Kata Beach is located in the southwestern part of Phuket Island, nestled between Kata Noi and Karon beaches.
Many holidaymakers fancy Kata as it’s one of the best beaches on the western coast considering various factors. It’s rather peaceful yet has all the tourist amenities you need, from diverse hotels to excursions, plus lovely clean water.
Beach Overview
If you’re facing the sea, on the right there’s beach access via a road and a path along a rather smelly stream – best avoid swimming near it. Worth noting that Club Med Phuket takes up almost the entire beachfront, so you can’t cut through it to reach the beach – it’s fenced off.
Wherever you choose to stay in Kata, keep in mind beach access is only possible from either end. There are actually two more beachfront hotels, but more on those later. Staying in the central area isn’t practical if quick beach access on foot matters to you.
If easy beach access is important, consider staying at Club Med Phuket. Though it’s massive and has just one exit, so hopping over fences isn’t an option. Otherwise, pick accommodation closer to the beach ends to minimize your walk to the sea.
Kata Beach isn’t massive but quite wide (250 feet in the north and 150 feet in the south), stretching 1 mile (1.5 km). It’s covered in very fine white sand. The locals rake the sand clean every morning and evening.
The beach looks even shorter due to fishing boats crowding the northern end. There aren’t any buoys at sea, just flags marking boat parking. Best to swim away from the boats, as their anchor ropes are invisible underwater and could cause injury.
In this northern section, there’s a local stream (basically smelly runoff) flowing into the sea, so you won’t see many beachgoers there. But it’s perfectly fine for swimming just 350 feet (100 meters) away.
Kata is always packed, but thanks to its size, it doesn’t feel too crowded. Statistics show it rightfully ranks among Phuket’s top three most popular beaches.
It’s a quiet, cosy beach without nightclubs or bars, but with all necessary amenities. Perfect for a laid-back holiday. Comfort-wise, there’s a toilet and shower (paid, depending on your luck).
If you’re interested in other spots, I’ve got a brief overview of all Phuket beaches to help you choose.
Swimming
Kata Beach has a gentle slope and is great for children’s swimming and recreation. The water gets neck-deep about 30 feet (10 meters) in. The depth increases very gradually, particularly noticeable at low tide when the beach becomes very wide and the water retreats almost 150 feet (50 meters).
The beach is swimmable at high tide, but not brilliant at lowest tide. No rocks at the entrance and hardly any vegetation underwater. Often completely calm.
Waves are rare in season, but from early May through October, strong winds create high waves on the water surface. This makes Kata brilliant for surfing during this windy season.
Sunbeds and Shade
A busy tarmac road runs along Kata Beach, separating Club Med Phuket from the public beach. Facing the sea, the right side has very few trees, and there’s no grass between the road and beach. I’ll be honest – there’s barely any shore there.
From the middle of the beach leftwards, there’s a 15-foot wide strip of lawn with trees – that’s where you can find shade. Alternatively, rent an umbrella and you’ll have shade anywhere.
Loungers line the entire beach perimeter (with umbrellas). Often available. Some belong to hotels, others are public. They come with mattresses. Many people just relax straight on the sand. You can only find tree shade in the southern part.
Loungers cost 100 baht for the whole day. There are a couple of lifeguard towers on the beach. More shade in the morning, while afternoon shade only remains in the left part where trees grow. The right side only gets shade in the morning, none after noon.
Beach Photos
Amenities
The beach sits in a cosy area with hardly any through traffic, noisy discos or such, making it properly family-friendly. Along the district, parallel to the shore, there’s a street lined with cafes and snack bars (with internet).
Plus grocery shops and beach gear stalls. Between Karon and Kata, there’s a Makro wholesale supermarket where you can buy retail too – good selection. No major shopping centres though.
Google Maps shows the promenade as one-way, but in reality people break the rules and drive both ways. You can park your scooter anywhere along the promenade, there’s special parking markings on the shoulder.
In the left beach section along the road, sometimes one lane becomes Kata walking street: clothes, food, street food vendors and other weekend market bits.
On the beach, you can get a massage from therapists waiting for clients under woven canopies. If you’re peckish, Thais will sell you fruit, drinks and snacks.
All this operates from beach stalls, plus vendors occasionally walk along the beach but don’t hassle you. If you fancy a proper meal, there are Thai cafes and restaurants at both ends.
Traditional activities include parasailing behind boats, jet skis, diving and surfing. There’s a kitesurfing school if you want to learn board riding. Within sight (about 1600 feet / 500 meters) from the northern beach section lies tiny Pu Island (Koh Poo).
You can boat there. It has cafes and opportunities for sunbathing and snorkelling. You can also visit Dino Park Mini Golf and the Karon View Point lookout.
Accommodation
Loads of accommodation choices here, hotels in pretty much every price range, from budget to luxury. Naturally, the closer to the sea, the pricier.
Around the third street back (furthest from shore) and beyond, you’ll find more budget-friendly options, including guesthouses. First, let me tell you about the beachfront hotels.
As mentioned, Club Med Phuket takes up most of the shoreline. It’s an expensive hotel with massive grounds, but its downside is being separated from the beach by a road, so no direct water access. In the southern part (or left, facing the sea) there are 2 more nice hotels:
Both are beachfront with direct water access. Kata Beach Resort is quite reasonably priced and well-rated.
In northern and southern Kata:
- Aspasia Phuket 4
- Novotel Phuket Kata Avista Resort And SPA
- Centara Kata Resort Phuket 4
- Kata Silver Sand by Eazy
- Casa Del Sol 4
You can rent a budget one-bedroom house in Kata from about 15,000 baht monthly, though it’ll be at least 0.5 miles (1 km) from the beach. I wouldn’t say there are loads of long-term houses in Kata. Condos are another option, they’re available too.
How to Find the Beach
It’s about 40-50 minutes from Phuket Airport to Kata Beach. From Phuket Town, catch a blue public bus for 30 baht from Ranong Road. Easy walk from Karon beach too.
Takes about 20 minutes. But walking from Patong is tricky. As usual, you can hire a tuk-tuk (from 300 baht) or use your own transport.
If you just drive along the road from Karon without turning off, you’ll miss the beach as Club Med Phuket blocks the view. Best to use a map first time round.
Beach access is only possible from the north or south ends. Can’t go through the hotel in the middle. There’s bike parking at both ends and you can find car parking too. Bikes can also park along the entire promenade.
Worth mentioning there’s a footpath along the smelly stream leading to the beach, on the right side (facing the sea). Most people use this from their hotels.
So you can either take the road on the right edge of the beach/area, or this path. But it’s not much closer to the centre and doesn’t save much time. It’s on my map below.
