Surviving the Ultimate Full Moon Party and Songkran in 7 Days – Day 2
Koh Pha Ngan is known as party island. Its infamous full moon parties have made this island very popular, but you must know that you can still attend a beach party there even when it is not a full moon, because there may be a half-moon party going on or a no-moon party or just any party for any excuse! But madness of a full moon party is incomparable, which is why I and Richie are here.
Highlights of the Day
- One Love Dome at Koh Pha Ngan
- Full Moon Party
Time to Say Bye to Koh Nang Yuan
One of the things I dislike about few hotels or resorts is early check-out time. In Nang Yuan Island Dive Resort, the check-out time is 10 AM, which maybe a bad idea if you want to sleep until late or you have a connecting ferry late. I managed to get up a little early and rushed to the viewpoint to catch a glimpse of the sunrise.
Breakfast was included with our stay. First we checked out and kept our luggage at the reception. There were toasts, butter, jam, customized eggs, fried rice, pasta, and meat. If you are a vegetarian or vegan like me, you must let them know a day before or you can also mail them prior to your arrival about your food habit.
We had booked our transfer from Koh Nang Yuan to Koh Pha Ngan by Lomprayah high speed catamaran. It was scheduled at 3 PM, but it got delayed by almost an hour.
One Love Dome – an Unforgettable Stay
This place was so different than any place I have stayed in before in Thailand.
We had booked One Love Dome in Thong Sala, Koh Pha Ngan. Ivan owns the place, but he was away, so he had sent his friend Nico to pick us up from the pier. He had a scooter in which only one of us can go, so he managed to arrange a motorbike taxi from the pier to his place for Richie, and he also paid for it. The place is only 15-20 min away from the pier. We were welcomed by Rose and two lovely pets – Maya and Shiva.
I highly recommend travelers to stay here when you are at Koh Pha Ngan, but make sure to book well in advance as there is only one dome for two as of now.
The location of the place is excellent. It is in a peaceful area, away from the crazy party crowd. The beach is just opposite the road with amazing sunrise and sunset views. 7-11 is a 10 min walk away. There are great places to eat nearby. The full moon party beach is 40 min away and is well connected with taxis at any hour. The host is awesome, and is just a phone call away. I wish I could meet Ivan but he was out of town, maybe next time, as I am going to go there soon again.
Full Moon Party
Finally, the epic full moon party night is here – one of the wildest parties around the world. The party is held at the Sunrise Beach, Haad Rin, an idyllic island on the south coast. It was past midnight when we headed to the party beach. Taxis ply all time, and it cost us 200 ฿ per head to get a ride to the beach from One Love Dome.
Finally, we survived the party, yes we were safe and alive the next morning. We danced crazy, we got sloshed, we slept on the sand, we do not know when and how, but we were safe at the end.
Tips to Survive
Here are few tips to survive this mayhem that I would love to share with the first-timers:
- Do not carry anything valuable with you that you would regret losing later. For example, passport, credit cards, and too much of cash.
- Be careful if you want to trip – the party is about drugs for many, but be careful while experimenting with drugs. It is not only for your health, but you may also end up in a Thai prison. You may end up paying catastrophic bribes as it is said that Thai police are usually present there in civil dress.
- Single trip to washroom costs 20 ฿ and also far, so many finish their job in the sea water, so do not go close to the water.
- Wear shoes or strong flipflops as the beach soon turns out to be a den of discarded glass bottles, though we noticed few bar staff were constantly cleaning empty alcohol buckets, straws, and glass bottles from the beach.
- Keep an eye when you purchase the alcohol buckets. Make sure the bartender is mixing your drink as you want it.
- Let the professional fire dancers perform fire jump ropes and other fire-related fun activities. Though you would find many others joining them too, but if you are sloshed, do not take the risk.
- If you have come from other islands like Koh Samui, do not take the speedboats back to the islands at late night. Please wait for the daytime. The water is mad at night during the full moon. Speedboats are too speedy – there have been incidents of people falling off from the boat.
- For people who are staying at Koh Pha Ngan itself, please take the taxis. Avoid the speedboats to avoid water accidents or wait until the sun rises.
- If you are wondering where to sleep, do like what we did. Sleep on the sand – best place for the night, just stay away from the water.
The pandemonium of the party was of a different level – very difficult to put them in words. You need to witness it yourself, and you must attend one such party once in a lifetime, or maybe more. The rave happens once every month during the full moon, and you can easily find the scheduled dates online.
Surviving the Ultimate Full Moon Party and Songkran in 7 Days – Day 3
The sun shone bright and gave me a very hard time to open my eyes and see anything clearly. I could still listen to the music loud, I checked the mobile, it was almost 9 AM. I could still see people dancing wildly on the beach. Yes, the party continues until the morning and it seems never-ending!
