Phuket

Amazing, large and accessible beaches. But the vibe is not there yet. It still feels like an "old" vacation place: tons of families, retirees, couples and sex tourists. The hip, young crowd you can find in Canggu for example is not there yet. There is only one decent coworking spot, not a lot of specialty cofee places. Most DNs stay in Rawai, which is OK - just a long street in a non-swimming beach. If you live there you will have to drive 15mins to go to the beach (Nai Han, Kata, etc). The infrastructure & setup is not there yet for DNs. It has super nice beaches, it's easy to drive a scooter, not a lot of traffic. It's the perfect place for a vacation, but really lacking the vibe other DN hotspots have.

Amazing Phuket, warm sunny and lots to do! Getting there was a bunch of red tape and covid checks but we’ll worth the short trip!

Living in Bangkok since 2015, I refused to go to Phuket longer than I could. I strongly believed in rumors that Phuket was all about prostitution and dirty beaches... oh, how I was wrong! Phuket is A-M-A-Z-I-N-G! I’d say you can find the same conveniences you’re used in Bangkok, but with a beach - actually many of them, ofter pristine and desert if you rent a motorbike and explore by yourself. Forget about Patong and go to Karon, Surin, Kattatani, Paradise and Freedom Beach instead... you’ll be amused with such a beautiful places! There’re good and cheap food, markets, malls, cafes and everything that can helps a digital nomad.

Super slimy vibe and good luck trying to meet anyone on a dating app who isn't a bar girl / working for $$$ / trying to scam you out of something. If you like Las Vegas you might like it here, but there are better places imho.

ATM take out is 20,000 baht

If you are looking to retire here:
Life can be cheap once you get past the initial euphoric stage where, you eat in expensive restaurants that cater to foreigners. Watch where the locals eat and you can really eat rice & “gab kao” (any soup, stew or curry you decide to pour over it) for USD 1.50-2. A small bottled water 30 cents.
(To put it into perspective minimum wage here is EUR10/day for locals, 2-3 people usually share a room which cost THEM €135/mo. You can do the math.) Unofficially there is double pricing going on toward foreigners (foreigners pay more).
Beware of Mosquitos, Dengue is serious.
Sweating can bring it’s unexpected problems. We are naturally covered in yeast which can be caused to accelerate growth in hot humid climates and especially during Monsoon season, you may find yourself subject to Yeast infections and skin Eczema’s, especially if you are overweight and insist on maintaining a bread (Yeast) based diet.
Side walks are rare so, if you plan on getting exercise through walking, you will have to drive (transit) to places suitable for safe walking. Jungle walks are nice but with their own natural hazards.
Biking, relatively dangerous, unless you go to a track.
Automobile drivers practice “instinctive driving” and are ignorant of many rules. There is little consideration for pedestrians or bicycle riders.
Properly organized public transportation has begun recently; the oldest form for locals was the Songteaw (an covered open sided, converyed truck with 3 long benches) however, the scheduling is unreliable.
Snakes, lizards, spiders and ants are common.
The common green garden snake is innocuous however, the mildly venomous, gliding Golden Tree Snake and Cobras are often sighted. Red ants with painful bites are ever present
If you intend to build or buy a house, look for as little wood as possible, Termites love a nice wooden door or frame.
Phuket is mainly Buddhist & Muslim so, if you want to attend Christan services you will have to transit to them as there are few places here (only 2 or 3 that I have heard of).
Pets: plenty of strays (cats & dogs) you can take in or adopt but, please don’t have a pet if you plan on moving away and abandoning it.
Tap water cannot be consumed.
Phuket is a great home base if you plan on exploring the “oriental” side of the globe.
Work is hard to find unless you start your own business which, comes with plenty of it’s own hassles - you will ALWAYS need a Thai intermediary, the system is not transparent and ALL the paperwork is in (bureaucratic) Thai.
Please do not try to work locally if you do not have the right visa to do it, the trouble is not pretty. Retired tradesmen often innocently/inadvertently fall into the trap of doing small jobs illegally. If you get paid (money) for your activity, you ARE working. If you are not a repeat offender, you will get off with a salty fine. (Not nice if you are living on a budget).
Finally, just let me say, HAVE A HOBBY, have a plan if you tetire here and stick to it. Create/find your routine and find your spaces, this will take about 2 years.
Don’t get “distracted”! .... or you may find yourself going back to your native country to escape or live off welfare .... or the parents.
Get to know people (locals & expats) well before you share personal details, i.e. be guarded.

Good luck!🍀

Some of the costs are accurate and some seem a little high to me as an expat. I live on the interior of the island, Kathu. We are 5 miles from beaches on either side of the island. Weather is amazing all year - between 75-85 degrees. So far monsoon season is not as bad as I expected. Traffic is really bad. I have not had an accident but the hazards are there. That may be the biggest downside. Your money speaks loudly here. I have a nice route I do on my bicycle for exercise which is shady and hilly with wide shoulders. There is a nice reservoir where people socialize and exercise.

With beaches easily accessible from anywhere on the island and the most notorious Muay Thai training camps in Thailand, Phuket is the ideal place for the digital nomad who is serious about exercise or beach life. Learn to dive, work out, windsurf, run up Big Buddha’s hill and work at co-working spaces that boast fast internet, Phuket has it all for a very affordable cost of living.