Your Complete Guide to Training Muay Thai in Phuket: 3 Best Gyms & More

Are you considering training Muay Thai in Phuket, Thailand? 

It’s easier than you think. And in our opinion, Phuket is the best place in Thailand to develop your skills.

Phuket island is home to some of the best Muay Thai training camps in the world. Plus in your down time, it has an excellent environment that combines lush jungles, beautiful beaches, fresh air, and city life. 

And if you love nightlife, it’s got that too.  

Whether you are a complete beginner or an advanced level fighter, this article will give you helpful advice to make the best decision. 

What Are The Best Gyms for Training Muay Thai in Phuket?

This is debatable and depends on your level and your expectations.

Speaking as an intermediate Muay Thai practitioner, in my opinion the top three Muay Thai gyms in Phuket are Tiger Muay Thai & MMA Gym; Dragon Muay Thai; and Top Team Muay Thai.

Let’s look at the pros and cons of each:

Tiger Muay Thai & MMA

Tiger Muay Thai & MMA offers many bells and whistles that its competitors cannot provide. Apart from Muay Thai classes, you can find many classes per day of different fighting styles including Western Boxing classes, Jiu Jitsu, and fitness training.

The facilities are top notch and very modern and they have pristine equipment and clean boxing rings that will meet Western standards.

They have an equipment shop where you can buy excellent t-shirts and training gear. But apart from that, they also have a restaurant and a coffee shop where you can buy healthy and delicious food. 

Tiger Muay Thai is a smoothly operated business. They cater to all levels of fighters, but their main focus is high level fighters.

Tourists and casual fighters help keep the business running. But Tiger Muay Thai excels at preparing high level fighters who also prestige to the business.

Tiger Muay Thai’s offering to beginners seems like a tourist attraction or a training holiday. You can say you trained there. You can get a t-shirt. But you may also feel that the trainers’ hearts aren’t really into it.

Nonetheless, Tiger sponsors and trains an impressive list of UFC champions including Valentina Shevchenko, Alexander Volkanovski, Peter Yan and many, many more. 

Phuket Top Team

Phuket Top Team has a more traditional setting for Muay Thai training that Tiger with an open air camp, however they also have indoor facilities for Jiu Jitsu. 

They also have a partnership with Titan Fitness just down the street, so you can also have access to a top quality indoor gym with some packages. 

Like Tiger, they offer more than just Muay Thai. This includes wrestling, MMA, conditioning classes, and also trainer certificate programs for people who want to become qualified martial arts trainers.

Top Team has an impressive roster of fighters who train with them including UFC Champion Michael Bisping; UFC Champion, Invicta Champion and Strikeforce Champion Cris Cyborg; UFC Champion Cody Garbrandt; UFC Champion Rashad Evans; UFC Champion Anthony Pettis; and UFC Champion Tito Ortiz to name just a few. 

Phuket Dragon Muay Thai

Phuket Dragon Muay Thai has a more spartan but authentic training environment compared to Top Team and Tiger. It is managed entirely by Thai fighters and literally located between Tiger Muay Thai and Top Team Phuket on Soi Tadied street in Chalong, Phuket. 

The price was the most affordable but my experience was that the trainers were also the most dedicated.

The morning group classes were attended by a wide range of people of different levels while the afternoon classes had more serious and skilled fighters. 

Dragon also offers accommodation on site and competitive promotions that offers one month of training and board for 19,000 TBT ($540 USD). 

What is The Structure of a Muay Thai Class in Phuket?

A typical group class in Phuket will usually follow a standard structure:

• 15 minutes of warm up.
• 45 minutes to one hour of pad work and technical training
• 30 minutes focused on strength & conditioning

The warm up will consist of cardio – usually jogging around the gym or skipping. This will be followed by stretching and hand wrapping. 

The one hour of pad work will typically involve each participant to have four three minute rounds with a trainer. Depending on the number of people joining a class, there may be 7-8 trainers helping with pad work to make sure everyone has the chance to practice at least 3 rounds.

While you wait for your turn, you will be practicing kicks, knees, elbows on the heavy bag and doing pushups.

Sometimes the technical part of the session will include sparring. You will rotate through light sparring with fighters who are judged by the trainer to be at a similar level to you. 

