When my friends began planning their trip to Thailand, they had one requirement: that we attend a Full Moon Party. They didn’t know a lot about the party but they had heard so much about it over the years, they knew they had to go. After all, the Full Moon Party is infamous. The mere mention of it conjures up images of a wild, alcohol-fueled beach party where people from around the world have a great time and dance until sunrise.

But what is this party? How did it come about? Why is it so popular? And most importantly – how can you get there yourself!? I’ve been to seven Full Moon Parties over the years, and I can tell you that there is a certain way to experience this party to avoid overpaying, getting injured, finding good accommodation, and making sure you’re still up at sunrise.

What is the Full Moon Party?
Legend has it that in 1987 (or maybe 86? or 88?) a group of backpackers threw a birthday party for their friend on the night of the full moon. They had such a good time that they came back the following year to do it again and then the following month and then the month after that. Word got out and more people started coming each month.

At first, it was like a small house party on the beach – a few hippies and backpackers playing guitars, smoking weed, and having a few beers. But as word spread and more people showed up, it changed. The 1990s brought the rave scene and all the drugs that went along with it. By 2000, this party was squarely on the travel map and hordes of young people inspired by the movie “The Beach” flocked to Ko Phangan and, since then, the Full Moon Party has only gotten bigger.

Now, the Full Moon Party is a giant festival-like party with a lot of drinking, dancing, drugs, and sex. Each bar has their own sound system so you’ll hear different music loudly blasting onto the beach every few feet. The beach itself is lined with people selling alcohol, fire dancers putting on shows, and little booths selling glow-in-the-dark face paint. By the end of the night, you’ll see people passed out on the beach, the odd couple having sex, and lost flip-flops littering the beach looking for new owners.

Despite the party’s obvious commercialization, it is still a lot of fun and people come here looking for nothing but a good time. It’s rare to see any of the problems (i.e fights) you might normally associate with 40,000 young, drunk people. People here are just looking for a good time and the energy is very positive.

When is it?
As the name would suggest, the party is on the night of the full moon. It you miss it, there’s always the half-moon party, quarter moon party, and black moon party. Really, every night is a party here on Ko Phangan.

This website has the dates of all the Full Moon Parties.

Accommodation

There’s accommodation all over the island but you’ll want to stay in Haad Rin (where the actual party is) so you can be close to the action. If you want to find accommodation, you’ll need to come here at least FOUR days before the party in order to find a cheap (and nice) place to stay. The closer you get to the actual night of the party, the more you’ll need a miracle to find something – at any price range. I’ll never understand the travelers who just show up the day of or the night before and think they’ll find a place to. They never do. I’ve sat at restaurants and watched the same people wander up and down the street many times in a fruitless attempt to find something.

How much does a room cost?
Here’s what you can expect to pay for your bed:

Dorm room (there are now a lot of dorms here, something that wasn’t the case a few years ago): 300 Baht per night
Regular room with A/C and hot water: 500-800 Baht per night
Really nice room: 1000 – 1500 baht
Basic bungalow: 800 Baht per night
Really nice bungalow: 2,000 – 3,800 Baht per night

$1 USD = 30 Baht

The closer you get to the Full Moon the more the prices go up. The day of or the day before the party, any accommodation left is going to be double the price listed. And if you come here for New Years, you can expect the price to triple, with many places also including an expensive holiday dinner that is mandatory. (Just another way to get more money from you!)

My friends and I arrived 5 days before the full moon and found a lot of cheap accommodation still available. We settled on a room we would all share for 1,500 baht. A few days later, the cheap accommodation was gone and all that was left were the high-end rooms that cost more money than a night at the Hilton but without the Hilton quality.

Lesson: Come early, get a room, enjoy the party, and say no to stress.

Should you book online in advance?
No, not even if you are going there for New Years. The accommodation you’ll find online will be the most expensive on the island and require long minimum stays (sometimes as many as 10 nights). There is a lot of accommodation in Haad Rin and most aren’t on online booking services like Hotels.com or Agoda. You will only find them by showing up. Just come early and you will have no problem finding a room.

A good alternative to Haad Rin is Ban Tai beach. It’s the beach over from Haad Rin and where a lot of people stay when rooms start to fill up. It’s a short and inexpensive taxi from Haad Rin. If you stay on the northern part of the island, you will be very, very far away from the party and, though boat taxis and normal taxis run frequently, they are expensive.

How to Get There

There’s no airport on the island so everyone comes by ferry. You can come via Surat Thani on the mainland, or from the nearby island of Ko Samui. From Surat Thani, roundtrip tickets cost 600 Baht and drop you off at the main pier in Thong Sala. From there it is a 100 Baht taxi ride to Haad Rin. From Ko Samui, boat tickets cost 200 baht and leave from Big Buddha Pier or Maenam beach. The Samui ferry will drop you off at the main dock of Thong Sala or Haad Rin depending on time of day and ferry company. During the Full Moon Party, boats go from Ko Samui to Haad Rin every hour.

