Although best known for its full moon parties, which attract thousands of travellers from all over the globe, there is a lot more to stunning Ko Pha Ngan than getting trashed and passing out in the powder-soft white sand. Ko Pha Ngan has swathes of beautiful beaches, great walks, adventurous boat and fishing trips and even kite-boarding. Equally compelling for many is just spending a few weeks in a hammock, watching the sun rise and fall.

Ko Pha Ngan is the second largest island after Samui in the southern Gulf of Thailand, and is around 100km from the mainland. Stretching over an area of 168 sq km, 70% of its topography is mountainous with the remainder beaches and coconut groves. Over 10,000 people permanently live on the island, with the majority concentrated around Thong Sala. A huge number of migrants also call the island home, so the guy taking your dinner order is as likely to be from Roi Et as Thong Sala. As in the rest of Thailand, most people are Buddhist, but some Muslims live in the village of Baan Tai. The first inhabitants of the island are believed to have been Muslims from Pattani or Malayans from Nakhon Sri Thammarat.

The best time to visit Ko Pha Ngan is during the hot season from January to April. May to December sees the monsoon set in, with poor weather and a quick deterioration in road quality. The crowds thin out then, however, making the island appealing to some travellers.

Getting There

The closest airport to Ko Pha Ngan is on Ko Samui. There are regular flights from Bangkok (and elsewhere to Ko Samui). From the airport it is a short ride to the pier on Ko Samui that runs boats to Haad Rin on Ko Pha Ngan. A second option is to fly to Surat Thani (on the mainland) as the tickets are slightly cheaper, but the longer trip (from the airport to the pier and then a considerably longer ferry ride) pretty much wipes out the saving in airfare.