Ko Phangan - Relaxed beaches instead of the fullmoon party

Our sunset terrace on Haad Salad beach

Another island close to Koh Samui is Koh Pha Ngan (also know as Koh Pangan). It is a little bigger than Koh Tao and still has a lot of lonely beaches on the east coast. As we were looking for a place less touristy than Koh Tao but still easy to reach by land, we decided to stay five nights in Haad Salad in the north west of the island. As it was still low season and no full moon party took place, we got a very good deal. You can book something through one of the well known websites like booking.com or agoda.com or you can ask the hotels directly.

Kayaking from beach to beach

This time, we used Agoda, but walk-in guests we met got the same price: about 800 THB (20 EUR) including an awesome breakfast buffet in the Salad Beach Resort. We had one of the cheaper rooms a little further from the beach. From there you walk first through a beautiful garden with the little bit more expensive bungalows, past the nice pool to the restaurant, beach and massage area. On a terrace directly over the beach you can enjoy perfect sunsets every evening, drinking a cocktail in your comfy chair. We got really spoilt by the hotel and nature. The entire island offers white sandy beaches but I think we picked the most beautiful ones.

One day we rented a kayak from the hotel (800 THB/20 EUR) to discover the closest beaches to the north and to the south. This way we had easy access to some lonely, stunning places and could snorkel along the coast wherever we wanted.

The next day we rented a motorbike to discover the rest of the island. The streets are very steep in some places and there can be a lot of sand on the road, which makes driving more dangerous than in Western countries. We met plenty people with so called Bali tattoos, but we drove very carefully, so we never had any problem. It was my first time riding a motorbike all by myself! Many cafes and restaurants along the road are willing to spoil you with local food and fresh fruit shakes.

 

 

The people who staid around Haad Salad were more our kind than those on Koh Tao and we made wonderful friends there. All in all this beach is very romantic, perfect for couples and families who look for a stunning but quiet place. The south of the island is more for party people (that's also where the monthly fullmoon party takes place), the east coast is perfect for meditation and yoga, as it is really far from everything and still less developed.

We enjoyed our time on Koh Pha Ngan very much and didn't like to leave the island in the end.

More pictures from Koh Pha Ngan