owns wotif.com
For family travel, I reckon book ahead. It sucks to drag around partner and kids in an attempt to save $50.
My tip for Phuket is to stay a beach or two to the south or north of Patong. Further is too far, in Patong itself it's pretty intense (noisy, sleazy).
Karon and Kata to the south have good praise, I stayed at Surin to the North, and you wouldn't want to be much further for cheap tuk-tuks.
Agoda.com is an OK place to look for accommodation pricing, but can sometimes be beaten via other sites (occasionally) or the premises themselves if you email direct and ask if they can give a bonus etc. to book directly.
The airport is to the north, but taxi/transfers are easy once you land unless you are staying somewhere weird.
We did well by finding a local driver/guide who spoke English and was happy to ferry us around, and make bookings etc. without the hotel/booking office kickbacks. I don't think we paid local rates for admissions or anything, but half the daily rate of the hotel quote was normal.
My tip for finding such a person is to go book a massage/hair-braid/suit fitting with somebody you like in town and ask them. If they don't have a "cousin" they aren't trying. You can always check they are keeping honest by asking your hotel for a price to the attraction etc.