Beach in front of Phuket airport
I am thinking of booking a hotel on Mai Khao Beach. Can anyone tell me, can you walk from Mai Khao to Nai Yang along the beach in front of the airport, or is this a restricted are? TIA
Google Maps is showing no access along the beach frontage of the airport which is not surprising as aircraft take off and land over the beach.
Personally I would stay at Nai Yang.
+1 #2
There is very little on Mai Kao Beach other than a few resorts and villas with few restaurants in the vicinity. Nai Yang on thde other hand is a beautiful beach with soft sand and shallow clear ocean. There are plenty of restaurants and bars and it is adjacent to lovely Sirinat National Park where you can sit and watch the planes comings on or take off almost it seems at eye level from the airport.
We stayed at the Dewa in a pool villa which was excellent.
Unless things have changed in the last few months, it is possible to walk along the beach from Mai Khao to Nai Yang. There are signs at the airport boundary fence restricting access but not on the actual beach.
You can walk along the road which is parallel to the airport. The beach is part of the National Park and there is a fee before 5pm. After 5 pm you can go there free and have a swim. There’s no changing facilities.
Nai yang one of the last beach areas of Phuket NOT yet overcrowded. Better for walking and relaxing than swimming really. I agree with the others suggesting staying at Nai Yang.
Somebody mentioned planes landing as a reason to keep people off the beach at end of runway , and I cannot neglect to mention ST Maarten airport in the Caribbean where people congregate right at the fence to feel and hear the jet blast. Its a thing to do there. Safer to lie on your back on the ground so you dont get blown over. Watching a 747 (this was years ago!) on final approach maybe 100 feet above you is a real buzz. The takeoffs are too loud as they deploy maximimum trust. AT Phuklet is NOT taht low or that close to touchdown spot, and walking across will not be an issue at all.
Edited: 5:44 pm, October 20, 2025Thankyou. We arrived two days ago and walked a few meters from our hotel down to the beach. It’s a pleasant little beach, without the huge amount of dropped rubbish the other Phuket beaches have. Perhaps that is because it’s a National Park. It’s free after 5 pm.
