Beaches on Koh Phangan
Koh Phangan is much more than Haad Rin. The island has over twenty named beaches spread across five distinct coastlines, and the right beach for your trip depends almost entirely on what you want from the sea — sunsets, snorkelling, seclusion, families, parties, or simply a stretch of sand to call your base for a week.
The west coast is the island's social backbone: five beaches, all facing due west, all set up for the evening ritual of sundowners as the sky turns. The northwest corner, quieter and less visited, holds the island's best snorkelling reef around Koh Ma. The north coast has roadless coves, a working fishing village with dive boats for Sail Rock, and some of the most genuinely off-grid beaches in the Gulf. Thong Nai Pan in the northeast offers year-round swimming in clear, deep-enough water without the tide-watching that defines the west coast. And the southeast, centred on Haad Rin, runs from the Full Moon Party to secluded wellness bays to a beach with royal history carved in stone.
Below, each coast is mapped with its beaches and what to expect from each one.