Khamala Beach: Experience the luxury of letting go at Twinpalms MontAzure Phuket

Phuket doesn’t waste your time.

For those of us who happily label the splendour of Australia home, the “original” Thai island proves a great loophole in geography —one single, (fairly) short flight and suddenly you’ve slipped the leash of routine. No grand expedition, no jet-lagged martyrdom, just a brisk exit from real life and a swift arrival (dependent on time of landing and whether you’ve purchased a fast-tracked path through immigration) into something warmer, slightly chaotic and infinitely more flattering in linen.

Let’s skip past Patong and its neon-lit hordes and northern accents, dubious tourist bars, pot shops and knock-off wares and head for Phuket’s western fringes — a place where the island exhales.

Let’s park ourselves at Kamala Beach and the designer charms of Twinpalms MontAzure Phuket, a resort of contemporary architectural angles, muted palettes and limited Russians.

The arrival here is worthy of some words and not just for the striking and oversized open lobby that steps down to an infinity pool and the ways of the Andaman Sea. No, we mention the welcome because you’re given the chance to choose your suite’s floral arrangements (fragrant white jasmine, thanks), associated incense and what is a pillow menu offered via miniature pillows (yes — actual palm-sized-pillows . . . and let’s go for the medium duck down please).

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Up to an elevated suite of largesse: two expansive double bedrooms to the side of an open and expansive dining and lounge area with aligned kitchenette. The interiors are stripped back — timbers warm and colours restrained — allowing all eyes to focus on the external palms and the sand and the sea views held beyond the aforementioned pool.

There’s another pool, slightly removed, shadier, less popular. It proves a place of gentle morning laps soundtracked by the pulsing of plentiful cicadas.

From our Azure Sea View Suite’s main balcony (there’s three) an early morning routine unfolds — coffee in hand from the Nespresso machine, watching the activity at the main pool and what’s a choreography of mopping, wiping, straightening and positioning the various beds ahead of the day’s eventual loungers.

The rhythm here at the all-suite Twinpalms MontAzure is deliciously undemanding. You flop, you drift, you recalibrate. It’s bed to beach, beach to bar, bar to the vague notion of lunch — each transition so seamless it barely counts as movement. Days here pass in a soft-focus montage of salt water, lemongrass and naps you didn’t plan but very much deserve.

The property’s position, tucked into the quiet northern corner of the roughly 2km stretch of Kamala sand, means a chance to relax with limited intrusion. The jetski hawkers and banana roti sellers sit further south, so too most tourists. This pocket is a wonderful and exclusive reprieve that also offers a chance to swim and snorkel around headland rocks and laze beneath blisteringly burnt sunsets.

The neighbouring Cafe Del Mar draws most interlopers — a club-cum-restaurant-cum-bar that claimed a recent White Lotus cameo and which has, from the looks of things, struggled to maintain the sense of casual cool it held in its original Ibizan outing. Blame Mike White — and the passing of time.

Further to the south sit rudimentary beach restaurants planted in the sand, those of laminated menus and smiling local waiters and expected noodle and seafood dishes. The region is known for its broad selection of seafood, which lands fresh — though this is also Thailand, so be vigilant on viewing the prep and the conditions, and perhaps make a mental map of where the closest chemist sits.

Further along and an extended beachside footpath holds more permanent restaurants and bars, and the offer of cheap massages and a string of illuminated trinket shops. When combined, a market feel blankets the line-up, especially under the twinkling lights of night.

We came to Kamala with teens in tow, and it’s nice to allow them the freedom to wander the sands and the “shops” and into the main town (via a necessary 7-11 stop — blame TikTok) with an eventual meet-up for meals, Little Lillo proving a stand-out (also its beachside sibling).

It’s hard to envisage the pain and devastation that came to this area with 2004’s tsunami, Kamala Beach bearing the brunt of the waves and the hardship left in its wake. Today, it’s again established as welcoming and easy and warm — a beautiful and vibey little strip that offers enough for a few days. Truth is you also need not leave MontAzure given the culinary appeal of beachside diner Shimmer (breakfast/lunch/dinner) and further repose found at its subterranean spa (massage/steam/sauna) and activity at the well-equipped gym (free weights, and strength and cardio machines).

Held within the Twinpalms ecosystem is a variety of additional offers and experiences. A free shuttle that links the group’s other resorts also provides access to nearby beach clubs The Lazy Coconut (great with kids; know they do a mean cheeseburger) and Catch — and make sure to, well, catch the Friday night buffet. Situated on Bangtao Beach, this is best explained as a smorgasbord of excess, covering seafood (grilled fish, prawns, oysters, octopus, calamari and more), proteins ferried in from Australia (strip loin, rib eye and more) with a lamb on the spit, and a pasta station, sashimi and ceviche, and decadent desserts. There’s also a DJ and fire show, which feels about right for an elevated Thai club such as this, though it’s the food — the impressive ingredients and sheer volume — that acts as an evening lure.

There’s also the Twinpalms yachts, with the option to explore further with friends as an exclusive buyout or share the experience among others. We opt for the latter — solid value at 3000 baht ($130) plus taxes and service charges — on a daytrip aboard the recently landed 76ft MY Olympia.

A 40-minute glide out to the impossibly clear waters and white sands of Khai Nok island proves an exceptional excursion — a chance to embrace the watery wonder of the broader area and to snorkel within a tropical ocean aquarium, our time lazing aboard the vessel lending itself to thoughts of coming back as a properly minted nepo baby with little other than time and means.

Back into dusk and Kamala Beach and a property of nuance over noise. Because this is Phuket minus the performance — and a place worthy of your time.

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