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**Sundance2020** · 12-31-2021, 03:39 PM

FAQ: Full Moon Party

Food & Drinks:
There are many restaurants in Haad Rin and most of them are overpriced. Avoid eating at the beach and go a little away from the center and food and drinks will become cheaper. If you want European food “Mamas Schnitzel” is a good and cheap option. There is also a place next to the tourist police station which is pretty cheap for thai food. Buckets are incredibly expensive at the full moon party. Buy your booze before hand. If you travel with friends, try to buy one of these 5 liter buckets and buy the alcohol from a 7-eleven or a supermarket and fill up your bucket before you go to the party. The bucket can be very heavy so share it with your friends!! Don’t drink too much!!

Fire:
It’s all about fire at the full moon party. There are fire performers every couple of meters, you can go down a water slide illuminated by fire and you can jump the fire rode. It’s all a lot of fun when either drunk or sober but you should definitely not try it when you are drunk. If you decide to jump the fire rode please only do it when you are sober and 100 percent confident that you can do it! Many people leave each party with burn marks on their body because they slipped while jumping the fire rope, due to their own mistake or because a drunk idiot meant to join them and fell. So be careful and try to avoid everything that has to do with fire!

Swimming:
Many people think that it is a very good idea to go swimming in the night. Don’t be one of these idiots! First of all the water around the center of the full moon party is full with rocks and coral. If you go there barefoot you will cut your feet, which will hurt for a couple of days afterwards (believe me, I am one of these idiots!). Second of all after 9-10 PM everybody pees into this water, it doesn’t matter if male or female. You will see hundreds of drunk partiers who are lining up to pee into the sea. Very disgusting! So don’t go for a swim!

Drinking:
This party is all about getting drunk, hooking up and having a great time! You should enjoy yourself as much as you can on this party but try to not drink too much. During dinner time you will see the first people passed out at the beach because they thought it would be a great idea to start drinking during the day. The same people I met when I went to bed at 9 AM still sleeping at the same spot! These buckets are poison. They don’t seem to be strong but it’s pure alcohol mixed with a little bit of soft drink and energy drink. They get to your head immediately and before you realize you are wasted! Stay with your friends so you can take care of each other! And don’t accept drinks from strangers! Remember when you were a kid and you built a sandcastle using a little pail? Picture that pail filled with a can of Coke, Thai Red Bull, and 375 ml of alcohol. Now you have a Thai bucket. A few of these, and you’ll be having a really interesting night. They’re deadly! One, two, three, passed out on the beach! Every full moon while I eat dinner, I see newbies drinking buckets before the sun has even gone down. They’re the same people I see passed out on the beach by midnight. A few buckets will get you very, very drunk, so I have a hard-and-fast rule that I and other experienced full mooners follow: no buckets before midnight. If you want to actually see the sunrise, I’d follow it too. (Note: The Red Bull sold in Asia contains ephedra. This substance is like speed. It also negates the effect of the alcohol quickly, keeping you from feeling drunk. Be careful, and watch your consumption of both liquids.)

Thongs:
Don’t loose them… the beach is full with glass and it can be very painful for the days following the party if you step in something!! Partying on the beach without footwear may seem fun, but as the night goes on, broken beer bottles and other sharp objects litter the beach. I’ve had many friends slice open their feet after stepping on a bottle. You’re drunk, it’s dark, and you aren’t always looking where you are going. Avoid a foot injury and just wear something on your feet!

Personal belongings:
Theft is rife during the party. Bring as little as possible. Bring enough money for drinks and your room key. You don’t really need anything else.

Crime:
n the recent years, theft increased tremendously. Organized crime also arrived at this popular party. It’s recommended that you leave everything at home and only carry as much money with you as you need. Leave your key at the reception and enjoy the night. Also take off all your valuables: rings, necklaces etc… (I’m talking from experience). As mentioned before, don’t leave your drink alone and don’t accept drinks from strangers. In the last years there have been many stories of people being drugged and robbed and/or rapped. Be as careful as possible and stick to the people you know! I know people who woke up on a different island with one thong in their hand and all the other valuables gone! Be careful… you have been warned!

