Koh Phangan - The Good, The Bad and The Ugly

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Koh Phangan, once an idyllic island famed for it’s amazing turquoise waters sitting in front of a backdrop of white sand beaches and lush jungle. It was the destination of choice for long term backpackers and hippy ex-pats, who would once see out their whole allocation of Visa on this relaxed and remote island, some still do. It is now however more unfortunately known for its party scene and the monthly full moon parties.

This lead’s me nicely on to the title of this blog; The Good, The Bad and The Ugly.

Good

We disembarked from our ferry at Thong Sala pier in Koh Phangan at the re-scheduled time of 7am and thanks to the early arrival, the taxi mafia were still fast asleep so we had a relatively relaxing stroll to our pick-up point. We had only decided very late in the day that we would spend NY on Koh Phangan so our accommodation options were thin on the ground. Our good friend Steve had managed to find a place in Haad Yao called ‘Ling Sabai Bungalows’ which literally translates as the Happy Monkey. Our correspondence with the Swiss/English owner Joe beforehand had been nothing short of very professional so any apprehension we originally had about this booking had vanished . . . This soon returned briefly when he greeted us at the pier on the back of a moto-bike wearing a set of Super Mario Pj’s. However, he was so friendly and polite, offered to buy us breakfast and we immediately knew that regardless of the accommodation we would be staying in (which actually happened to be great), we would be in good hands with this charismatic, slightly crazy owner.

After a quick check in and freshen up whilst admiring the gorgeous views of Haad Yao bay from our bungalow terrace, we decided to head down onto the beach and soak up some sun, I mean we were really starting to miss sitting on the beach as it had been a whole 48 hour since we had last seen one.

Now we had visited Haad Yao twice before; once it continuously rained for 4 days, the other time it was low season and so hot that the beach was virtually deserted and most restaurants were closed. This time however there was a nice buzz about the place, the sea was gorgeous and the white sand up the far end of the beach was like talcum powder. In between dips in the sea we had a nice lunch sitting on the beach and sharing a couple of mango shakes. We then headed back to our Bungalows to meet Steve who was to be arriving on a later ferry. Unfortunately he had made a mistake with his booking, so Joe offered to set him up a bed on the terrace restaurants floor for night, but it wasn’t going to make too much of a difference to him as we had planned to go to the Full Moon Party that evening.

That evening we had a deicious meal at the bungalows (Pam is a great chef) and started getting ready for the Full Moon Party by painting ourselves with UV paint and having a few buckets. We had never been to a Full Moon party when there has been an actual full moon before so we were excited to see what it was like. A group of us set off in a taxi for the 40 minute journey but the minute we got to Haad Rin the three of us lost everyone else as it was so busy! We found a spot and danced for hours on the beach (which was pretty packed but not as bad as it would be on NYE) soaking up the atmosphere which was great, before leaving about 4am after a really fun night. Joe was awake when we got back (he never seemed to sleep) so we chatted with him for a while and got to bed about 5am in the end, so needless to say the next day wasn't very productive and involved laying on the beach for a while before going for a bite to eat and going to bed before midnight. That night we were woken up by a biblical storm - it had to be the loudest thunder we had ever heard and the cracks of lightening in the sky were like something from a sci-fi film. The rain was really heavy and we thought our bungalow was going to blow away at one point as the wind was so strong, and the next morning it was quite overcast with rain on and off all day so we didn't venture too far.

As it was the night before NYE we decided to stay local and not have a really late one, but that changed when we saw a beach party advertised at Haad Yao! A couple of girls from England had arrived at Joe's that evening so along with them and a Dutch guy we all went down to the beach that night and enjoyed a live fire show before the beach party, which despite some rain was really good fun (probably my favourite on the island) and we went home via the 7-11 where I have now discovered a new found love for their footlong hot dogs, infused with cheese which kind or resemble a cross between a long piece of pink plastic and an out of date cheese string but make a great snack at the end of the night.

New Year's Eve came around and we had more new arrivals at Joe's, so there was about 12 of us getting ready for the full moon party that night which was really fun. We were all painting each other and drinking buckets whilst chatting and listening to good music so it was a great atmosphere which continued in the taxi to Haad Rin. We were a bit late leaving Joe's so didn't get to Haad Rin until 11.45pm and pushed our way through the crowds so we could get to a point to watch the fireworks at midnight. We lost everyone straight away but found a great spot to watch the countdown and fireworks from, which were amazing, then we danced for a while and randomly bumped into a couple we met weeks ago in China as well as a local Thai guy/girl (depending on his/her mood) from one of the hotels we went to 2 years ago. After that we went back down to the beach and tried to get back into the party spirit but it just wasn't happening - see below!

The night after NYE, everyone was after a big munch to cure the hangovers, we had been to a restaurant in Haad Yao before which funnily enough was called Crave. It is owend by a Canadian/Australian couple and it specialises in HUGE home made burgers with either Brie/Cheddar/Blue Cheese topped with homemade mayonaise and onion rings. It seemed the whole of the island had had the same idea to try out one of the self-proclaimed best burgers in Thailand and although we had to wait a while for our food, there was a great mix of locals, ex-pats and travellers and we enjoyed our food whilst watching the football.

