Phuket's Indigo Pearl is a gem of a resort

[Photo by Valerie Ng/China Daily]

A little history

In the early-19th century, like many Chinese migrants, the Khaw family (the ancestors of Wichit Na-Ranong, founder and Managing Director of Indigo Pearl) migrated to South East Asia.

The patriarch, Khaw Soo Cheang, from Zhangzhou, Fujian province, first landed in Malaysia’s Penang Island in 1822 and started a vegetable farm. He later decided to venture into nearby southern Thailand (then, Siam) due to the tin mining potential. His business flourished and he became the first non-Thai to be granted the "Luang Ratanasethi" title for his honesty and loyalty to King Mongkut and made governor of Ranong.

He was also appointed the royal collector of tin royalties in the Ranong area. His descendants were later bestowed the Thai surname Na-Ranong, which means "from Ranong", by the Thai monarch. Khaw Sim Bee, his youngest son, played so integral a role in the island's development that King Chulalongkorn awarded him the royal title of "Phraya Rasada Nupradit".

Today a commanding statue of him sits atop Khao Rang overlooking the town, a testament to his leadership and vision. Intrigued by and in tribute to his ancestry, Wichit Na-Ranong used tin mining as a unique and personal source of inspiration in the creation of the resort in 2007 when he decided to revamp the previously known Pearl Village Hotel (1986 – 2006).

Today, there are only three tin mining sites still active in Phuket. Few of the island's inhabitants know about their rich industrial past. Indigo Pearl is a striking, poetic reminder of raw beauty, of vision, of a rich, bygone era.