Drugs:
Thailand has a very strict anti drug law. I know people who came to the island for one party and spent over one year in court to fight their trial! Police attendance is high during the party! Don’t do drugs !! There are a lot of drugs here, especially during the full moon. All drugs are illegal in Thailand and punishable by time in some pretty bad prisons. Undercover police will try to sell you drugs only to arrest you. Locals will rat you out for a reward. Thais love to crack down on foreigners who are dumb enough to be doing drugs in the open. However, most cops have no real desire to lock you away for smoking a joint or doing a pill. It’s too much hassle and paperwork. They do have a real desire to take a bribe, though. Expect to pay upwards of $1,000 USD for your get-out-of-jail-free card. (Actual bribe varies depending on the cop and your ability to bargain down the bribe.)

Jump Rope:
Picture this. We’re at the bar. I turn to you and say, “Hey friend, let’s go outside. I’m going to soak a rope in gasoline, light it on fire, and then you and some drunk strangers are going to skip rope.” You’d look at me like I was crazy and tell me to get lost. But people on this island do exactly that — they jump over a rope of fire. It’s stupid. You may be the world’s best jump roper, but the drunk guy who decides to join you might not be. At my last Full Moon Party, I saw a lot of people get burned. The rope wrapped around one guy’s arm and burned all the skin off. He had to be rushed to the hospital. It was not a pretty scene. It’s not how you want to remember your holiday.

Costs
Here’s what stuff costs on Haat Rin:

Average Thai Meal: 100-200 THB
Average Western Meal: 200 THB
Banana Pancakes: 30-40 THB
Cheap food sold on the beach: 50 THB
Beer: 80–100 THB (50% less in a 7-11 store)
Cigarettes: 80 THB
Buckets: 200–300 THB, depending on what kind of alcohol. They can be up to 400 THB on New Year’s Eve.
Toilets: 10–15 THB

**Sundance2020** · 12-31-2021, 03:57 PM

How to get to Koh Phangan

There are a few ferry companies that operate routes to Ko Phangan: Lomprayah High Speed Ferries Co., Ltd (the fastest and most expensive), Seatran Discovery, and Songserm, Raja, and Phantip (the slowest and cheapest). Here are some popular ways to get to Ko Phangan:

Boat from Chumphon (Mainland):

Matapon Pier: Leaves daily, takes 5 hours, and is operated by Songserm. 850 THB.
Tung Makham: Leaves daily, takes 3–4 hours, and is operated by Lomprayah. 1,000 THB.

Boat from Surat Thani (Mainland):

Tapee Pier Lomprayah: Leaves daily , takes 2.5 hours, and is operated by Lomprayah. 700 THB.
Surat Thani Seatran (van+boat): Leaves daily, takes 4.5 hours, and is operated by Seatran Discovery. 550 THB.
Surat Thani train station (van+boat): Leaves daily, takes 4 hours and 45 minutes, and is operated by Songserm. And a Lomprayah boat leaves daily, and takes 3 hours and 45 minutes. 400–700 THB.
Surat Thani airport (van+boat): Leaves multiple times an hour daily, takes between 3.5 hours to 6 hours. This route is operated by every ferry company in the area. 500–800 THB.
Donsak Pier: Leaves multiple times daily, takes about 2.5 hours, and is operated by either Songserm, Seatran Discovery, or Raja. 210–450 THB.

Boat from Ko Tao:

Mae Haad Pier: Leaves daily. This route is operated by Lomprayah (takes 1 hour and 10 minutes), Seatran Discovery (takes 1.5 hours), and Songserm (takes 2 hours). 450–850 THB.

