A Thailand Beach vacation to a hotspot like Phuket (Patong Beach and more) is exactly as advertised. (Well almost, Phuket is now over-run with Russians).
If you expect long beach walks, warm water and a bevy of activities, your expectations with be met. (Be advised due to the hot sun, it is super easy to sun-burn here.)
Local cuisine is delicious (and priced for tourists)
Many classy resorts to stay and yes they are just as expensive or more expensive than the west.
While your expectations will be met, the cost is not the “cheap” word you see thrown around so much on social media.
Beach holidays in Thailand are not cheap.
Others things to watch out for are scams, vendors, activities, on the beach will try to scam you with prices much higher than normal if they think they can get away with it.
While Thailand does offer excellent beach holidays, it is no better than other beaches around the world and the cost will be the same or higher here.