Travel with Katie Butler: Thailand’s beautiful island of Phuket

Katie Butler, Total Travel, writes: Here is what Alison had to say about her fantastic bucket-list holiday to Thailand:,

“Thailand is one of my favourite places to visit, especially at this time of year when high season begins. Temperatures of at least 30 °C during the day, meant that we were able to enjoy some really beautiful weather in November.

"We flew with Emirates to Dubai, had a short transit, then a direct flight from Dubai to Phuket. We stayed in the resort of Kata approximately one hour from the airport. No visas or vaccinations are required for British citizens. Our hotel, Beyond Kata, was right in the heart of the resort and directly on the sandy beach with stunning views of the Andaman sea.

"Everywhere was within walking distance of the hotel with restaurants offering every choice of cuisine such as Thai, Indian, Chinese, and seafood. One evening we shared a platter of barbecued lobster, calamari, king prawns and river prawns for less than £40.

"With almost 50 baht to the pound, everything is really good value. A bottle of beer, (Singha, Tiger, Chang) was less than £2 and cocktails from as little as £3. For research purposes I felt it necessary to try quite a few!

"There is a daily night market where you can buy fresh fruit, have local food to order, buy tourist gifts and even try eating fried bugs. I did buy some as allegedly they are full of protein.

"There are so many things to see and do in Phuket both on land and at sea. We took a boat trip to nearby Phi Phi islands and we visited the incredible Maya beach where The Beach was filmed. We went to James Bond island where the The Man with the Golden Gun was filmed. We snorkelled in the crystal clear waters and kayaked through caves.

"A highlight was the day we spent at one of the ethical elephant sanctuaries, Phuket Elephant Care. These beautiful creatures have been rescued from the likes of circus shows and from working in the jungle. One in particular was a 45 year-old who had been kept in chains for 30 years and she had the most horrendous scars on her legs. The work that these people do is absolutely amazing and I would urge everybody to visit as they rely on donations from tourists to keep up the great work they do.

“So, who would I recommend Thailand to – couples, families, solo travellers and groups would find something to see and do whilst enjoying the great climate at such good value for money. Hospitality is second nature in Thailand and it really is no wonder it's known as The Land of Smiles.”

What a fantastic account. I never got to find out if Alison actually ate the fried bugs she bought! I really do love hearing about our team’s adventures and I’m very lucky to have staff that are as passionate for travel as I am, it brings first-hand knowledge to pass onto our customers.

After last week’s cold spell, we saw another increase in late bookings which in total accounted for 23 per cent of our new sales and once again cruise was in high demand accounting for 26 per cent of new bookings.

Tenerife and cruises from Southampton were our customer favourites to book.

Next week I can’t wait to write live from Cyprus as we attend the Jet2holidays VIP agent conference.