One Andaman: The Push to Make Phuket, Phang Nga and Krabi One Special Economic Zone
Phuket’s property sector wants the island to stop planning alone. At the Phuket Real Estate Association’s sustainability seminar on 23 September 2026, Khun Montavee Hongsyok, President of the Phuket industry and Vice President of the association, made the case for Phuket, Phang Nga and Krabi to work together as One Andaman, a single special economic zone.
“We already have everything,” he told the room. “We can push this forward if we have a clear brief.”
One region, three strengths
The idea is called One Andaman, and it treats the three provinces as a single system. “It’s a system,” Khun Montavee said. “It’s the strengths of each province, connected together.”
Phuket brings the international airport, the hospitals, the schools and the international community. Phang Nga brings space, national parks and the quieter coast around Khao Lak and Natai. Krabi brings its limestone coastline and a tourism market that has grown with care.
That thinking already has a place in national planning. The government has been promoting an Andaman Wellness Economic Corridor across Phuket, Krabi, Phang Nga and Ranong, built on each province’s strengths: Phuket as a medical and convention hub, Phang Nga for elderly care, Krabi for mineral springs and sea spas, and Ranong for its hot springs.
What the zone would ask for
Khun Montavee was specific. Marina development sat near the top of the list, alongside tax measures, a special visa route linked to investment, easier import of boats and investment incentives. He framed it as a straightforward offer to government. “If you give us this, we can deliver for you.”
He also shared good news. Interest in the zone has now reached ministerial level, with work under way to study how it could be taken forward.
The idea builds on a long conversation. When Phuket became Thailand’s first Smart City pilot in 2018, several public and private groups were already pushing for the island to become a special economic zone. One Andaman takes that ambition across three provinces.
Krabi and the case for quality
Krabi came up as a model. Khun Montavee had spoken with some of the people who shaped its early tourism, and he described their goal as quality over price. He expects more investors, Thai and international, to arrive as Krabi matures, and he sees a strong fit between the three provinces as the key to that growth landing well.
In keeping with the seminar’s theme, he also pointed to value in local agriculture, saying oil palm waste “can be recycled 100%”.
Phuket has done this before
The island’s history ran through the afternoon. Phuket built its early wealth on tin, then reinvented itself as one of Asia’s best known tourism destinations when mining declined.
“Phuket has already transformed itself once,” another speaker said.
“Can we do it again? I think we can,” came the reply.
The harder question, raised from the floor, was how to bring in new investment while keeping the island’s character. “What can we do so that investment comes in and lives alongside the people of Phuket?”
A sector focused on the long game
The setting mattered. The Phuket Real Estate Association counts more than 110 member companies, and at its annual general meeting in May 2026 it framed the sector’s growth as sustainable development alongside Phuket’s economy and tourism.
Phuket’s own calendar tells the same story. In August 2026 the province launched a push to lift Andaman tourism toward sustainability, linking five Andaman provinces and opening space for communities to shape new travel routes.
A zone covering Phuket, Phang Nga and Krabi would give all of that a framework. Faster infrastructure, shared planning and a single pitch to investors are what the region’s business community is asking for, and for the first time the conversation has momentum at the top.
The Andaman coast already works as one region for the people who live and travel here. One Andaman would make it official.
