Luxury Car Rental in Patong, Phuket

Why rent a luxury car in Patong at all?

Because every trip from here starts with a climb. Patong sits in a hollow between hills: a long pass with a couple of sharp bends leads north, a shorter and steeper one leads south. That is where the class shows what it is: a quiet cabin, power in reserve on the gradient, a smooth ride on the long highway run to the airport.

What are the usual reasons? Meeting guests off a flight, a wedding or an anniversary at a villa, a photo shoot at a viewpoint, a business trip. The car becomes part of the occasion. Two or three days around the date works better than keeping it for the whole holiday.

Where it adds nothing

Inside Patong. Three streets along the beach gather the nightlife, a shopping centre and a stream of taxis; scooters flow past on both sides; the lanes were built for a short car. For daily beach runs and shopping, the economy cars are honestly easier, since they find a gap where a big car will not fit.

What that means for the car

The class on the island includes low saloons and large SUVs, and they get on with Patong differently. A low saloon suffers at the edges: the lip of a villa gate on the hill, a rough concrete drive, a high kerb outside a restaurant. An SUV shrugs all of that off, but in the lanes below Rat-U-Thit it is cramped and you park further from where you are going.

Passes and descents

A heavy car gathers speed on a downhill faster than you expect. Shift down before the bend, not in it, or the pads are cooked by the bottom and the pleasure of the car is gone by day three. In the morning the northern pass moves in single file behind lorries. Overtaking on those climbing bends is a bad idea in any car.

Water in the hollow

After a downpour several central streets fill to the kerb and drain slowly. A low saloon should not go in at all. The detour along the upper street costs a couple of minutes; water in the engine bay costs the whole rental.

We bring the car to your Patong hotel at any hour or meet your guests at arrivals: automatic, first-class commercial insurance, refundable deposit of 5,000–30,000 ฿, depending on the model, the total for your dates fixed in chat. Send the date of the occasion in the chat or through the booking form.

Where to park an expensive car in Patong

For this class a predictable space beats a close one. The calmest option is the roof of the Jungceylon shopping centre: there is nearly always room, the car stands in shade, and Bangla Road is about ten minutes away on foot. The second is your hotel's guarded car park, worth asking about before check-in.

Beach spaces are paid and gone by lunchtime, and a costly car should not sit there for long: tight rows, scooters pressed against the doors, handcarts. On the island most small damage happens while parked, not while driving. In the evening Bangla Road closes and the navigation sends you round the hill, so add fifteen minutes to any trip after eight.

• Use a covered shopping centre level — shade, and no neighbour opening a door into yours
• Ask the hotel about guarded parking — an expensive car needs its own place at night
• Never stop on a red and white kerb — the tow truck works the beach road every evening
• Go round flooded streets in the hollow — a low body does not forgive water

What are the rental terms for this class?

One thing differs from the standard classes: every driver must be 23 or older, where 21 is enough for ordinary cars, with at least a year of driving behind them. The deposit is the usual one, 5,000–30,000 ฿ depending on the model. We go through each point in chat before the booking, so nothing is left open at handover.

You need a passport, your national licence and an International Driving Permit with it. A second driver is added to the agreement at the start; anyone at the wheel who is not on it drives uninsured. The handover inspection is more detailed than usual, with photos of every side of the body. For a fixed date such as a wedding or guests arriving, write early: cars of this class are reserved for specific dates and are seldom free at short notice.

Delivery and return in Patong

Returning at the airport? Leave Patong in the morning with twenty minutes to spare, because the climb over the pass runs in single file at that hour. There are no pumps in the centre; the stations stand on the roads out of the area, so fill the tank on the way towards Kathu or at the foot of the pass.