How to have an Amazing Adventure in Koh Phangan, Thailand for the Full Moon Party

After spending 4 months in Hengdian, China and the Gobi Desert working on Jackie Chan’s Dragon Blade it was time for a well-deserved vacation. Fellow JC stunt team member Max Huang and I decided to move from the desert to the beach. (I guess we just couldn’t stay away from the sand.) 2 days after the film wrapped we headed for the beautiful beaches of Thailand. The destination was Koh Phangan. Why? Because this is where the world-famous Full Moon Party is held.

The Full Moon party has gained recognition as one of the biggest parties in the world and is among one of the must do events for travelers in South East Asia. The Full Moon Party originated in Haad Rin on the island of Ko Pha Ngan, Thailand and occurs on the night of every full moon. The event draws a crowd of around 30,000 attendees and goes all night on the beach. But more on this later… I’ll start from the beginning of my adventure and hopefully it can act as a good road map for anyone thinking of going to Thailand for the Full Moon Party.

Travel – How to get to Koh Phangan island

There are many ways to get to the Koh Phangan / The Full Moon Party. The easiest and fastest way is to book a flight to Ko Samui (USM airport) and then take a ferry to Koh Phangan (40 minute ferry commute time). This is also the most expensive option. Especially since Max and I booked last minute, flights are going to be either really expensive, sold out (because everyone is going 2-3 days before the full moon party), or both. So we actually didn’t have a very specific plan when we left. We just flew out to Bangkok and found our way to Koh Phangan. The middle option (the one that I took) is to fly in to Bangkok then book a local flight down south (sometimes they have promotions with local airlines). We flew to Krabi (cost about $60 and we bought it 2 hours before the flight departed) but you could also fly down to Phuket if there are available flights. Flight time was about 2 hours.. I kinda dozed off. 

Once we arrived in Krabi we had to find our way to Surat Thani port. Right out of the airport there are a ton of travel booths. We booked a bus for 650baht a person that takes a 3 hour drive to Surat Thani. To get to the bus meet up point you also have to get a taxi which is about 100 or 150baht a person. Then once you get to Surat Thani you take a ferry which goes to Ko Samui (about 2-3 hours) then from Ko Samui to Koh Phangan (40 minutes).  Yes! It was quite an adventure just getting to Koh Phangan! But it’s worth it! The third and cheapest option is taking a bus/train from Bangkok which can cost you probably under $40 but will take you 12 hours to get to Surat Thani. Then from Surat Thani you still have to ferry 3-4 hours before you get to Koh Phangan. Time is money and we didn’t have that much time to lose so we went with the middle route.

Lodging / Housing in Koh Phangan

We arrived in Bangkok without any idea where we would stay in Koh Phangan either! At the airport while we waited for our Krabi flight to take off… I booked a lovely hotel, Phangan Island View, off Booking.com. It was the last room and we paid about $45/night per person during “peak” days (meaning the few days right before the full moon party). It dropped down to about $18/night per person after the full moon party. Our stay included breakfast as well. This was one of the medium range hotels. Overall very nice and very chill. No beach view but 5-7 minute walk from the beach. One of my concerns prior to getting to Koh Phangan was that I didn’t know how crowded it would be or how difficult it would be to get rooms. What I learned was that basically the months of Aug-Dec are the busiest BUT even then you can still find rooms. In my mind I was worried everything at a half-reasonable price would be booked out. I would suggest to still book in advance if possible to have better options, but if you can handle the backpacker lifestyle and aren’t too picky you can definitely find something when you get here. On the other end, if you have cash to spare you can definitely find a nice resort with rooms available.

Food and Drinks

First thing we did after we finally dropped off all our stuff at the hotel was to get a nice Tiger beer and Pad Thai. I’m not going to go too much into the food because basically everything we had was amazing. My diet consisted of a lot of coconut, mango, seafood, pad thai, pad see ew, chicken tom kah, tom yung goong, and green curry with rice. Everything yum. Price range for each dish or drink was always around 70-150baht. Very reasonable.

The Parties – 3 Nights 3 Parties

The Full Moon party is on the night of the full moon and is the main event but actually the week leading up to the Full Moon party is filled with parties. The streets are busy with travelers from around the world. On my trip I noticed a good amount of travelers from England, France, Holland, and Germany.

So when I arrived I heard a few people talking about the “Jungle Party“. What was that? I thought we were just here for the Full Moon Party. The Jungle Party or Jungle Experience is a party held out in the jungle. It happens every 10 days and 1 day before the Full Moon Party. There is an admission fee of 300baht but I’d say it’s worth it. The party was lively and had the right amount of people. It wasn’t super crowded so that you couldn’t move but there were definitely enough people that the atmosphere was right. It’s literally in the jungle so that by itself is pretty cool – to be partying in a jungle. From where the taxi’s drop you off you have to trek in a little on a path that leads to the party. Once Max and I got inside we saw a Muay Thai ring right by the entrance. They had a fight going on, food stands, and a couple of dance areas all playing electronic music. It was a fun party. I hear that watching the sunrise in the jungle and on the beach are both good experiences, but I didn’t stay out that late either night.

