Koh Phangan nightlife

Thailand's party island

Koh Phangan is Thailand's party island: the Full Moon Party on Haad Rin every month, the Half Moon Festival in the jungle twice a month, and the Jungle Experience the evening before each Full Moon, with Haad Rin's bars open most other evenings.

Come in a Full Moon week, and you get all three.

The Half Moon, the Jungle and the rest of the moon

They're the reason the island is worth more than one visit. The Half Moon Festival runs in Baan Tai, twice a month: day one at Harmony Beach Club, then an all-night party in the Magic Forest with three stages. The next dates are 2 and 3 December and 16 and 17 December 2026. See our Half Moon Party guide.

The island's jungle party is the Jungle Experience, the evening before each Full Moon, in the jungle near Baan Tai. Gates open at 10pm, with two stages for house, techno and drum and bass and a Muay Thai arena inside. Around the new moon, Black Moon Culture has run in Baan Tai, and the renovated Retro Mountain Jungle Club runs events too; both change month to month, so check the week you land.

Ask Tanner to get the tickets for the whole group.

This month on Koh Phangan

Tonight on Koh Phangan depends on the moon: the Full Moon Party on Haad Rin, the Jungle Experience the night before it, the Half Moon Festival twice a month in Baan Tai, and OXA in the jungle every Friday.

OXA runs every Friday, across three dance floors called Oasis, Canyon and Cabin, and the Jungle Experience is monthly, the night before the Full Moon. See the Thailand party calendar for every moon date.

Where the parties are

The parties run across four areas: Haad Rin for the Full Moon Party, Baan Tai for the pre-parties and beach bars, Thong Sala for a relaxed evening, and Haad Yuan for the alternative and underground parties.

The neighbourhoods, one by one

Each Koh Phangan area is a different kind of party, 10 to 20 minutes apart by car, so pick the night first and the area follows.

Haad Rin

The home of the Full Moon Party: the long beach on the island's southern tip, where the bars put their sound systems on the sand once a month.

Baan Tai

The party belt between Thong Sala and Haad Rin: the Half Moon Festival, the Jungle Experience and OXA all run in its jungle, and Infinity Beach Club, a pool and beach club on Baan Tai beach, turns into a party spot after dark.

Thong Sala

The main town, by the ferry pier: the night market, relaxed bars, and the easiest base for getting to every party.

Haad Yuan and Thong Nai Pan

The far side of the island: Haad Yuan for the underground parties, and Thong Nai Pan for Utopia's jungle psytrance parties.

The parties worth it

For most groups, the Full Moon on Haad Rin comes first, then the Half Moon Festival and the Jungle Experience in Baan Tai, with OXA for a Friday.

Day one of the Half Moon is at Harmony Beach Club on Bantai Road, with an infinity pool and international DJs from 2pm to midnight; day two is in the Magic Forest, about 2km inland. The biggest line-ups run from November to April.

The Half Moon's forest is the one to see.

Full Moon, Half Moon or the jungle?

Each party on Phangan has its own crowd and its own night of the month. Choose the one your group is coming for.

• The famous one: the Full Moon on Haad Rin, by private boat from Samui.
• The festival: two days of the Half Moon, beach club then forest.
• The music night: the Jungle Experience, the night before the Full Moon.
• The Friday night: OXA in the Ban Tai jungle.
• The pool day: Infinity Beach Club, then the evening in Baan Tai.
• The villa night: your own pool party, away from Haad Rin.

First time? The Full Moon, by private boat.

When to come

The best time for a Koh Phangan party is a Full Moon week from November to April, when the Half Moon's biggest line-ups run, and the Half Moon, the Jungle Experience and the Full Moon all fall within a few days.

Check the moon before you book flights: the parties move with it. On Buddhist holy days shops stop selling alcohol, but licensed venues in tourist areas can still serve, under the Office of the Prime Minister's 2025 notice on alcohol-free days.

What a party costs

A party here is mostly the ticket and the boat, and for a group the private boat is the part worth paying for.

It leaves when you're ready and waits for you, so nobody's stuck on Haad Rin at the end of the night.

Plan it with Tanner: the tickets and the boat in one price.

The evenings people remember

The ones people remember are in the jungle: lights in the trees at the Jungle Experience, the Half Moon's forest stages, and OXA's three dance floors.

• The jungle: the Jungle Experience's lights and stages under the trees.
• The forest festival: the Half Moon's second day in the Magical Forest.
• The Friday jungle: OXA's three dance floors.
• The beach under the moon: Haad Rin lit by the full moon, music along the sand.
• Your own boat: across from Samui, and back when the group is done.

One Full Moon week fits the jungle and the beach.

Which area is best for your group?

For a group, the best base is a villa on Koh Samui or on Koh Phangan's quiet west coast, with a private boat or car for each party. Haad Rin is loud until late.

• The Full Moon: a Samui villa and a private boat.
• The Half Moon and the Jungle: a base near Thong Sala or Baan Tai.
• The quiet days: the west coast.

Getting back from Haad Rin

The evening ends at the pier, on the boat you booked before the party. The public ferries stop in the early evening, so a group coming from Samui needs its own ride back, and a private boat leaves when you're ready.

The hill roads on the island are steep, so skip the scooter and let our driver take the group home in one car.

Your Full Moon, planned

A villa on Koh Samui · a private boat to Haad Rin at sunset · wristbands and a meeting point · a security lead with the group · the boat home when you're ready. The evening is the wristband and the private boat.

Plan it with Tanner, and he books the villa, the boat over and your spot on Haad Rin. See the Full Moon Party guide for dates and tickets, and Koh Samui nightlife for the other evenings of the week.

Every Phangan party spot, in one list

Thong Sala night market (Thong Sala, food market) · Thong Sala pier (Thong Sala, ferries) · Haad Rin Nai (Haad Rin, Sunset Beach bars) · Haad Rin Sunrise Beach (Haad Rin, the Full Moon Party) · Drop In Bar (Haad Rin, beach bar) · Tommy Resort (Haad Rin, beach bar) · Cactus Bar (Haad Rin, beach bar) · Paradise Bungalows (Haad Rin, the original stage) · Harmony Beach Club (Baan Tai, Half Moon day one) · Magic Forest (Baan Tai, Half Moon) · Jungle Experience (Baan Tai, jungle party) · Retro Mountain Jungle Club (Baan Tai, jungle club) · OXA Jungle Party (Ban Tai, jungle club) · Infinity Beach Club (Baan Tai, beach club) · Utopia (Thong Nai Pan, jungle party)

Pick one, and build the week around it.

Koh Phangan nightlife in short

• The island runs on the moon: the Full Moon on Haad Rin, the Half Moon and the Jungle Experience in Baan Tai.

• The next Full Moon Parties are on 24 November and 24 December 2026, with the New Year countdown on 31 December.
• The Full Moon runs from 6pm until late and peaks after midnight.
• Away from the beach, the best clubs are in the jungle: OXA every Friday and the Half Moon's forest stages.
• Most groups sleep on Koh Samui or the quiet west coast and come in by private boat.
• November to April brings the biggest line-ups. See the Full Moon Party guide.

Checked November 2026.