Ko Phangan is widely recognised as the location of the famous full moon party. Thousands of people flock to this small island to experience this party and then recover on a little piece of Thai paradise. The island of Ko Phangan is one of the quietest places we have ventured to in Thailand and is an extremely beautiful place. Quiet golden sandy beaches which are fringed with palm trees and host some spectacular sunsets. The waters are crystal clear, warm and so shallow that you can wade far out and the water never goes higher than your waist. Due to it being a hilly island you can get some amazing views from just about anywhere and you definitely have a relaxed atmosphere here as there are no large resorts and accommodation generally consists of small beach bungalows. Unless you are a complete beach lover or party go-er then I wouldn't recommend this place; Other than the monthly beach party there is little else to do and there is very little within the towns on the island. We decided to stay on the opposite side of the island from the FM party, in a town called Haad Yao as we had heard it was more beautiful and more importantly away from all the madness of the beach party. A golden beach and a couple of restaurants was all that was there. The hotel was also fairly basic; Considering it was the most expensive hotel so far in Thailand it reminded us of the hostels in South America. One bed, a dressing table and a bathroom was all that the room consisted of. Luckily we had paid for Air-Con and the hotel itself had a swimming pool, however there was no TV and we had to ask for fresh towels, loo roll, and had to take out our own rubbish! It felt strange going back to basics after the little luxuries we have had so far in Asia. With very little to do the majority of our time was spent by the pool or walking along the lovely beach. We generally got bored by 3pm, so began drinking, and after a meal out we would retire to watch a DVD on our portable player. We hired a moped one day and headed to the biggest town on the Island, Thong Sala. This is where the port is and where we would be departing from on our way back to Bangkok. After running a few errands and a quick wander round the town, I also found the ideal T-shirt for the full moon party from the hundreds on sale.
The day arrived of the famous full moon party. Dressing in my new Neon T-shirt we made our way to the southern beach Haad Rin to begin the very long night of partying. Reaching the beach at 6:30pm, restaurants were full as people lined their tummies in preparation. Vendors selling glow in the dark products and fluorescent body paint tattoos lined the streets. After a burger and chips we headed to the first bar to order our first drinks. For £6 you could buy a large Alcoholic bucket which consisted of a beach bucket with a small bottle of vodka and a few mixers in it. Getting a neon glow in the dark butterfly painted on my arm we also managed to get hold of some free body paint to use. I painted Jonathan's face and he made a glorious mess of mine! Painted up we eventually made our way to the beach. We are in the low season in Thailand were they average 10,000 people to take part in the full moon party, and 30,000 in high season. The beach was already crowded and every 50 metres lined a different stage playing different music with hundreds of people bopping away. The music generally mixed between rave, trance and dance and Jonathan said some of the trance music reminded him of his younger 'helter skelter days'! Unfortunatly the club music only appealed to me, however this was the busiest part of the beach so was difficult to stand without getting shoved. Because of this we stayed near the middle where it was slightly quieter but still on the edge of the party. We was quite surprised to find a sleep area where if you felt like it you could have a kip for an hour in the middle of everything, with the party people peering down at you. Aswell as the buckets on sale you could also buy souvenirs, street food and Laughing gas. As the night wore on everyone wore out and things started to get messy! Paralytically drunk people were getting carried off to the ambulances and people gradually lost there clothes till they were dancing about in just there swim wear! The sea became a toilet and broken glass littered the sand. To Jonathan's dismay I decided we should go home as 2:30am was long enough for me to stand the mayhem! Arriving back at the hotel we slept off our hangovers before heading to the pool to cool down- Finally the sun had returned and Thailands sky's were once again blue. After a few more beach days we headed back to Thong Sala to stop the night before our early 4:30am departure back to Bangkok. After spot of fishing on the peer we headed for some cheap tea at the local street food Market before retiring for an early night. We didn't sleep a wink! Another expensive and extremely basic guesthouse, however this time with no AC! Boiling hot and mosquito ridden we spent the night tossing and turning and swatting ourselves! Getting up at 3:45am I discovered over 30 new bites! Extremely grouchy we made our way to the ferry in a hope to get some kip on the three hour ferry journey back to the mainland. Overall our time in Ko Phangan was extremely quiet, apart from our night out on the full moon! An island and a party which was definitely worth a look. Off to Bangkok now for our last week in Thailand! How it has flown! Hayls and Jonathan x