Is Kathu a Good Place to Train Muay Thai?

Short answer: yes. Kathu is a great place to train Muay Thai, but it serves a different purpose from the famous fight streets. It is more local, away from the party areas, and the gyms feel more real. Here is who Kathu suits, who it does not, and what it is like to live and train here.

What makes Kathu different

Kathu sits in the middle of Phuket, in the hills between Patong and Phuket Town. It is a Thai neighbourhood first and a tourist spot second. That changes everything about training here:

Less touristy. You are not surrounded by bars, touts and millions of holidaymakers.
Less of a tourist trap. Gyms here are not desperate to take your money and push you into the next package.
More nuance. The gyms in Kathu put more care into technique, finesse and how you actually move.
You pick your crowd. You train with people who chose to be here, not people who wandered in after a big night out.

Kathu or Fitness Street in Chalong?

Both are good. They are different products for different people.

If you are a pure fighter and you only want to immerse yourself in fighting, surrounded by fighters and hard sparring every day, Soi Ta-iad in Chalong (known as Fitness Street) might be the right place for you.

Kathu is for the more discerning person. You want great Muay Thai, but you also care about where you live, who you train with and how you recover. You want a little more finesse in your training, and a little more calm around it.

The gyms in Kathu

Kathu has quite a few really good gyms, and each one offers something unique:

Phuket King Muay Thai: the biggest gym in Kathu, with a lakeside camp, recovery spa and bungalows on site.
Kangaroo Muay Thai
Kaosibsam Muay Thai
Big Gecko
Oleydong Boxing and Muay Thai
Sor Dejdamrong Muay Thai

Visit a few, try a class and see which one feels right for you.

Living in Kathu

At Phuket King, for example, you are right next to a Lotus supermarket and a 7-Eleven. There are lots of local restaurants nearby and a big local market just around the corner. Food, rooms and day to day life cost a lot less than in the beach towns, and everything is more relaxed.

Getting around from Kathu

Kathu is central, so the rest of the island is close:

Patong beach: about 10 minutes over the hill
Phuket Town: about 10 minutes
Chalong: about 15 minutes
Bang Tao: about 15 to 20 minutes

You get the quiet of a local area during the week, and the beaches and nightlife whenever you want them.

So, is Kathu a good place to train Muay Thai?

Yes, if you want real Muay Thai with more finesse, a calmer and more local way of life, and a crowd you choose. If you only want to fight and spar hard every day, look at Fitness Street. If you want to train well and live well, come to Kathu.

New to Muay Thai? Read our guide for beginners. Want to fight? See how our fight team works. Ready to come? See our prices or message us on WhatsApp.

Planning a trip? Read our full guide to Muay Thai in Phuket: where to train, what it costs and when to come.