Boat from Ko Samui

Bangrak Seatran Pier: Leaves daily, takes 30 minutes, and is operated by Seatran Discovery. 300 THB.
Lipa Noi: Leaves daily, takes 1.5 hours, and is operated by Raja Ferry. 150 THB.
Na Thon Ko Samui: Leaves daily, takes 30 minutes to 1 hour and 15 minutes, and is operated by either Lomprayah or Songserm. 200–300 THB.
Samui Airport (van+boat): Leaves daily, takes 1 hour, and is operated by Seatran Discovery. 450 THB.

Attached Files

**Boomboom** · 04-17-2022, 02:59 PM

Over 10,000 partiers at Thai island’s Full Moon Party

The Thai island of Koh Phangan drew 10,000 tourists to its shores for its Full Moon Party yesterday (Saturday), which hadn’t been held since the Covid-19 pandemic first broke out two years ago. Historically, the party was held on the night of, before, or after every full moon. The road to the beach had shops selling food and drinks, as well as body-painting and clothing stalls.

Ferries departing to the island were fully booked, according to ferry operators, and most of the partiers were foreigners. One Koh Phangan local told the Bangkok Post that the high number of tourists meant the party is still important to many people, even though it’s been put on hold for so long. The local, Manop Sae Tiew, said he believed even more people would be at the next party on May 16. 2022 The road to the beach had shops selling food and drinks, as well as body-painting and clothing stalls.

“Koh Phangan’s beaches are most beautiful on full moon nights. We also have many other attractions which must be preserved”.

Too big to fail: Full Moon Party revives Koh Pha Ngan

In the US, the phrase “too big to fail” is applied to financial institutions whose defaulting would cause the national or even global economy to collapse. So these institutions receive bailouts to keep them afloat in times of economic crisis. In Thailand, our too-big-to-fail institution might be the Full Moon Party. The legendary party, running for nearly 40 years on Haad Rin Beach on the island of Koh Pha Ngan, has been allowed to continue even in times when other parties and gatherings were restricted.

November 2022 marks the first anniversary of the relaunch of the Full Moon Party. Though rarely cancelled or banned – save for the party scheduled for October 17, 2017, just days after the death of King Bhumibol Adulyadej – the party was shut down at the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Closed for Covid

With a party that draws 20,000 tourists, backpackers, and holidaying Thais, the momentum is strong and hard to stop. February 2020 saw one of the biggest Full Moon Parties in history, with surging tourism overwhelming accommodation availability and last-minute partiers wandering the streets in search of a bed. One hotel owner reported receiving phone calls from AirBnB, Expedia, and Agoda, each offering US$1000 to cancel a booking and give them an available room for the night. When Covid-19 lockdown restrictions began in March 2020, officials announced the party was cancelled, but that didn’t deter thousands of tourists who already had plans and showed up anyway. Full Moon Party in March was still huge and wild, but a bit muted, with apprehension about the pandemic and entertainment shutdown that would follow and last for nearly two years.

Covid proved that Full Moon Party was too big to fail, with the economy of most of Koh Pha Ngan collapsing almost immediately after it was clear there would be no party for at least a few months. Nearly every business except for a 7-Eleven and a few street food stalls shuttered, at least half of which never reopened. Even 7-Eleven began closing at 9pm and eventually closed completely for several months as the travel restrictions and closures dragged on. The electric and water companies drove around after the last Full Moon Party in March 2020 collecting outstanding bills, knowing that without the party, no businesses would be able to pay within a few weeks.

Relaunching

Throughout the pandemic, there were rumours of restrictions lifting, alcohol bans and nightlife closures being repealed. But most were nixed as Covid infections climbed in Thailand. In November 2021, officials tentatively announced a small party would be allowed to go ahead. A handful of local businesses on the beach promoted around Thailand to the few travellers that had returned after the July 2021 Sandbox reopening, urging young tourists to come help restart the once massive party. The first Full Moon Party after Covid was small. Very small. After officials flip-flopped on allowing the party, a few hundred people showed up on the beach, with one or two DJs and a handful of bucket sellers. It was a far cry from the hundreds of bars and bucket stalls selling massively oversized cocktails to young backpackers dancing to dozens of DJs and sound systems along the beach and throughout town.