A final mention has to go out to Joe the owner at Ling Sabai Bungalows. He was one of the nicest guys either of us had every met on our travels. He would constantly go out of his way to check everything was ok and was a complete fountain of knowledge on most of South East Asia. Pam, his trusted side kick cooked up amazing massaman curries and was always on hand with a friendly smile. If we do ever go back to Koh Phangan, we would definately stay here.

Bad

The accommodation situation on Koh Phanagan , according to many locals, is destroying the island. Small family run beach bunglows which used to consist of maybe 10 thatched huts on a white stretch of beach are being torn down and replaced by high rise resorts with 200+ rooms. In the last 10 years alone the population of the island and visitor numbers have spiralled out of control and the impact is really starting to show. Haad Rin itself is nothing short of a complete mess, from the rubbish on a once beautiful beach to the fact that it is virtually impossible to find an authentic Thai dish on any menu. Apparently aside from once a month when full moon parties take place it's actually pretty quiet in Haad Rin, but we still wouldn't want to stay there - it's less Thailand and more Magaluf with the streets crammed with tattoo shops, chemists, bars and Western restaurants, not to mention the big resorts looming over the beach.

As a traveller, you occasionally meet people on the road who you stop and wonder why they are actually travelling in the first place, they usually have zero interest in the culture, have no intention of even trying anything other than a pizza and chips and seem to have the sole mission of just going out, getting drunk every night and maybe looking for a bit of trouble. Now if you went the World over and rounded up all these ‘special’ travellers and then multiplied that number by about 7, you would get somewhere close to the clientele at the New Years Eve Full Moon Party. It’s horrible to generalise and of course there are lots of people who just come for a good time, us and the people we were with included, but the number of idiot’s here (mainly British & Australian guys) was far more than just the minority and surely just because it is NY Eve it’s no excuse to act a complete and utter moron - 3 nights ago at the actual Full Moon party the atmosphere was totally different.

Add that to the fact that the tide was so far in the beach was quite narrow, 100,000 people squeezed into every possible inch of sand so you had zero space and 95,000 of those people had way too many buckets, and it made for a bit of an underwhelming night for us, although the fireworks at midnight were amazing and we enjoyed the UV painting beforehand at Joe's with everyone, so it wasn't all bad, we just didn't enjoy the main event that much.

Ugly

Although we never witnessed any trouble ourselves on New Years’ Eve, we heard several stories of pick-pocketing taking place along the beach and subsequently read the tragic news about a young guy from South London who was caught in the crossfire of a bullet and lost his life. Apparently a row kicked off between two groups of Thai men and this was the sad outcome. It's things like this which add to the bad reputation the island is getting (from locals and foreigners alike), even if it really is solely only down in this corner of Koh Phangan once a month, and it feels like if the full moon parties (especially NYE) aren't taken into control soon and numbers reduced, it will only get worse. That said, we have been twice now at NYE and loved it in 2010, and we understand that everyone's experience differs and if you haven't been then go and make your own mind up - two years ago we had a great time, it just shows how things (and people?) change.

All said and done, the north, east and west sides of this island are still picture postcard pretty, the people are friendly and if you steer clear of Haad Rin you will find part of the real Thailand here. We still enjoyed our time on the island thanks to our stay at Joe's and the great people we met there, and would go to Koh Phangan again as it's a beautiful island, but just not to another Full Moon party. Happy New Year everyone!

S&V's Travel Info & Tips:

General Info: Approx 48 Baht to £1.

Transportation: From Bangkok to Koh Phangan we got an overnight bus-boat combo ticket with Lompraya who are one of the best companies to go with as they are safe and travel time is quick. The ticket cost 1,200 Baht as it was peak season, it's usually a bit less. Joe picked us up from Thong Sala pier but a shared taxi is usually 150 Baht per person. From Haad Yao to Haad Rin for the full moon parties a share taxi costs 200 Baht per person each way, so not cheap.

Food: Great food at Ling Sabai bungalows where we ate most of our meals. A bit more expensive than the mainland but island food usually is. If you are craving Western food Crave is a good option just opposite the 7-11 in Haad Yao.

Accomodation: We loved our stay at Ling Sabai bungalows and can't reccomend them enough! We paid 450 Baht per night for a fan bungalow with cold water, they have smarter ones with hot water for 750 Baht and also cheaper wooden ones at 400 Baht. 2 minutes from the beach with great views over the bay.

Other observations:

x) The taxi mafia still exist here but it seemed a lot better than before and prices appear more fair and fixed which is a good thing, although they are still more expensive than most other parts of Thailand.

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Comments

[Beata and Tomek]

missing beach and tan
when I look at you guys I keep wondering if you can get more tanned hahah our skin tone is almost back to normal as it is not easy to find such paradise spots like yours SA;-( keep having fun Beata