The Thai Hua Museum on Krabi Road in Phuket Old Town is a beautiful and well-preserved Sino-Portuguese building that dates back to 1917. This recently renovated building was once a Chinese language school called “Phuket Huabun School,” “Ratjunhua School. “‘and finally the Thai Hua School.’ Today this colonial building is a museum and exhibition space, which is also occasionally used as an event space. The Thai Hua Museum is operated by the Lok Xian Kok or Kusonsongkhroh Foundation, a non-profit organization from Phuket’s mining era. With the original plan to help other immigrants, a school was set up for Chinese immigrant children to study in a more comfortable language.
The Thai Hua Museum was awarded by the Siam Association of Architects under the patronage of the King in 2008 in the category of constitutional and public buildings. The award recognized his outstanding role in the preservation of architectural art.
Thai Hua Museum Highlights
One of the showrooms gives you a glimpse of Phuket’s remarkable Chinese families. These include the Hongsyok clan, who own the Phuket Country Club golf course in Kathu, and Aikwanich, who own the Diamond Cliff Resort & Spa in Patong and Chaim. Spa village. One of the Thai Hua Museum rooms is dedicated to all the important events and festivals in Phuket, including the famous and bizarre “Phuket Vegetarian Festival” that started about 150 years ago. You can also learn more about Phuket’s traditional ceremonies and cuisine at the Thai Hua Museum. There are also short films in Thai and Chinese with English subtitles on both floors of the museum.
These films not only delve into Thai Hua’s past as Phuket’s premier Chinese language school but also help visitors understand Phuket’s history, its mines, and its connection to China. With benches to relax on, the place is also great for photography, with plenty of light at any time of the day.
Architectural Style and Elements
The Thai Hua Museum, designed in picturesque Sino-Portuguese architecture, is an example of past architectural styles. An open courtyard is another distinctive feature of this ancient building. Aside from adding charm to the building, it also helps ventilate the house in the summer. This terrace helped ventilate the house, especially in summer. This museum also has a beautiful garden that displays many tools and heavy machinery from the Phuket tin mining years.
You can also stop by there. There is also a scale model of a typical early 19th-century Sino-Portuguese merchant house. An old classroom has also been preserved and open to the public.
How to Reach the Museum
On foot
If you are staying anywhere in Old Phuket Town, you can walk to the Thai Hua Museum at 28 Krabi Road, weather permitting.
Tuk-Tuk
If you live anywhere near Phuket Town and have a larger group, tuk-tuks are your best option to get to the Thai Hua Museum. You can reach this museum in a tuk-tuk for THB 100 from most parts of Phuket Town.
Songthaews
Songthaews or the blue open-air buses are the cheapest way to get anywhere in Phuket. You can take a songthaew from different parts of Phuket to the Thai Hua Museum for only 15 THB per person.
