Tin mines and docks take up a lot of Phuket’s east coast, which is thus neither scenic nor swim able. East of Rawai, the sizeable offshore island of Lone Island pretects the broad sweep of Ao Chalong, where many a Chinese fortune was made from the huge quantities of tin mined in the bay. Ao Chalong tapers off eastwards into Laem Panwa, at the tip of which you’ll find the Phuket Aquarium, 10km south of Phuket town and accessible by frequent songthaews. Run by the island’s Marine Research Center, it makes a poor substitute for a day’s snorkeling, but not a bad primer for what you might see on a reef. The research center is also involved in the protection of marine turtles; there’s a hatchery on the premises, although it’s out of bounds to casual visitors.
Around the other side of Laem Panwa, the island’s main port of Ao Makham is dominated by a smelting and refining plant, bordered to the north by Siray Island, just about qualifying as an island because of the narrow canal that separates if from Phuket. Tour buses always stop here to spy on Phuket’s largest and longest-established chao ley community.
