Let me begin by saying we’ve not historically been all-inclusive resort-type people. However, since having children, the idea of a kids club has become VERY interesting. We waited till our son was 4 years old (the minimum age of fee-free entry for many resort kids clubs) before venturing out to one of the famous Club Meds. We chose Club Med Phuket as it is a direct flight from Almaty, Kazakhstan, where we currently live. And it’s also a direct flight from Perth which meant we could fly my mum out to join us. We all agreed the resort was amazing.
Our overwhelmingly positive stay at Club Med Phuket was slightly marred early on by the oddly late 3pm check-in time. We had flown in on a red-eye flight from Almaty and then taken the Club Med transport direct to the resort, arriving after a 1 hour drive. We then found out that we couldn’t check in for another 4 hours. It doesn’t sound so bad, except that if you haven’t checked in, you cannot use any of the resort facilities. They did offer us use of their departure lounge (which is on the small side!). However, it did help that there were many cafes and restaurants nearby. Also the public beach across the road was incredible. So we ate at a nearby restaurant and then visited the beach. Of course once we checked in, we found it hard to leave the resort, it was THAT GOOD.
The Rooms
We stayed in Uttaradit building, probably the furthest building from the main resort area. But it was also right next to the adults-only Zen Pool and the Chuda Restaurant so it was ok! We were on the top floor in rooms 2317 and 2318, which are adjoining rooms, separated by internal doors. My mum had a room to herself on the floor below. Our building was about a 10min walk back to the main area. We ended up travelling this route multiple times a day. And if we wanted to exit the resort to either go to the beach or head into town, it was via the main area.
Our rooms were comfortable with very effective air conditioning. Kudos to the resort for making the air con controls so user-friendly! We had smart TVs which we signed into our Netflix account and then never used. There was also daily housekeeping, bottled water, and a safe. In a commitment to sustainability, the bathrooms had large pump bottles of toiletry products, such as moisturiser. I thought this was a great touch. There were plenty of drawers and shelves, and lots of hangers.
One small issue we had though – it had no balconies! It had doors which opened up to the courtyard below (with a railing to stop us falling out). However, it was more of a not-quite Juliet style balcony. This was so odd because all the other buildings we could see appeared to have fabulous balconies!
Food & Drink at Club Med Phuket
The Restaurants
The two restaurants at Club Med Phuket are Mamuang (aka the Main Restaurant!) and Chuda Restaurant. Mamuang has a food court style set up, with different stands dedicated to different regional cuisines. It is also where you will go for most of your meals. Chuda Restaurant operates more like a traditional restaurant, in that you stay seated and are given a menu. Chuda only operates a dinner service and so does not open till 18.45 (6.45pm).
Mamuang Restaurant
Our favourite stands at the main restaurant were the Italian stand (for the kids) and the Japanese/Korean stand (for me – their grilled fish dishes were incredible). At breakfast, the omelette stand was also popular for us. The staff are great: the cooks and chefs at the stalls are super friendly and ready to answer any questions you may have. The wait staff are also pretty quick to take your drink orders and clean up your used dishes.
You eat in one of the adjoining rooms to the buffet hall. We preferred the Rice Room as it had air conditioning and a sweet view of the beach. If this sounds good to you but there are no tables left then the neighbouring Spice Room is also good. If the beach view is important but you don’t care for air conditioning there is also a covered terrace that you can eat on. I’m afraid I can’t remember the name, though! Another air conditioned room is used by the kids club. The children eat lunch there and, if you choose to use the Kids Club dinner service, dinner as well. The Kids Club dinner service was fabulous – my kids recommend it!
Meal Times
Breakfast started at 7.00 and finished at 9.45am. This was a relatively early affair (from my perspective living in Kazakhstan where hotel breakfasts sometimes don’t start till 9.00!).
Lunch was 12.00 till 13.45 (1.45pm).
Dinner started at 18.45 (6.45 pm) and ended at 21.45 (9.45pm).
Chuda
The menu lists a number of courses each containing the choice of 3-4 dishes per course. I suspect all the options on the menu are what you could also pick from the main restaurant. The wine list is the same as the rest of the resort. If I’m totally honest, I didn’t think Chuda was that amazing. You’re better off going to the main restaurant as the choice is more varied. But if you prefer the idea of being seated while being waited upon, then do check Chuda out, but remember to book! You can do this via the My Club Med app. The dinner service occurs in 2 sittings, the first at 18.45 and the second an hour later, at 19.45. The kitchen shuts at 21.00.
The Bars
There are two bars at Club Med Phuket, one by the Main Pool and one next to the Zen Pool, and both serve a range of alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages. Though technically it wasn’t table service as you needed to go up to the bar to order, the staff at the Zen Pool would bring your drink to you. The staff at the Main Pool bar were too busy to bring the drinks out to individuals on their sun loungers, which was understandable. Both bar locations were great and had lovely staff.
I never checked to see if we could get anything other than wine or beer at the restaurants, but I suspect cocktails might have been available only at the bars. I do know that sparkling wine was only available at the Zen Pool and Main Pool Bar.