Highlights of the Day
- Back to Your Accommodation and Relax
Rest Today
We slept for hours after coming back to our dome.
We both were so sloshed, but somehow managed to get a taxi back to our dome. Lucky that I could make the taxi driver understand where we wanted to go. Many others could not even do that. Though the driver patiently asked each of them in the taxi where they wanted to go. The driver even talked to the hotel receptionist if possible, and finally dropped them. We were among the last ones to get dropped. However, we reached One Love Dome safely.
After we woke up, we were really hungry. I remember Richie had a slice of pizza last night. My last meal was still the breakfast last day at Koh Nang Yuan. We got fresh soon and hurried for some food. There were many restaurants nearby.
Even at night, we could not really eat much but settled with few snacks bought from the 7/11 nearby. All we preferred to do today was take rest, and just relax.
Goodnight!
NET EXPENSE FOR 1 PERSON (IN THB)
Let us have a look at the expenses of Days 2-3 in Thailand – Koh Pha Ngan.
- Koh Nang Yuan to Koh Pha Ngan: 600
- Hotel in Koh Pha Ngan for twin sharing (2 nights): 1000
- Getting around: 400
- Food: 400
- Miscellaneous: 650
Total expense (roughly): 3050 THB
For an overall idea of itinerary and expense of the trip, whether for solo or couple or group of any number of people, feel free to contact me on Contact Us page. You can also have a look at Surviving the Ultimate Full Moon Party and Songkran in 7 Days – Itinerary and Expenses.
If you are planning for a much-organized, tastefully-curated, stress-free yet exciting vacation, consider booking your holidays at Travel Love Repeat. It is going to be a treat for sure!
I’ve always wanted to experience a full moon party but didn’t get the chance when I went to Thailand a few years ago. Good article here, and I especially like your highlight of rest day afterwards haha!
You cannot survive without the rest day!
The love dome looks like a place I would not feel comfortable in just because it doesn’t have a lot of windows.. did you feel suffocated?
Surprisingly it had a lot of ventilators near the roof, on the sides below. We did not feel suffocated at all.
I gotta feeling that I would love Full Moon Party! Finland, where I live, is very boring. So when I get to a country that knows how to party – I do it like it is the last day on earth.
And here I am dying to get to Finland soon to have some peace!
I actually went to the Full Moon party a number of years ago, and had a blast, but it sure is a wild time!
It’s lit, forever!
I’m not sure the Lunatic Full Moon party is my kinda thing – I’m not big into parties at the best of times, and would prefer quieter adventures 😉 but your guide is very helpful to anyone who will be visiting! x
I am glad to know that.
Full moon parties in Thailand are incredible… we have been to 3. Phi Phi isalnd, Koh Pha Ngan and Phuket. They all get a little crazy but we loved dancing the night away. Just watch out for those buckets!
That’s lovely, Lisa.
I’ve heard a lot about those full moon parties in Thailand but have never been to one. It sounds like the crowd can be massive. You could probably even call it a modern cultural experience in 21st-century Thailand.
Yes, it’s a crazy one!
We love Koh Pha Ngan – we spent a month there a few years ago and experienced the full moon, half moon, quarter moon, black moon parties – we didn’t party but we were staying near Thong Sala and could hear the party going on. What cool accommodation you stayed in I have never heard of it before. We can’t get enough of Thai food – it is definitely our favourite cuisine.
Oh man, you are lucky!
The moonlight party at Koh Phangan is a spectacular experience that I think everyone should try at least once. I usually don’t like things that are overhyped but this party completely satisfied all of my expectations. The place you stayed in looks really cool too 🙂
Thanks Daniel.
The full moon party sounds liker a wild time. I guess they don’t really need the moon as an excuse to party. Thanks for the advice to stay away from the waters edge.
Hahhahaa true, they have half-moon parties too!
This sounds like such an awesome experience. I’m glad you indicated some tips that I definitely wouldn’t have thought of like steering clear of the water. This full moon island party will definitely be added to my bucket list!
This place is a kill!
I went to Ko Phangan two years ago and really enjoyed it! Although I missed the full morn party I went to some similar parties and they were mental too! I like your tips for staying safe especially about getting a boat back at night. I hadn’t thought of that but very good point!
I know, it is going to be awesome there.
I loved the view from your beach villa and to get up with a view of rising sun is like a dream holiday. I was not knowing about full moon part of Koh Pha but it really looks interestingly wild. I loved those neon attires as they glow at night and really mixes with the theme. Thanks for sharing all tips, especially the safety ones.
The neon attires are really cool!