A lot of companies run overnight buses from Bangkok to Ko Phangan for 450 – 600 Baht. This price also includes the ferry. You’ll take an overnight bus to Surat Thani, sit at the ferry terminal for a few hours, and then take the ferry to the island. It is a long, long night/day but it’s much cheaper than flying. (Note: Some bus companies go to Chumphon and put you on a ferry from there. Either route is still a lot of travel but the ferry from Chumphon is usually nicer.)

If you decide to fly, flights from Surat Thani generally cost around 2,000 baht (with taxes and fees) from Bangkok on Air Asia. Flights from Ko Samui are at least 3,200 Baht since Bangkok Airways and Thai Airways keep a monopoly on the airport and see no reason to lower prices with demand so high. During the high season and around New Year’s Eve, ticket prices can get as high as 5,000 Baht.

The Full Moon Party Itself

The party begins days before as people trickle onto the island. On the day of the party, you see people from the neighboring Ko Samui and Ko Tao and from other parts of the island adding to the crowd. You’ll see people start drinking in the afternoon and most people begin to head to the beach around 9pm with the crowd peaking around midnight to 2am. On New Year’s Eve, the beach will be full by 8pm.

Costs
Here’s what stuff costs on Haad Rin:

Average Thai meal: 120 Baht
Average western meal: 200 Baht
Banana Pancakes: 30 Baht
Cheap food sold on the beach: 40-50 Baht
Beer: 80-100 Baht (30 in 7-11)
Cigarettes: 80 Baht
Buckets: 200 -300 baht, depending on what kind of alcohol. They can be up to 400 baht on New Year’s Eve.
Toilets: 5 – 10 Baht

Money Saving Tips
Alcohol – Buy your beer at the 7-11 or buy buckets away from the beach, where they are as cheap as 180 baht.

Food – Food is expensive in Haad Rin but there are some good budget choices. Paprika, the Israeli restaurant, offers a falafel sandwich and fruit shake combo for 100 Baht. In the center of town is a parking lot and if you walk down the street behind it, you’ll find small Thai restaurants that offer 50-60 Baht meals, about half the price of most other restaurants. Moreover, across from “Planet Hollywood” (just a restaurant that ripped off the name) is another good and inexpensive Thai place.

What the F$%^$ is a bucket?
Remember when you were a kid and you built a sand castle using a little pail? Now, picture that pail filled with a can of Coke, Thai redbull, and 375 ml of alcohol — and you now have a Thai bucket. A few of these and you’ll be having a really interesting night.

Party Survival Tips

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.)

Skip the jump rope: Picture this. We’re at 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 would 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, and the rope wrapped around one guy’s arm and burn 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. Here’s a tiny example:

Buckets: 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.)

Hydrate: You are going to be drinking a lot and, even though it is night time, the weather is still hot and humid. Drink a lot of water before and during the event! It will also help your hangover the next day.

Stay out of the ocean: It may seem like a good idea to play in the ocean but it’s not. Not only do you risk drowning (there can be strong waves), but everyone uses the ocean as their personal toilet during the party. There’s a reason the water is warm — and it’s not because you are in Thailand. Stay sanitary and don’t go in.

Wear footwear: Partying on the beach without footwear may seem like a good idea 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 are 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.

The Full Moon Party is one of the biggest and most well-known parties in the world. The vast majority of travelers in Southeast Asia attend at some point and I have seen people of all ages and nationalities (as well as a few families) here. The party is definitely a unique and interesting time but if not done right, it can also be expensive and dangerous.

So party — but party smart.

The Petronas Towers at night in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

This month seems to be the month for inspiration, which is fine because it’s the start of a new year so it’s a great time to get motivated and inspired. Once in a while, I come across some really interesting travel videos on the Internet that speak to me in a powerful way. I found this great video about backpacking that, at a time when I was feel very unmotivated, made me remember why I loved traveling.

And, a few days ago after I posted on why there’s no tomorrow in travel, I came across the below video. Many of you might have seen it already (as of this writing it has over 830,000 views) but I wanted to share it for those who might not have seen it. It’s various people from the Burning Man festival reading Dr. Suess’s last book, “Oh, the Places You’ll Go!”

It’s an amazing video that is bound to brighten your day. Go watch it, enjoy it, and feel great about life.

This video has also made me finally decide to go to Burning Man this year.

Maybe I’ll see you there but if not, I’ll be thinking of all the other amazing places you’ll go this year.

Located in the south of Thailand, Khao Sok National Park has always held my imagination. It’s constantly rated as one of the best parks in Thailand with amazing trekking, camping, limestone karsts, cooling rivers, and a beautiful lake. Ever since I’ve been coming to Thailand I’ve been trying to visit Khao Sok, but the road bends in mysterious ways and for one reason or the other, I’ve never able to make it.