But it gave hope to the people of Haad Rin that business could be revived and Thailand might recover from the pandemic. Numbers picked up in the coming months, with a NewYear’s Eve Party attended by a few thousand people. Covid infections were definitely spread during the parties, but not in numbers as significant as officials feared. By the Songkran holiday in April, the Full Moon Party immediately following it crossed the 10,000 attendee mark and Koh Pha Ngan was coming back to life. Curfew restrictions continued though causing the party to be raided by police between 11pm and 1 am each month and shut down to the dismay and disappointment of partygoers. Some were especially angry after admission was doubled from pre-Covid prices to 200 baht and the party was still shut down early. By July, restrictions had been lifted and attendance surged to 20,000 beach partiers. Full Moon Party had seemingly made a full recovery, until misguided efforts in August led to a last-minute date change, causing thousands of people already booked for an August 13 party to cancel when the date was officially moved to August 12. Attendance dropped in half that month.

Full Moon, Fully Back

No longer hampered by any Covid restrictions, as the last was lifted on October 01 Full Moon Party continues to grow and is now operating at about the same level as before the pandemic struck. Legend says Full Moon Party started as an impromptu beach bonfire for a few dozen people at Paradise Bungalows on Haad Rin Beach in 1983. It grew steadily, helped by appearances in movies like The Beach. After the military coup in 2014, the party was banned and leaders often threatened to shut down Full Moon Party permanently. They aimed to rid Thailand of backpackers and attract wealthy travellers instead (sound familiar?). But bans never stuck and the party went on, with side parties emerging like Half Moon and Black Moon in between the full moons.

The Jungle Experience is set to return the day before Full Moon Party next month. Waterfall Party (now known as Cult), OXA Beach, and other parties are thrown on the nights before and after the main Full Moon Party. Eden and Barcelona have become famous as the isolated (and often drug-fuelled) alternative to Full Moon, running from morning to evening, through the night and into the next afternoon. A huge majority of Koh Pha Ngan’s revenue is based on the tourism drawn to Full Moon Party. Even surrounding islands like Koh Samui and Koh Tao saw massive hits to their economies when Full Moon Party stopped for the pandemic. As incoming tourists creep toward the 10 million arrivals goal set for 2022, Pha Ngan’s economy is finally seeing recovery.

Full Moon Party is too big to fail.

**Xerxes** · 04-22-2022, 01:00 PM

Koh Phang Ngan looking beyond Full Moon parties to more sustainable tourism

The Koh Phang Ngan Hotel and Tourism Association says the island is looking beyond its legendary full moon parties and aiming for more sustainable tourism. The association’s president, Chantana Limsuwan, says the island hopes to welcome 100,000 visitors this year, following the easing of travel restrictions.

The Bangkok Post reports that the Full Moon Party on April 16, coupled with the Songkran holiday, led to a hotel occupancy rate of 85 – 90%, the highest since January. However, 30% of the island’s hotels remain closed.

Chantana says that pre-pandemic, the average hotel room rate during the Full Moon Party period was between 1,500 and 2,000 baht a night. Rooms at beachfront hotels at Haad Rin went for between 3,000 and 4,000 baht. However, she points out that the income generated was just enough to cover payroll and utility bills, due to a rise in operating costs.

Once the Full Moon Party festivities ended, occupancy plunged to 20 – 30%, with room rates dropping to 30 – 50%.

The next Full Moon Party is on May 16, but Chantana says partygoers now tend to book for a shorter period, down from at least a month to around 10 – 15 days. However, hotels targeting long-stay digital nomads already have 15 – 20% advance bookings for May.

Looking beyond the Full Moon Party, officials are now in talks with tourism operators to see how they can add on extra experiences to keep people on the island. Without these, Chantana says visitors will only spend a few nights, before moving on. She is looking to Ibiza, also well-known for its nightlife and parties, for inspiration.

Koh Phang Ngan hopes to offer more in the way of beach clubs and day lounges, as well as holding more events at the legendary Haad Rin beach in an attempt to upgrade its image. She says guest safety will be paramount at such events and security guards will be on duty.

