Phuket has long been a Mecca for gay tourists, and what better time to visit than the annual Pride festival?

Centred on the tourist hub of Patong Bay, where there are dozens of gay venues, Phuket Pride runs from February 23-26, with the official party night Friday, February 25.

Patong's paradise complex features numerous gay and mixed bars, clubs, "western-style" gay venues, a gay disco, cabarets, drag shows and even gay restaurants. And of course there's a "gay" section of Patong beach just five minutes' walk from the paradise complex.

Lively at any time of year, Phuket Pride sees the whole area really go into overdrive.

On its own merits, Phuket is a fabulous tourist destination. An island roughly the size of Singapore, Phuket boasts scenery ranging from jungle to sandy beaches to dramatic rock formations, with numerous small islands close by ready to be explored. Phuket can also be a base for going on to Bangkok, Chang Mai and other gay tourist magnets.

If you like your holidays to be well organised, you can take advantage of one of Australian based travel company Travelwaka's range of gay-friendly tours, designed to coincide with Phuket Pride.

All of Travelwaka's tours include essential sight-seeing and day trips as well as party nights and – mercifully – late morning starts so you can recover from the night before!

Their seven-night trip (Monday, Feb 21 – Monday, Feb 28) takes in Phuket Town, Patong Beach and Soi Paradise gay nightlife as well as the Pride Parade and parties. It also includes a day visiting pristine Similan Island, one of the world's most interesting scuba-diving areas. Starts at $1,090 AUD twin share.

The 14 night trip, running from Saturday, Feb 19 to Thursday, March 3, takes in all of the above with a more thorough exploration of the beauties of Phuket, including kayaking, a jungle elephant ride, a boat trip to Phi Phi Island – famous from the movie The Beach – exploring the caves and limestone formations of Krabi, and more. Starts at $1,500 AUD twin share.

For those with more leisure, the 16 night trip (Friday, Feb 18 – Saturday, March 5) follows the pattern of the 14 night tour but with extra time to explore Krabi by kayak, scuba and snorkelling. Starts at $1,690 AUD twin share. All prices exclude airfares to Thailand.

99 per cent Buddhist, Thailand preserves a strong Southeast Asian culture while enjoying a Western lifestyle and prides itself on being a safe destination for everyone regardless of age, sex, religion, ethnicity or sexuality.

A word of advice: many ancient Thai customs are very different from western practice. It's best to check out a guidebook or website like gay-thailand.net for some sound information before you travel.

That being said, if you've always dreamed of a great gay holiday in a tropical paradise, maybe Phuket Pride is just what you've been looking for.

Phuket Pride: Wednesday February 23 – Saturday February 26, 2011

travelwaka.com

gaypatong.com

gay-thailand.net