Light sparring aims to help you improve your technique. You won’t use more than 50% of your power – and ideally less. You will wear shin pads, gloves, and we also recommend a mouth guard just to be on the safe side.

Who Are Muay Thai Trainers in Phuket?

Every Muay Thai trainer in Phuket is either an active or a retired Thai fighter. In either case, that trainer will usually have hundreds of fights under his belt.

He will have trained since he was a child and he will know the fight game inside and out.

Thailand is famous as the “Land of Smiles” and your trainer will likely be a friendly person. 

You don’t need to worry about your trainer injuring you. Muay Thai Training provides a good supplement to a fighter’s income and any good trainer will want to make sure you have a positive experience while also improving your technique.

It is no one’s best interest for you to be humiliated or injured and so you can expect that your trainer will be cautious to make sure you’re challenged but not overwhelmed. 

They also will want you to come back and train more. They will ask you how long you plan to stay in Phuket. To get the best treatment, don’t say for one day. Say for a few months and you will notice that the Muay Thai training you will receive will be even better because they will want you to come back. 

If you plan to stay for a while, you can discuss with a trainer a personalized training program to help you get the most of your time. 

What is a Muay Thai Group Class Like?

Joining a Muay Thai class in Phuket will put you side by side with people from around the world, from different levels of ability, who all love Muay Thai.

A group class will run for 90 minutes. 

Usually group classes will be divided by ability. There will be beginner classes, intermediate training, and advanced classes.

But sometimes you might find yourself training in a mixed level class.

In these situations, you will be training with people of a wide range of abilities. Almost everyone training is a foreigner.

There are many different types of people who will join a class. Many will be semi-professional fighters preparing for a fight. But you will also find people on a training holiday and even people who just want to get fit.  

Serious fighters will train beyond just group classes obviously, but you can often find them joining in these classes as well.

In a mixed level class, trainers will match fighters by ability so that a mom looking to get fit never finds herself in the ring sparring with a seasoned veteran. 

How Much is a Standard Muay Thai Class in Phuket?

One of the reasons people love to travel to Thailand is because it is affordable. 

Hotels are cheap, flights are cheap, food is cheap (and delicious).

And Muay Thai training costs in Phuket are also surprisingly cheap.

A single group class ranges from 300 to 500 TBT ($8.50 – $15 USD), depending on the training spot. 

Gyms like Tiger Muay Thai & MMA and Dragon Muay Thai also offer daily rates giving people the chance to train multiple times in a single day.  

At Tiger Muay Thai & MMA, the price for full access to classes and facilities for a single day is 700 TBT ($20 USD).

Usually this will allow you to join two training sessions – a morning and an afternoon class. You will also be able to make use of their facilities to hit the heavy bags and use any weight equipment the gym might have. 

Monthly training packages are definitely available and are much more better value for money. Monthly packages range from 9,000 TBT to 12,400 TBT ($250 – 350 USD).

How Much is a Private Muay Thai Lesson?

If you want a more personalized session, a private Muay Thai lesson in Phuket is the best option.

Private training in Phuket is incredibly accessible and much cheaper than what you would pay for one-on-one training from a much less experienced trainer in any other country. 

The price can sometimes depend on the fame of the trainer, but the typical standard rate for a one hour session with an experienced trainer is 700 TBT.   

You can always find more expensive options if you want to train with a former Muay Thai champion. The price for that experience begins at a minimum of 1,500 TBT for a one hour session. 

What to expect in a Private Muay Thai Lesson?

I tried private classes at Tiger Muay Thai; Top Team; and Dragon Muay Thai. 

The experience of the private lessons at each gym was same-same but different. All sessions were 60 minutes long. 

Tiger Muay Thai was definitely the most expensive at 700 TBT ($20 USD). 

The trainer I had was older and less enthusiastic compared to the other gyms. 

On the positive side, he put a lot of emphasis on technique. He helped with my hand wraps and after the session, he gave me a quick but effective neck and shoulder massage.

The Final Word on Training Muay Thai in Phuket

If you ever thought of training Muay Thai in Thailand, Phuket is a perfect destination. 

In this article we looked at the prices and experiences you can expect for lessons and private sessions – whether you are a beginner or an experienced fighter.

We’ve also looked at some of the gyms and what they have to offer.

But don’t just take our word for it. Live your life to the fullest and book a trip to Phuket and make memories you will cherish for your whole life.