Car Rental in Kamala

How the road through Kamala works

One highway runs through the area — the 4025, which doubles as the main street. Short turnings run down from it to the hotels by the sea and up to the villas on the slopes. That layout makes navigating simple: every address in Kamala is described as so many metres along the main road, then right towards the sea or left up the hill.

South the road climbs the pass to Patong — a long ascent with two sharp bends and a viewpoint at the top. The climb is real, but the asphalt is good and in dry weather any car handles it. In a downpour the bend at the top turns slippery, so slow down before it.

North the 4025 runs to Surin and on to Bang Tao — a flat stretch with no bends, the calmest road on the west coast.

Parking at the beach and at the villas

There are free bays along Kamala beach, and in low season there is room during the day. In high season, December to February, the rows nearest the sea are taken from the morning, but a hundred or two hundred metres inland there is always a space.

At the villas on the slopes it is a different matter: there is almost always a carport or a pad, but the driveway is narrow and often on a gradient. That is worth thinking about when choosing a class — a long minivan barely fits into a space like that.

• Do not park on yellow and white markings — that is no stopping, and they do write tickets
• It is tight by the temple and the school in the middle of the area during the day, drive further on
• On the slopes always leave it in gear with the handbrake on — the gradients are serious
• There is little lighting by the beach at night, pick a space near a lamp

Which car suits Kamala

For life inside the area an economy car is enough: short distances, flat road. If you are staying on the slope and drive up and down every day, an SUV is more comfortable — not for its capability, but for ground clearance on the uneven driveways up to the villas and steadier braking on the way down.

Families with children and a week or more of luggage suit a minivan, but here it matters to check the width of the driveway with your host in advance. We check things like that before delivery: give us the address and we will tell you whether the car fits.

Where it is easy to drive from Kamala

Kamala makes a good base for the west coast. Patong with its markets and nightlife is fifteen minutes away; Surin and Bang Tao with their restaurants about the same in the other direction. South to Karon and Kata is about forty minutes through Patong.

Of the longer trips, the north of the island and Promthep Cape in the south make the most sense from here. North: Mai Khao, the turtle beach and the bridge to the mainland; the road is straight, an hour and a half at a relaxed pace. South means driving the length of the island, about an hour and a quarter.

One route of its own is the viewpoint on the pass between Kamala and Patong. Better to go there early in the morning rather than at sunset when it is packed: the light is soft and the car park is empty.

What a newcomer at the wheel should know

Thailand drives on the left, and in Kamala that feels gentler than in town: the traffic is thin and there is time to get used to it. The rule for the first few days is to look right first when pulling out of a turning.

Scooters here use the full width of the lane and often overtake on the left. Keep your mirrors set properly and do not hug the verge without reason.

In the wet season the rain comes short and hard. If a downpour catches you on the pass, it is wiser to wait ten minutes at the viewpoint than to drive down through the water.