After my three-day stint in Singapore in the South Asia Trip in 2009, I traveled back to Bangkok (where we took the disappointing day tour by tuk-tuk). In the evening of that same day we would leave Bangkok to travel to Koh Pha Ngan Island. The only island I visited on this trip.

It was an all-night bus tour to the harbor, where we arrived early the next morning. Unfortunately, the slow boat was already fully booked so we had to take the more expensive (and more sickening) fast boat. I thought because we would get there quicker I would be OK on the sea, but the weather was not going to play along with this thought and the ride was actually really bumpy due to the storm. This weather lasted the whole stay on the island.

Creepy Hostel

The first hostel we checked into on the island was in the creepiest Texas Chainsaw Massacre setting you could imagine. There was no one in the huts and it seemed like we would be the only visitors. It was also nowhere near the beach. Add to that the gloomy and rainy weather… Needless to say, we didn’t want to stay there overnight. Instead we had a short nap during the day and straight after we checked out and moved down to the beach.

Haad Rin

Our new hostel was Baan Paradise in Haad Rin, which is the peninsula where the Full Moon Party originated. Our new hostel was beautiful and good value for money. We paid 12 euro for a bungalow with three beds and a private bathroom (Note: this was in 2009 so a lot could have changed, I couldn’t find it on the internet so this hostel might not even exist anymore). Even though it was right on the beach, we were not particularly lucky when it came to the sun; both two days we spent on the island were spent with cloudy skies.

Black Moon Party

After our nap in the afternoon we were ready to master the Black Moon party. Koh Pha Ngan used to host many parties (even though the Full Moon Party was the one that started it) among them the Half Moon, Quarter Moon and whatever moon you could come up with. Since 2009 a lot has changed. A new government has decreed that only the Full Moon Party should be hosted (if any) because all these massive parties are not in line with the new views of tourism in Thailand and the locals of the island have way to much disturbance by all these parties. I can fully understand that. I only went to the Black Moon Party (not nearly as massive as the Full Moon equivalent) and it was not my thing at all. It was a rave with a lot of colours and a lot of crazy intoxicated people (LSD, shrooms, and alcohol). The buckets of alcohol kept coming but I couldn’t find my swing, neither could one friend of mine so we left early. My other friend continued partying until 12pm the next day.

Haad Rin Beach

The first full day in Koh Pha Ngan was spent on Haad Rin beach staring at the cloudy sky. It could’ve been because of the financial crisis or because it was summer and therefore monsoon season, but it was quiet and the beach was completely desolated.

Fire Shows
At night we went to Drop-In bar which is famous for its nightly Fire shows. I have since learnt that these people are masters in the art of Poi. Google it and you’ll see how impressive it looks. It’s fascinating to witness this on the beach at night, and the whipping of fire makes for great pictures. The area outside the Drop-In bar is great for lounging so this was, in my opinion, the better night of the two spent on the island. After the tourists had a few drinks the more dangerous element of the night came into play. There would be fiery rope jumping and musical chairs. I can’t tell you how many people were swooped upside down by the fiery rope, so I did not attempt this at all. I didn’t want to be branded by this event for the rest of my life. My friend hurt her ankle with the musical chairs because they thought it would be a good idea to dance around chairs on the sand…

The last day in Koh Pha Ngan we spent roaming around Haad Rin’s little town, enjoying lunch and watching Friends in one of the cafes. At 4pm on that day we traveled back to Bangkok (by boat and bus) to travel on to Ayutthaya by train.

Conclusion

All in all the two day stay in Koh Pha Ngan was OK. Looking back I would’ve spent my time differently; off the beaten track. I think Koh Pha Ngan will have beautiful beaches that are not near Haad Rin and I think it would’ve been much more worthwhile to explore other areas of the island. Haad Rin is touristy and this has left its mark on the beaches and the surrounding area (even in summer when there are hardly any tourists). I should have explored more untouched land on this island, but this is a lessons learnt for future trips.