Haad Rin Beach
Haad Rin sits on a narrow headland at the south-eastern corner of Koh Phangan, and it is really two beaches sharing one small peninsula. The eastern strand, Haad Rin Nok or Sunrise Beach, is the long curve of pale sand that the Full Moon Party has called home since the 1980s. The western strand, Haad Rin Nai or Sunset Beach, sits a short walk across the headland and is where the speedboats and ferries from Koh Samui dock at the pier. You can cross between the two on foot in a few minutes, which makes this one of the easiest places on the island to wake up to a sunrise and end the day watching the sun drop over the water.
The two beaches set the tone for everything here. Sunrise is the wide, photogenic party stage, lined with bars, tattoo shops, pharmacies, fire-show crews and late-night clubs; on the night of the full moon it fills with tens of thousands of people. Sunset is the calmer, more functional side, with the pier, guesthouses and a string of quieter restaurants. If your idea of a beach holiday is solitude and snorkelling, Haad Rin is not it. If you want to be in the middle of the action with food, drinks and transport all within walking distance, this is the densest, most convenient corner of the island.
- Two beaches on one headland: Sunrise (Haad Rin Nok) for the party, Sunset (Haad Rin Nai) for the pier and evening light
- Home of the monthly Full Moon Party, running on the sand since the 1980s
- Sunrise Beach has the softer sand and clearer water for swimming on non-party days
- Sunset Beach holds the ferry and speedboat pier to and from Koh Samui
- Densest cluster of bars, restaurants, hostels and shops on the island — everything within a short walk