But this time, I used my visiting friends and my job as “tour guide” as the excuse I needed to finally push myself to this park. And I’m glad I did — I’ve been to many wonderful national parks in Thailand but this is one of the best.

I spent three days surrounded by dense jungle, animals, and cooling jungle air. The highlight of my trip was the day-long jungle trek I took. Starting out late in the morning (9:30), my friends and I met our guide, bought our park entrance tickets, and drove to the far end of the park. Instead of doubling back on the main trail, we would explore another trail, hike 400 meters to see some giant flowers, head towards a waterfall, eat lunch, and then walk back to the main park entrance.

It all seemed easy enough. I envisioned a well-worn trail and a mildly strenuous day hike. We were doing 11 km in the jungle so it wouldn’t be a cake walk, but I didn’t anticipate that this trek would be much of a challenge, especially since the last half was on the park’s main road.

I was wrong.

Very wrong.

This hike was stressful, challenging, leech-infested, and exhilarating all at the same time. It started out easy enough – we hiked 400 meters to visit giant parasitic flowers. Attaching themselves to vines, the flowers sap the life from the vines to grow. After 9 months, they blossom, spray their seed throughout the jungle, and die within 4 days. However, while in bloom, the flowers are a sight to see.

The hike to the top wasn’t very tough. The trail was well-worn, had amazing vistas from which to view the surrounding jungles, and I didn’t break much of a sweat. On the way up, we caught sight of a troop of gibbons making their way through the treetops. Gibbons in Khao Sok are rare to see and it was quite amazing to see them, especially since I love monkeys. They moved too quickly to be photographed. By the time I clicked my camera, they had moved on so instead of fruitlessly capturing a photo, I just watched them in their glory. When we got to the top, our guide told us we would hike down to the waterfall. I assumed he meant we would be heading down another trail.

Again, I was wrong.

Our trail had opened up at the top of the waterfall and our guide looked at us. “Ok, we’ll eat lunch, but first we have to get down. It will be no problem. We have ropes, and I go first.”

My friends and I looked at each other hesitantly. To get to the base of the waterfall, we were going to have to embrace our inner Indiana Jones to rappel down the side. As you may know, heights make me extremely uncomfortable and I opted to go down last as I worked up the courage to never look down.

However, we didn’t encounter too many steep drop offs and soon I was vying to the lead the way. We would rappel down ropes. When there was no rope to guide us, we scaled the rocky sides of the waterfall, holding on to vines as we made our way down to the base.

But the waterfall was not the worst of it. After lunch, we had to hike downriver, which entailed following the river, which sounds pretty simple. Walking along a river bed is normally not a challenge, but not here. There was no trail or easy path. Sometimes we had to walk on large, wet rocks, climb up the narrow embankment, or scale down vines again when the river became impassable.

And the leeches only made it worse. By the time I walked out of Khao Sok, I had taken seven leeches off my legs, and a few even found their way onto my arms. Luckily, unlike the leeches in northern Thailand, most of these leeches were small and easy to grab off. Unfortunately, my friend didn’t notice one until the end, which by then had enlarged so much it left a scar on his foot.

After the river and subsequent leech removal (cue The Life Aquatic jokes), we were in the home stretch — it was now an easy walk through a bamboo forest back to the park entrance. On our way out of the park we were given a farewell by another troop of monkeys. These weren’t gibbons and I forget their proper name but they jumped around for a while, playing in the trees, and giving us one last exciting thing to remember. When it was all said and done, our hike had lasted a little over 8 hours. Back at my guesthouse, I took the hottest shower of my life, scrubbed myself clean and collapsed on my bed.

Though tiring, this jungle trek was the most exciting in recent memory. I left Khao Sok with a sense of rawness. Here the lack of people and trails let you feel as if you are exploring the jungle for the first time. I love the moments when you travel that make you feel as if you have unearthed a hidden gem. As though you had found somewhere or some place long forgotten by man. That may not be the case, but that sense of wonderment, adventure, and exploration are what drive me on my travels.

And in Khao Sok, it was just me, the jungle, and that sense of adventure.

But I could have done without the leeches.

Logistics

• You can get to the park via Surant Thani or Phuket. Most hotels will offer you private transportation for 2,000 baht, though you can hire a taxi from either place for around 1,500 baht. If you are with a group of 4 this can be a good deal as it’s much quicker and far easier.
• If you go by public bus, the minibus is 250 baht each way from Surant Thani town and 300 Baht from Phuket. It will drop you off on the main road leading up to the park. You’ll have to walk the rest of the way.
• The park entrance fee is 200 Baht or 100 Baht if you are a student.
• Hiring a guide from one of the tour operators or guest houses (very recommended due to the lack of marked trails) costs 1,000 Baht per person and comes with lunch.
• There is only one ATM in town.
• You can find cheap guest houses for 300 Baht per night with very basic accommodation and cold showers. Rooms get better at around 600 Baht per night and luxurious around 1,400 Baht per night.

A red sunset (and some smog) in Bangkok, Thailand