Thailand,
As I mentioned in my previous article (Koh Samui for Honeymooners) i was in Thailand in 2015 for Honeymoon and after I get divorced I decided to quit job and going for an Asia Tour. My first stop was Thailand. I had seen Thailand for really limited time something like 1 week and it wasn’t really enough for me. So I decided to visit bottom to top. Let’s begin with the destinations.
Before I booked my ticket for Thailand I checked about Full moon part in Koh Phangan. And decided that it was something i needed.
My flight was from Istanbul to Bangkok. Actually one of my friends decided to come with me for 20 days in last minute decision. So it is better I use ‘’we’’. After 11 hours flight with Turkish Airlines we arrived to Bangkok at 2 PM and our bus was at 8 PM to Koh Phangan. You can book your bus&ferry from www.ferrysamui.com online. Once you arrive to BKK Airport, take a train to city center and get off after 6 stations. Then take a cap or tuk tuk to 92 Ta Nao Road where the bus company’s office is . you can leave your backpack to the office.(cctv is in operation %100 safe) and enjoy you first hours of holiday.
After we left our bags to the office we went to grab some beers and food in Khaosan road. You can see below what I grabbed for food :)
After couple of hours of fun we took the bus and trotted off to Koh Phangan. It takes 11 hours to Surat Thani and then about 2 hours Ferry to Ko Phangan. The ticket fee is 33 usd if you book online.
1-Koh Phangan,
Where to stay... We stayed Thong Yang Bungalow 10 mins away from full moon party beach by scooter. Despite it wasn’t the most comfortable bungalow of the world it was more than fine for us. Even the ocean view was enough to give decision of staying there.
Do you want puff ?We arrived to the island 2 days before the Party and started to explore the island. It is a small island and it is a party island. So there is nothing to do that much kind. But it doesn’t mean there is nothing to be enjoyed; AMSTERDAM BAR, One of the best experiences of my trip. It is on top of the Island and it provides the best view for sunset. I can hear the questions why the bar is called Amsterdam? Yea, I am not a smoker but you can do everything here that you can do in Amsterdam, Netherlands: Happy Flowerssss=)
Ladies and Gents, you might want to check the sunset photo below( heyy there is no filter in the pic):
Amsterdam Bar, Koh Phangan
Time to Party now….
We have checked the beach where the part was (Haad Rin). There was a huge preparation in the morning. In the other side, people already started to get pissed.
Full Moon Party,
I won’t tell you how the party was. I guess everyone knows how the beach parties are. That one is just the biggest one=).
You can go to the area at 7 for eating something before get pissed. A lot of restaurants and street foods are available till morning.
Let’s get the party started,
I suggest you to not wear your best and the most expensive clothes. (I was topless) The body paint is traditional in the party. So these paints find you anyway and ruin your clothes. It doesn’t get off even if you give your clothes to laundry. Suggestion2 do not go with barefoot, prefer flip flops or sandals. There are broken bottles in the sand. So you wouldn’t want your night end up in a hospital. Suggestion3 probably most of you will get pissed and very open to lose your stuffs. No worries I won’t tell you to leave your phone or camera in your room. It would be ridiculous. What is the point if you cannot share it in Instagram of Facebook? =) But you can wear a short or pant with zipped pocket and put your staff securely. Also it saves your stuffs from robbers.
The biggest tip for drinkers, most of you are backpackers like I am. And probably you will travel for months. Therefore the economy should be important. I can say that drinks are not that cheap in some places and sometimes you figure out that you spend so much money the night before when you wake up in the morning. There is a Thai Rum that called SANG SOM. What you can do is, go to 7/11 get one bottle with your friend for 170 Bahts(5 usd), get 2 bottle of soda water, lame, spring water, ice and plastic cups. After drink the bottle, you are ready to go a bar without spend much to get pissed. I assure you won’t have hangover the next day morning because of you mix the Rum with Soda water. It is better drink like a local :)
2-Phuket,
How to go....After a really tough party, it was time to heading to Phuket. We booked our ticket from same travel agency: www.ferrysamui.com it was a 7 hours journey with a combination of ferry and bus. The first time we got in to the city I remember that I was surprised of all the lighting. It was something I wasn’t expected. We stayed in Patong Beach where the nightlife is intense.If you are 2 people you can stay in The Shades Boutique Hotel without hesitation. It is close yo bar street and also just 2 mins walk to Patong beach. If you like the night life but you want to spend your day time with sightseeing, Patong is a good place. Otherwise I suggest you to stay in Karon Beach. It is quiet and also full of some enjoyable bars. Even if you stay in Karon Beach you can still go to Patong Beach for night out by taxi. One way is about 400Baht but of course Thai people always open for negotiation :)
Patong, is full of bars and different kind of nightclubs. The busiest place is Bangla Road. You can enjoy the happy hours in small bars and watch the old English men with their young Asian girlfriends while you having your 70baht Chang beer. After 11PM ILLUZION Night Club is getting busy and that one is the one of my favorite night club that I have ever been in my vocations. Good music but expensive drinks so it is better you make yourself comfortable in some other affordable place. Especially, Fridays and Saturdays are really good and crowded so best days to pick up western chicks :)
Myself is a nature lover, so I stop the nightlife advises here and carrying on with some nature sightseeing =)
Kathu Waterfall, is a small one but really fancy one. It is not a well-known waterfall and that is even better for me. There is a small pool between the trees and rocks that fed by Khatu Waterfall. We stayed there about 5 hours and only seen a few people. They were there for getting married :) yes!! They got married just there! That incident made the place better for us. So Khatu will stay in our minds as sympathetic place always. It is highly recommended for the couples as a hidden and romantic place
Khao Phra Wihan National Park, actually this is why I took that trip. The Asian National Parks… We went there four Turkish people that we met in Phuket. It was a real jungle and we were willing for trekking. Please be advised that you can be face to face of any wild bugs and animal so it is better to wear a proper trekking shoes and clothes. That National park is one of the best for Trekking. Waterfalls, tough uphill tracks, river and more… We didn’t finish it all and gone back after 1.5 hours trekking. If you want to finish all of them I suggest you to go early. But it is not a circle track so you will reach a waterfall in the end and then need to take a taxi to get back to the origin.
Big Buddha, of course Buddha :) as I said earlier you can stay in Karon Beach if you want to be away from a busy night life and the Big Buddha is also close to that area all I can say is about Big Buddha it is on top of a hill and you will enjoy the view worth to see that place. You can check out the below pics.
