Koh Phangan
Famous for the Full Moon Party, wild and quiet elsewhere. Best known for its beach parties, but most of the island is jungly, calm, and beautiful. Two islands in one, depending where you look.
What Is Worth Your Time on Phangan
The Full Moon Party is one night a month on one beach. The rest of the island is waterfalls, a jungle interior and some of the hardest-to-reach bays in the Gulf, which is why people stay for weeks.
The Full Moon Party
Entry feeTwenty thousand or so people on Haad Rin Nok, sound systems the length of the beach, from dusk to well past dawn. Book a room weeks ahead, leave valuables in the safe, and skip the buckets.
Half Moon & Jungle parties
Entry feeThe quarter-moon and jungle events inland at Ban Tai are smaller, better produced and, for most people, a better night out than Haad Rin itself.
Bottle Beach
Boat or hikeHaad Khuat, in the far north, reachable only by longtail from Chaloklum or a hot 45-minute cliff walk. A single arc of sand, a few bungalows and no road, which is the whole appeal.
Than Sadet
National parkA river of granite boulders and pools running down to the east coast, inside Than Sadet-Koh Phangan National Park, carved with the initials of visiting kings. Swim in the upper pools.
Phaeng Waterfall & Domsila
National parkThe island’s main falls in the middle of the interior, with a steep but short jungle climb behind them to the Domsila viewpoint over the whole west coast.
Khao Ra
FreeThe island’s highest point at about 630 m (2,070 ft), a two-hour climb through jungle from the Phaeng park entrance to a view across to Koh Samui and Koh Tao. Take a guide or a clear map.
Thong Nai Pan
FreeTwo bays in the northeast, Yai and Noi, with the best swimming on the island and a mix of backpacker huts and quiet resorts. The road in is paved now, so it is easier than its reputation.
Secret Beach & Mae Haad
FreeHaad Son on the west coast for sunset drinks off a small cove, and Mae Haad in the northwest for the sandbar that walks you out to Koh Ma at low tide, the island’s best snorkeling.
Between parties the island is one of Thailand’s main wellness hubs, with yoga schools, detox retreats and meditation courses concentrated around Sri Thanu on the west coast. Many run multi-week programs, so book ahead.
How to Spend 2 to 3 Nights
Don’t Miss
Best Areas to Base Yourself
Haad Rin
Home of the Full Moon Party, the busiest area.
Thong Nai Pan
Beautiful bays on the calmer east coast.
Sri Thanu
The yoga and wellness hub in the west.
Sits between Samui and Tao on the Gulf ferry line. See how it all connects on the map and overview.
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Written by Belle, a Thai American who travels to Thailand every other year and has family in Bangkok. Everything here comes from my own visits unless the text says otherwise. Prices and journey times are typical cases rather than quotes, so recheck anything time-sensitive before you pay. Brand mentions are never paid placements, and the guide is reader-supported: some links may earn a commission, at no extra cost to you.
How we research →Photographs on this page that are not mine are used under the licenses below and hosted on this site rather than hotlinked. Uncredited photographs are my own.
- Wide shot: quiet cove on Phangan’s north coast, jungle to the waterlineDavid Wilmot from Wimbledon, United Kingdom, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons. View source
- Full Moon Party crowd on Haad Rin beach at nightPer Meistrup, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons. View source