The Facilities at Club Med Phuket
Pools
There are 3 pools: the Main Pool, the Zen Pool, and the Kids Club Pool. There is also a Kids Splash Park which opened in April 2025 but we missed out by a matter of weeks! Would love to check that out if we ever get to come back.
I spent most of my time, unsurprisingly given the children were in kids club, at the adults-only Zen Pool. It was fantastic, especially at the start of the week when there weren’t that many people there. But even as it got busier I was always able to find a sun lounge, and there was always plenty of space in the pool. It is a calm area and the staff will ask you to quieten down if you get too loud. The bar at the Zen pool was good and the staff were super quick. The Mango-coladas were sensational.
The Main Pool was large and there were fun activities there most afternoons, such as waterslides, or floating obstacles courses for the kids. The Kids Club pool was a shallow pool only open to children admitted to the Kids Club, though parents were allowed in for the foam party. I assume parents are also allowed to join their children whenever its pool time for the Kids Club.
The Wifi
The wifi was strong and covered most of the resort. This is no mean feat given the sprawl of the place. It was a bit patchy around the Zen Pool, but given this was at one far end of the grounds, this was not surprising.
Medical
While you never really want to find out how good a resort’s ability to respond to a medical emergency is, I can confirm this place responded well when my mum had a fainting episode. Between our incredible fellow guests who stepped up and the fabulous staff who continued, we were looked after and supported and had everything clearly explained. The resort nurse was very kind and her office was comfortable and cool. A doctor was called from the next town over and appeared within 30min. All was well done and Mum was a bit of a celebrity around the resort for the remainder of the trip.
The App
The resort app (My Club Med app) was a really good addition to the experience and I’d recommend you download it when booking your stay at any of the Club Meds. Once downloaded you log in under your own specific reservation. For a stay at Club Med Phuket, you can book the Chuda restaurant, or a spa treatment, check the kids club schedule or request a room maintenance visit or extra stuff from housekeeping.
The Spa
The resort contains a wonderful spa, which is well-run and very comfortable and relaxing. All the staff were women at the time we were there. Naturally it does not come under the ”all inclusive” part of the package, however, I can confirm it has good prices for its treatments. I booked a trio of treatments, known as the Relaxation Package, for 3,500THB (~105USD). While I’m sure you can get cheaper prices elsewhere, the convenience of the spa being RIGHT THERE, and that we could put all the charges on our room, was very nice. I even took my 7 year old for a massage (they have a special package for a parent and child together) and she was delighted with her first massage experience.
You can book an appointment at the spa either in person, or via the app (My Club Med app).
Activities at Club Med Phuket
I intended to try so many of the activities but only got around to doing yoga, muscle awakening and Muay Thai boxing. Which were all great and I wish I’d done more! My kids did way more activities than me! My daughter really enjoyed circus training and stoically improved her technique at archery. They weren’t able to do rock climbing one day, which was a bit disappointing for her, but the fantastic Kids Club staff made sure she did it the next day.
The Kids Club
This was our first foray into a resort with a Kids Club and boy was it amazing! Our children, 7 and 4, both joined the Mini Club and very quickly requested to join the Kids Club dinner service. We suggested having dinner as a family a couple of times and met some resistance!
Kids Club started right after breakfast, so we did get to have one meal a day with the children. Drop-off usually happened at the Theatre (next to the Main Pool and very close to Mamuang Restaurant). Of course, if we were late, or if we wanted to hang with the kids for a bit longer, we could drop them off later – we just had to check the schedule on the My Club Med app for where to find them. Pick up was at around 4.30 and was often at the Theatre, but sometimes at other places around the resort, such as the Kids Club Rooms (like the day they had a foam party).
How to get to Club Med Phuket
We flew into Phuket from Kazakhstan on Air Astana, and my mum flew in from Australia on Jetstar. In news that should surprise no one, her flight was substantially cheaper than ours!
We requested a transfer from the airport to the resort and it was super easy to find the Club Med staff in the arrivals hall of Phuket International Airport. It took about an hour or so to reach the resort, which is located in Kata Beach (south of the rather infamous Patong Beach).
We had another transfer back to the airport at the end of our stay. We were given breakfast bags for our journey as we left too early to enjoy one last breakfast at the buffet. The breakfast bags were a little underwhelming, and Phuket International Airport doesn’t have the best food and beverage options. We still miss the amazing resort food.
What do I know about Club Med?
Literally nothing, except for what I learned on this trip. I saw almost none of the island of Phuket and this was my first stay at a Club Med resort. But if you’re wondering whether to take the plunge on a Club Med holiday, and wondering if its worth the price tag, then you have my recommendation, especially if you have kids who are the right age for the kids club! There is a reason I didn’t get out to see much of Phuket!
Check out my other posts
I hopefully will have more posts about all-inclusive resorts (ESPECIALLY if they have kids clubs!) and south east Asia in the future but in the meantime, please check out my pages and posts on the amazing country in which I currently, Kazakhstan!
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