Anyone who has a passion for fishing has a story to match; the one that gets away is always the largest fish ever. In Phuket Rawai Seafood Market is the best place to find real seafood, real fresh and you don’t have to catch it. Plus no one is going to tell you a boring fish story; the vendors could make customers bargain over price depending on the season and type of seafood.
It is hard to separate the Sea Gypsies and Rawai from each other; they settled in Rawai over 100 years ago and continue to trade on the oceanfront market just off the left side of Rawai Pier. Fresh seafood at Rawai Seafood Market is brought in daily, mostly by the Sea Gypsies fishermen that live in the small village that surrounds the market.
Or at least that is how this fish story is usually told, however it is hardly surprising that some is farmed north of the island as is now common worldwide.
That said the Rawai Seafood Market is a great cultural attraction and source of outstanding fresh fish in particular. Primary questions are which vendor to buy from and how much should you pay. This market is very popular among Thai tourists and foreign residents, and for the most part everyone pays the same price. As an example Red Snapper usually starts from 250 baht a kilo (price can vary by season or availability as mentioned), Thai Grouper or White Snapper can be a bit more.
Of course there is also an abundance of prawns, crabs, squid, clams, oysters and live lobsters on offer. If it lives in the sea they have it. But this is fish story and fish is Rawai Seafood Market’s best value and literally some of the freshest you will find anywhere. There are also a bunch of restaurants by the market, so some hungry guests do cross the road and cook it up right away.
A better suggestion is to shop and return to Kata Rocks and create a seafood feast in the privacy of your Sky Villa. If you do make sure you have the vendor clean and scale the fish first, it’s a handy way to avoid a big mess.
Alternatively Kata Rocks guests can take it to another level and have our chef prepare your fish and seafood for you.
Private Sky Villa dining offers in-room Sky Villa meal service and Sky Villa barbeques. There are a number of creative menu options to choose and the best part is you don’t even have to wash up.