Patong Shopping
One
of Patong's main attractions, besides the nightlife, is shopping. Many
small stalls and markets line the streets offering everything from
t-shirts and clothing, silk, carvings, souvenirs, shoes, CDs and DVDs.
Bargain hard for anything you buy from these stalls, as everything is
negotiable in Patong and starting prices are often ridiculously high.
Get a local to help you haggle rather than complain about it. Save
yourself to bargain and overpay. Shopping at shopping malls in Phuket
is a lot saver and cost effective. Price of a pair of sunglasses for
example will be the same price as stalls on beach road (non-bargain).
Jungceylon, Thanon
Rat-U-Thit 200P (near the northern end of Bangla Road) is Patong's
first full-fledged modern air-con shopping mall, complete with 200
shops, integrated hotel, etc. The launch was postponed several times in
the wake of the 2004 tsunami, but it opened in July 2007.
Jungceylon is a monster of a shopping centre. It contains just about
everything that shoppers could conceivably need and is a must-do if
you're a bargain hunter. Situated on Rat-U-Thit Rd. diagonally opposite
the eastern end of Soi Bangla, you simply can't miss it. The two main
stores in the complex are Robinson and Carrefour.
Almost 200
other stores in this shopping haven sell
brand-name
clothes, spectacles, sunglasses, colognes and perfumes, shoes,
DVD-CD-VCD's, computer games, electrical goods, pewter, gold and
silver, and sportswear amongst myriad other items.
Patong OTOP Shopping Paradise, Thanon
Rat-U-Thit 200P (south end). You might be excused for thinking that
this has something to do with the "One Tambon, One Product" scheme to
promote local industry, but no, turns out this market sells exactly the
same copies of branded clothes and mass-produced handicrafts as
everybody else. At least there's a fairly wide selection to choose
from.
Ocean Plaza Bangla Patong
Patong has Two Ocean department stores. Perhaps the most singular
aspect of these shops is that they are in the form of a department
store but really have the content of a bazaar. Three-storey Ocean on
Bangla Road is a riot of colours and products ranging from costume
jewelry to funny hats to name-brand shirts and trousers. The ground or
'first' floor is crammed with clothing and is surrounded by boutiques
selling just about anything that tickles your fancy from camera tripods
to iPods.
Prices are
'negotiable' here so bargain hard to get
the asking
price down as it will be set at an unrealistic level. There are some
attractive pewter and china Thai handicrafts and those looking for a
new high-powered rifle scope or night binoculars shouldn't be
disappointed. Upstairs you will find name-brand clothes in stalls that
appear to be built on top of each other as well as a small toy section.
On the 'third' floor there is a large sports outlet and a bowling alley
as well as a dimly lit snack and beer bar. In the basement there is a
supermarket with reasonable (for Patong) prices.
Open:
Daily from 11:30 -- 23:30
Location: Central Bangla Road
Ocean
Patong The
other Ocean -- on the southern part of Patong's Beach Road -- is a
similar setup with slightly different goods for sale. Here on the
ground floor there are name brands such as Nautica and Lee, Ecco and
Cerutti, handmade carpets, costume jewelry, video games, nieloware,
pewter, and mobile phone accessories. Go up one floor and you'll be
surrounded by name-brand underwear, swimwear, DVD's and VCD's (mostly
in Thai), binoculars, air guns, wireless computer mice, and
calculators. The next floor is home to a sports section which is, in
turn, next to tourist souvenirs such as jade Buddhas and other jade
accessories which stand next to a music display featuring cheap guitars
and strings as well as suitcases, pens, colouring books and wallets. If
there's method to all this madness then it escapes most Western minds
but it certainly puts a lot of fun into shopping in Patong.
Open: Daily
from 10:00 -- 22:00
Location: On
the southern part of Patong's Beach Road
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