The next day it was time for the…. FULL MOON PARTY!! 🙂

We got a bit of a late start heading out to the Full Moon Party because we spent the whole day at the beach and we were exploring the area. From where we were staying it took about 20 minutes to get to Haad Rin Beach. I’d recommend leaving around 11:00pm but in any case, the Full Moon Party is what you make of it so you can really go whenever you want. On the way there we took a truck taxi (open back and shared ride) which is cheaper than a personal taxi. We shared the taxi with some awesome girls from England. Everyone was in good spirits. Since it was a 20 minute ride we had time to play drinking games and to get neon face paint put on. Upon finding out we did stunt work we had hazard signs drawn on us and formed the “danger crew.” haha 🙂

Once you get to the beach it’s just a massive party with tons of people. There is no admission to get in. There’s a ton of vendors selling food, drinks, etc. The “thing” to drink is these alcohol buckets with straws sticking out of them. Of course there are plenty of other options as well. It’s quite an impressive site seeing all these people at the beach. If you go closer to the water some people are sitting on the sand chillen and if you go further up, there is music blasting and people rocking out. Compared to the Jungle Party there are way more people in attendance. It gets pretty packed if you are stuck in the crowd. It was so crowded that Max lost his phone and then I lost him. I did however find a burning limbo log. People were limbo-ing under it shirtless. After limbo-ing under it, I decided to dive roll over it. Not the smartest idea, but exciting nonetheless. I cleared the log but the flame was so big that it burned off some of my leg hairs and some people helped me put out a small flame that was on my back. haha wow!

All in all a fun event and a spectacle worth seeing. I’m glad I can check “attend Full Moon party” off my bucket-list. I definitely wouldn’t mind coming back again. One thing I would say is that I recommend you go with 3 or more people and really get dressed up and painted for the event. The more you get into it the more fun it will be.

Day 3 of partying, The Waterfall Party

The Waterfall Party occurs the day after the Full Moon Party. It was our third day of going out in a row and we were ready to take it easy, buuut since I came all this way to the island of Koh Phangan, I wanted to check out this third and final party so that I could report back on it. And after all a party in a waterfall sounds pretty amazing and worth checking out right?

Surprise! There were no waterfalls. There were some rocks and a stream where potentially you could imagine a waterfall of sorts. The entire party was very empty. Everyone was either recovering or preparing to head off the island after the Full Moon Party. Lesson learned – Koh Phangan in general gets much quieter the day after the Full Moon Party. Ferry tickets also get booked up quickly if it’s for the day or two after the Full Moon Party.Anyways, this party cost 300baht to get in and comes with a “free drink” upon entry. It’s a party I suggest you can skip. Even the free drink was a bit sketch. Most of the people at this party were either hardcore party-ers, on something, or people who were living on Koh Phangan for a while and had nothing to do.

Beaches and Relaxation – Thong Sala, Haad Yuan, Amsterdam Bar, and Secret Beach

After 3 days of parties it was time to chill. Since we were staying near the Koh Phangan Pier we were closest to Thong Sala beach, which was a 5 minute walk away.

The beach was clean and the ocean water was warm. There were restaurants and bars along the beach. Max and I always got fresh coconuts and mango shakes. We spent many relaxing hours on the beach. We stayed for dinner and had bbq. Below are some pictures of the beach and the surrounding area.

Amsterdam Bar – A Must Visit 

We didn’t go to many bars in Koh Phangan but when we did, it was to Amstardam Bar and Stone Resort (this is the proper spelling). Wow. If I could only check out 3 hangout spots in Koh Phangan this would one of the three places. You arrive and literally see a stone that says Stone Resort. It doesn’t look like much as you walk up this driveway path. Then as you climb, it still doesn’t look like much… but when you near Amstardam Bar you see all these shoes in front and then you feel it. This wave of relaxation and chill vibes hits you. It’s probably worth mentioning that this place offers smokes and “happy shakes”. (I didn’t try any, but their other slushies are amazing.) I had mango juice with vodka for about $6. It tasted delicious and everything was fresh. You could choose whatever fruits you wanted.

 The best and pretty much only time worth going is during sunset. You are high up looking out over the vast ocean and you have a perfect view of the sunset. Highly recommend watching the sunset from here. You can also order food here though since it is so busy the service is quite slow. I’d recommend ordering food right when you arrive or simply chilling until sunset and then head out right after to get dinner.

Haad Rin and Haad Yuan

Remember when I said Amstardam Bar was one of three must see places? Well Haad Rin is where the Full Moon Party is, so that would qualify as another and then there’s Haad Yuan.

Max and I went to check out Haad Rin again after the full moon party. It’s actually quite nice on a normal night. There’s restaurants and bars and you can watch people playing with fire. It’s not nearly as packed but there are still people shopping and eating. It’s a good spot for hanging out.

Now to Haad Yuan – Once you’re on the beach of Haad Rin you take a motor boat (150baht/person) to Haad Rin. 

We went pretty late at night and could see the moon and all the lights from the restaurants. The boat ride itself was a very relaxing and beautiful trip.

However, once you arrive on shore (7min) there is more in store. You walk to your right, passed Big Blue and will find this place called Eden Bar. And wow, Eden Bar is built in within the stone and rocks on the shore. It’s very natural and to get up there you have to climb up rocks and walk across a very Indiana Jones like wooden bridge. It’s another great place to simply relax for hours.

Secret Beach – Not so secret anymore. haha

The last beach I checked out was Secret Beach in Haad Son. The texture of the sand and the landscape was different than Thong Sala. I did a little bit of tricking and flips on the beach. Some people were playing soccer. I watched the sunset. We didn’t do too much here, but it was a relaxing place. There are a few resorts and restaurants on the beach. I actually chilled out at one of the restaurant/bars that overlooked the ocean and fell asleep in their hammock for 2 hours.  The last few days were very relaxed. We left 3 days after the full moon party. Next stop – Ko Samui! Read about some great Muay Thai Camps, beaches, and restaurants in Ko Samui. For convenience most places that you are staying at can book your ferry and arrange a taxi for you (we paid 300baht/person for taxi and ferry ticket).

I’ve been to Thailand a few other times, but I had never been to Koh Phangan. I find that every time I come to Thailand it offers me something new. Each new place offers a completely different experience. I hope this post has provided some insight to Koh Phangan and the Full Moon Party. I hope everyone has the opportunity to check out this beautiful place.