1 Phuket Province Provincial Emblem Flag Province . Governor: Narong Phonla-iat (since Government October 2016) Capital: Phuket City Royal capital: - Population: 386,605 (2014) Area: 576 km2 Administrative divisions Phuket is divided into three districts (amphoe), which are further subdivided into 17 sub-districts (tambon), and 103 villages (muban).Mueang Surat Thani 1. Mueang Phuket 2. Kathu 3. Thalang There are nine municipal (thesaban) areas within the province. The capital Phuket has city (thesaban nakhon) status. Patong and Kathu have town (thesaban mueang) status. There are further six sub-district municipalities (thesaban tambon): Karon, Thep Krasattri, Choeng 2 Thale, Ratsada, Rawai, and Wichit. The non-municipal areas are administered by nine tambon administrative organizations (TAO). Geography Phuket is the largest island in Thailand. It is in the Andaman Sea in southern Thailand. The island is mostly mountainous with a mountain range in the west of the island from the north to the south. The mountains of Phuket form the southern end of the Phuket mountain range, which ranges for 440 kilometres (270 mi) from the Kra Isthmus. Although some recent geographical works refer to the sections of the Tenasserim Hills in the isthmus as the "Phuket Range", these names are not found in classical geographic sources. In addition, the name Phuket is relatively recent having previously been named Jung Ceylon and Thalang. The highest elevation of the island is usually regarded as Khao Mai Thao Sip Song (Twelve Canes), at 529 metres (1,736 ft) above sea level. However it has been reported by barometric pressure readings that there is an even higher elevation (with no apparent name), of 542 meters above sea level, in the Kamala hills behind Kathu waterfall. Its population was 249,446 in 2000, rising to 525,709 in the 2010 decennial census, the highest growth rate of all provinces nationwide at 7.4 percent annually. Some 600,000 people reside on Phuket currently, among them migrants, international expats, Thais registered in other provinces, and locals. The registered population, however, includes only Thais who are registered in a "tabien baan" or house registration book, which most are not, and the end of 2012 was 360,905 persons Economy Tin mining was a major source of income for the island from the 16th century until petering out in the 20th century. In modern times, Phuket's economy has rested on two pillars: rubber tree plantations (making Thailand the biggest producer of rubber in the world) and tourism. Since the 1980s, the sandy beaches on the west coast of the island have been developed as tourist destinations, with Patong, Karon, and Kata being the most popular. Since the 2004 tsunami, all damaged buildings and attractions have been restored. Phuket is being intensely developed, with many new hotels, apartments, and houses under construction. Phuket has 60,000 hotel rooms for its 9.1 million annual visitors. :7 In July 2005, Phuket was voted one of the world's top five retirement destinations by Fortune Magazine. In 2017, Phuket received about 10 million visitors, most of them foreign, with China the leading contributor. Tourists generated some 385 billion baht in revenues, nearly 14 percent of the 2.77 trillion baht earned by the nation as a whole. Culture The two most important Buddhist monasteries of the province are in Chaiya District. Wat Phra Boromathat Chaiya boasts a chedi in Srivijaya-style, dating from the 7th century and 3 carefully restored. Buddhist relics are enshrined in the chedi, and the surrounding chapels contain Buddha figures in Srivijayan style. The Chaiya National Museum adjoins the temple. Nearby is Wat Suan Mokkhaphalaram, a forest monastery founded by the famous monk Buddhadasa Bhikkhu. Attractions . Two Heroines Monument, is a monument in Thalang District, a memorial statue of the heroines Thao Thep Kasattri (Kunying Jan) and Thao Sri Sunthon (Mook), who rallied islanders in 1785 to repel Burmese invaders. Thalang National Museum is near the Two Heroines Monument. In 1985, on the 200th anniversary of the Thalang War, the Thalang National Museum was established. The museum contains a permanent exhibition of life in old Phuket, ancient artifacts, remains discovered on the coast, and materials used during war with Burma. Hat Karon is the second largest of Phuket's tourist beaches, approximately 20 kilometres (12 mi) from town. Large resort complexes line the road behind the shoreline, but the broad beach itself has no development. The southern point has a coral reef stretching toward Kata and Poo Island. There is also its sister beach, Karon Noi. Kamala Beach, Hat Kamala is a large beach approximately 16 km (10 mi) north of Patong Beach. The beach is undeveloped with coral reefs on the north side and surfing in the low season. It is a tourist beach in the high season and a sleepy seaside Muslim village in the low season. There is a market on Wednesday and Friday nights, as well as a weekly Saturday market. View Point is midway between Nai Harn and Kata Beaches. Kata Noi, Kata, Karon, and Ko Pu can be viewed from this point. Laem Phromthep (Phromthep Cape) is a headland forming the extreme south end of Phuket. "Phrom" is Thai for the Hindu term "Brahma", signifying purity, and "thep" is Thai for "God". Wat Chalong is where stands the cast statue of Luang Pho Cham, who helped the people of Phuket put down the Angyee, or Chinese Coolie Rebellion, in 1876 during the reign of Rama V. There are also statues of Luang Pho Chuang, and Luang Pho Cham, abbots of the temple during later times. Phuket Pearl Farm located about one kilometer offshore from Phuket's east coast close to coconut island. Phuket Pearl Farm can be accessed only by boat. Khao Phra Thaeo Wildlife Conservation Development and Extension Centre is a center for study of the environment. Its duty is to promote and distribute wildlife within Khao Phra Thaeo wildlife park. The Big Buddha of Phuket, (Phra Phutta Ming Mongkol Akenakiri or Ming Mongkol Buddha), is on the peak of a mountain near Muang Phuket, or Phuket town. The image 4 is 45 m in height and covered in white Burmese marble. Phuket Butterfly Garden and Insect World is one of the very few remaining butterfly gardens in Thailand. Old Phuket Town in Phuket town, around Thalang, Dibuk, Yaowarat, Phang Nga, and Krabi Roads. The architecture is Sino-Portuguese-style. Phuket Aquarium attracts around 300,000 visitors each year. Established in 1983 as part of the Phuket Marine Biological Center (PMBC), it is a research and monitoring station within the Department of Marine and Coastal Resources (DMCR). Demographics As with most of Thailand, the majority of the population is Buddhist, but there is a significant number of Muslims (20 per cent) in Phuket, mainly descendants of the island's original sea-dwelling people. Among the Muslims, many are of Malay descent. People of Chinese ancestry make up an even larger population, many of whom are descendants of the tin miners who migrated to Phuket during the 19th century. Peranakans, known as "Phuket Babas" in the local tongue, constitute a fair share of chinese community members, particularly among those who have family ties with the Peranakans of Penang and Malacca. Phuket provincial population in preliminary count of the 2010 census was counted to be 525,018 people, including some 115,881 expatriates, or 21.1 per cent of the population. However, it is admitted this is inaccurate since The Phuket Provincial Employment Office currently records for more than 64,000 Burmese, Lao and Cambodian workers legally residing on the island. The Thai census figure for 2015 shows a population of 386,605 persons. The number of people on Phuket island swells to over a million during the high season, as tourists, mainly from Western Europe, China, the United Kingdom and the United States flock to Phuket around Christmas. .