Phuket is getting a new landmark. Siam Piwat, the Thai group behind Siam Paragon and a partner in ICONSIAM, has announced ICONPHUKET, a 10 billion baht destination in Thalang that blends shopping with attractions and opens in 2029. It is the group’s first project outside Bangkok, and it follows a formula that has already reshaped how visitors spend their time in the capital.
From Bangkok’s riverside to the Andaman
If you have been to Bangkok in the last few years, you have probably walked through Siam Piwat’s work. Siam Paragon, Siam Center and Siam Discovery anchor the shopping district on Rama I Road, and ICONSIAM, the riverside destination on the Chao Phraya that opened in 2018, turned a mall into a place people visit for its food halls, river views and cultural spaces as much as its shops.
ICONPHUKET brings that thinking to the island. The investment is around US$300 million, and the group describes the project as a hybrid of retail and attractions, built to celebrate the people, products and identity of southern Thailand.
What to expect inside
One third of ICONPHUKET is set aside for attractions and entertainment, with 12 attractions planned. The details are still to come. More than 40% of the site will be green and open space, and the conceptual designs show woven pavilions, terraced gardens, waterfalls and fountains spread across a series of curving buildings.
There is a strong local thread too. The project will showcase products and makers from all 14 southern provinces, with space for small businesses and community enterprises. For travellers, that means one place to discover the crafts and flavours of a region that stretches from the Andaman coast to the Malaysian border.
Where it is
ICONPHUKET sits in Thalang, the northern district of Phuket, on Thepkasattri Road, the island’s main north to south route. It is a short drive from Phuket International Airport and lies between the airport and Phuket Town, the island’s historic centre of Sino-Portuguese shophouses and street food.
The project is part of Synthesis Ark Phuket, a wider 50 billion baht district led by CV Group. Alongside ICONPHUKET, the plan brings homes, hotels, offices, serviced apartments, schools and wellness facilities, with the first phase due to complete by 2032.
Why it matters for Phuket
Phuket welcomes millions of international visitors every year, most of them heading for the beaches of the west coast. ICONPHUKET gives the north of the island a destination of its own, and gives visitors a new reason to spend a day inland. Read more on what ICONPHUKET means for Thalang on PhuketNow.
At full operation, the project expects between 80,000 and 100,000 visitors a day, and it is set to support between 50,000 and 80,000 jobs from construction through to operation. For an island that already attracts long stay residents, families and investors, it is another sign that Phuket is growing into a year round place to live as well as to visit.
When it opens
ICONPHUKET is scheduled to open in 2029. Siam Piwat has said more on the 12 attractions will follow as the project develops, and we will share the details as they are announced.
Bangkok has ICONSIAM. From 2029, Phuket will have an icon of its own.
