I would like to start off by mentioning that the Phuket Mining Museum is also known as the Kathu Mining Museum. This wonderful and very interesting museum is the newest museum to open its doors in Phuket and I am actually glad that these types of attractions are now also available on Phuket as the island certainly has a very interesting history, culture and Phuket has more to offer then nightlife venues only.

I clearly remember driving by the entrance of the Phuket Tin Mining Museum for the first time a while back and I was immediately impressed by the grand entrance to the grounds on which the Phuket mining museum is located. And the buildings on the grounds of the mining museum of Phuket are even more impressive as they have been designed in a very suitable Sino Portuguese style which is very common in Phuket especially in Phuket City which is one of the earliest towns on the island.

If you haven’t read up on the history of Phuket then you might be a bit surprised to discover that Phuket has its very own tin mining museum. Well I can explain to you why Phuket has such a museum. One of the industries which brought a lot of wealth to the island of Phuket in the past was the tin mining industry and it had lead to the cultural mix up of the inhabitants of Phuket. The reason for this is because many Chinese workers migrated to Phuket to work in the tin mines which is why a large portion of the population of the island has Chinese roots which has also lead to the beautiful Chinese temples being build which are located mainly in Phuket City and the Kathu area of Phuket.

So I think it is very suitable that Phuket mining museum was built considering the fact that tin mining played such a prominent role in the history of Phuket. It might not sound all that interesting for many people visiting Phuket but I can definitely recommend a visit to the Phuket tin mining museum and this especially applies to families with kids. A very surprising fact about the Phuket mining museum is that entrance is actually free which is pretty rare for a major Phuket tourist attraction. However I do believe that there are donation boxes at this Phuket museum and most visitors do leave behind a small financial donation at the end of their visit to the Phuket mining museum. I have heard a report that the Phuket tin mining museum will start charging entrée fees in the near future so I will keep you updated about that.

Please note that the construction of the Phuket mining museum took several years and that is was build at a cost of around 50 million Thai Baht.

At the Phuket mining museum visitors can learn all about tin mining and how it used to be done in Phuket. It is definitely very interesting and educational. There are also some hands on activities which especially the kids will thoroughly enjoy. And the finish up the visit to the Kathu Tin Mining Museum, visitors can enjoy taking a ride on or even pulling a traditional Chinese style rickshaw.

The Phuket Tin Mining Museum is located in Kathu which is not really a touristy area of Phuket but mainly a residential area. To get to the Phuket mining museum you will basically need to drive from Patong across the Patong hill into Kathu and you will take a left at the first traffic lights and you will be heading towards the Loch Palm Golf Club. Keep an eye out for signage on the left hand side of the road which will point you in the right direction of the Kathu Mining Museum. Once you enter that road you will have a fair bit to drive still until you will spot the Phuket tin mining museum on your left hand side.

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