🔄 Updated 21 Jun 2026
Phang Nga souvenirs split roughly into two lines. The sweet side is local pastries with Hokkien-Chinese roots, like Tao So and sesame rolls. The savoury side is processed seafood like shrimp-paste chilli dip and kapi (fermented shrimp paste). The real centre for souvenirs is Takua Pa district — an old tin-mining town with a long-settled Chinese community, which is why several pastry shops have passed their recipes down through generations.
Tao So — the pastry Takua Pa is known for
When people talk about Phang Nga souvenirs, Tao So always comes up first. It's a thin-crust mooncake-style pastry filled with sweet mung-bean paste; many shops add a salted egg yolk or do a three-flavour filling, and it goes easily with coffee or tea. The well-known shops cluster around Takua Pa old town and along Phetkasem Road through the town centre.
Tao So Tuang Rat (Takua Pa)
The oldest maker in Phang Nga, open since 1907 and passed down through several generations. Fillings range from sweet-with-salted-egg, salty-with-salted-egg, green tea and black sesame, to seasonal stewed Salika durian. Thin crust, generous filling — this is the name people in Phang Nga think of before any other.
Tao So Natchawan / Natthawan (Takua Pa)
A shop right by the Takua Pa bus terminal where lots of travellers stop before catching their bus home. Besides Tao So it carries thin crisp wafers, cashew nuts and shrimp-paste chilli dip all under one roof — handy if you want to knock out all your souvenirs in one go.
Tao So Mae Aree
Made fresh daily with several fillings to choose from, a thin crisp crust and a filling that's sweet but not over the top. Another shop locals buy from regularly. If you want a batch that's just come out, drop by in the late morning.
Tao So Je Nong (Thai Muang / Kalai)
Generous filling, made fresh daily, with a salted-egg option, and a clean, well-organised process. A better bet if your route runs through Thai Muang rather than into Takua Pa town itself.
Tao So Ko Ke Ra Ti (Takua Thung)
A newer name, but one that plays with unusual fillings from local produce — custard apple and durian among them. Crisp shell, thick filling. Good if you want to try Tao So flavours you won't easily find elsewhere.
Tip
Thin-crust Tao So keeps for less time than ordinary thick-crust mooncakes — usually around 7–10 days. If you're carrying it a long way, ask for the production date and pick a box made fresh that day.
Want to taste deeper? Try a Phang Nga food tour or cooking class
Half a day with a local who knows the lanes — or cooking a dish yourself — teaches you more than just eating. Book ahead on Klook or GetYourGuide.
Local sweets and snacks
Beyond Tao So, Phang Nga has local sweets that are hard to find outside the area. Some are seasonal or turn up only at morning markets and the walking street.
- Luk chok — a wild fruit that looks like sugar-palm seed (luk chid) but is a different species, with chewy, nutty flesh. It's usually boiled and served floating in syrup over ice — a Phang Nga speciality that's hard to find elsewhere. Around ฿100–120 per kilo, or about ฿35 for a small tub.
- Kalamae — a sticky, chewy coconut-milk fudge made the old-fashioned way, in both the original and pandan flavours. Found at markets and souvenir shops in town.
- Sesame rolls (muan nga / muan lao) — crisp Chinese-style sheets rolled around a sweet sesame filling, with a thin crackly shell. Easy snacking, and a good pick for anyone who likes something crunchy.
- Stewed sticky rice (khao niao kuan) — handmade to an old recipe with no preservatives, dense and chewy. Usually sold at the old-town morning market.
- Khanom ko sui — a southern-style steamed cup cake you'll often find at Pak Thak market in Kapong district. More of a fresh snack than a souvenir that keeps.
Savoury souvenirs — chilli dips, kapi and dried seafood
Phang Nga sits on the Andaman coast, so its savoury souvenirs lean on fresh seafood. They suit anyone who likes something to eat with hot steamed rice, and they keep longer than fresh sweets.
Shrimp-paste chilli dip (nam phrik kung siap)
A spicy southern chilli dip fragrant with curry paste, made from kung siap (smoke-dried shrimp) pounded with chilli and herbs. A favourite souvenir that goes with rice or fresh vegetables, and you'll find it at nearly every souvenir shop in the province.
Koh Phra Thong kapi
Shrimp paste made from fresh krill caught in the Andaman Sea and pounded the traditional way — fine in texture, pinkish-red from the natural krill, and fragrant. A well-known souvenir from the Khura Buri side of Phang Nga.
Koh Yao Noi anchovies (pla ching chang)
Tiny sun-dried fish from the Koh Yao Noi community, naturally high in calcium. Fry them crisp and toss with chilli, or just snack on them. A souvenir you'll bring back from the Koh Yao side.
Dried tai pla curry / southern curry paste
Ready-made southern curry paste and dried tai pla (fermented fish-innard sauce) to take home and cook with — genuinely bold flavours. Good for anyone who likes cooking southern Thai food themselves.
Pickled sator (sa-tor dong)
Pickled stink beans with a good salty-sour balance — a side that pairs with southern food and that anyone who likes sator will enjoy. Keeps reasonably well, and a good pick for fans of spicy eating.
Where to buy — souvenir areas and markets
If you're travelling around Phang Nga and want to stock up on souvenirs efficiently, these are the main spots where a lot of it is concentrated and easy to reach.
Takua Pa old town
The heart of Phang Nga's souvenirs. Several heritage Tao So shops are clustered here, so you can wander the Sino-Portuguese shophouses and pick up pastries at the same time.
Takua Pa walking street (Sundays)
A cultural walking street held on Sunday evenings from around November to May, with hard-to-find local sweets, snacks and souvenirs.
Takua Pa bus terminal
Souvenir shops sit near the bus station, handy for buying just before your bus home — Tao So, chilli dips and cashew nuts all in one place.
Phang Nga town (Phetkasem Road)
Souvenir shops line the main road, so if you're staying in or passing through Phang Nga town you can stop here without detouring to Takua Pa.
Tip
Savoury items like chilli dip and kapi are best wrapped separately and sealed in a zip bag to contain the smell before they go in your luggage. If you're flying, wet kapi and chilli dip may need to go in checked baggage — check the liquid limits before you travel.
Plan a Phang Nga trip with all the food and sights covered
See the Phang Nga travel guide →