According to Chantana, the island also hopes to capitalise on its wellness facilities and the host of outdoor activities it has to offer, such as sailing and kiteboarding, and its many forests for trekking or trail running.

**Steve** · 05-14-2022, 06:14 PM

Another Full Moon Party in southern Thailand coming up this LONG weekend

Mark your calendars for another Full Moon Party in Thailand’s south, coming up this Monday, May 16. The Full Moon Party has historically been held on Koh Phagnan in Surat Thani on the night of, before, or after every full moon, although it was canceled for 2 years during the Covid-19 pandemic. Now, the party is coming up on Thailand’s public holiday substitution for Visakha Bucha Day (usually an alcohol-free day… cough).

“More than 12 powerful sound systems turn the 800-metre beach into possibly the most popular open-air nightclub in the world once a month, with a lively festival-like atmosphere, great music and huge quantities of alcohol. This one-of-a-kind event is routinely listed on bucket lists as one of the essential experiences in Thailand which absolutely must be seen to be believed.”

The first Full Moon Party since the pandemic broke out last month, drawing over 10,000 partiers to the shores of Haad Rin during the Songkran holiday between April 13-17. Ferries departing to the island were fully booked, according to ferry operators, and most of the partiers were foreigners. The next party is expected to be slightly smaller than the big, grand reopening during Songkran. The president of Rin Beach tourism operators told The Pattaya News the group is expecting 6,000 to 7,000 tourists to join the party. He added that this time, the number of tourists will not top 10,000.

The director of the Tourism Authority of Thailand Surat Thani office, Nantawan Siripokkapan, told Thai media, however, that there are currently 53,541 tourists visiting Surat Thani altogether. She said 36,721 are Thais, and 16,820 are foreigners.

“Hotels and resorts booking rates are at 39.76 percent which is about 2.61 days. The total income will be about 484.77 million baht of which 295.32 million baht are from Thai tourists while 189.45 million Baht are from foreign tourists.”

Last month, Surat Thani earned an income of 895.7 million THB from 83,000 visitors during Songkran.

**Barfly** · 07-07-2022, 01:58 PM

Ferries to Koh Pha Ngan is costing 40% more......

Business owners on Koh Pha Ngan are demanding cheaper ferry charges after they increased by more than 40% since the start of July, impacting businesses and living expenses. For the average car, the ferry service from Don Sak dock to Pha Ngan with the Raja Ferry increased from 620 baht to 900 baht as of July 1. The Raja Ferry company announced that they would be raising the rates due to the current high price of fuel and that it had many years since there had been any increase in the fares. They also have ferries going to Koh Samui and Koh Tao where the fares have also risen by the same amount.

According to the president of the Koh Phangan Hotel and Tourism Association, Chantana Limsuwan, locals and businesses are feeling the pressure with higher prices, especially after Thailand has fully opened to international travellers and businesses were keen to attract as many tourists as possible.

They say that, currently, transportation, building materials and supplies, and food ingredients have all gone up in price. Later this month, the Koh Phangan Hotel and Tourism Association and other Koh Phangan organisations will go over the problems and file a petition to the governor of Surat Thani and the Transport Ministry. Those affected would like the government to progressively raise the ferry price in order to help lessen the sudden impact. They say the occupancy rate on Koh Pha Ngan this month could increase to 60%, surpassing levels during the New Year’s holiday. The island’s usual peak season spans from mid-July through to the end of August.

“Hoteliers can hardly gain a profit amid rising costs. They cannot increase room rates as they want to remain competitive to prevent tourists from shifting to cheaper destinations such as Laos, Vietnam or Bali.”

Some of the Haad Rin hotels are completely booked for the Full Moon Party on July 15. It is anticipated that hotels on the island will be between 70 and 80% full throughout the event.

Announcement

Full Moon Party Dates 2022 | 2023

Full Moon Party Dates 2022 | 2023

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