Ko Pha Ngan

Travelfish on Ko Pha Ngan:
Things to do, sights to see
Transport and timetable information
Around Ko Pha Ngan
Ao Thong Sala to Baan Kai
Haad Rin
Haad Saikantang
Ko Pha Ngan East Coast
Ko Pha Ngan North Coast
Ko Pha Ngan West Coast
Thong Sala
Around Surat Thani province
Ko Pha Ngan
Ko Samui
Ko Tao
Surat Thani
Maps
Ko Pha Ngan: Overview
Ko Pha Ngan: West coast
Ko Pha Ngan: Northeast coast
Ko Pha Ngan: Haad Rin and east coast
Ko Pha Ngan: HaadRin town
Ko Pha Ngan: South Coast
Ko Pha Ngan related discussions from the forum
On Koh Pha Ngan ... anyone recommend a good beach?
ko phan ngan to ko phi phi - advice?
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Further reading
Detoxing with a 7-day colonic fast on Ko Pha Ngan
What's a good beach on Ko Pha Ngan?
Ko Samui, Ko Pha Ngan and Ko Tao Diving Guide
How do I get from Bangkok to Ko Samui, Ko Pha Ngan and Ko Tao?
Should I reserve a room for the full moon party?
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.
Aside from the tourist trade, the mainstays of the island's economy are fishing and coconuts. It's worth knowing that between them, Ko Pha Ngan and Ko Samui produce more than one million coconuts each year for export to Bangkok.
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.
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