Ao Thong Nai Pan Yai and other Ko Phangan, Thailand Off The Beaten Path Tips

We had a rented motorbike and we took the very rough dirt track over the mountains from Ban Tai.
The dirt road is really bad and several times my friend on the back said "I not go" and walked down a few of the hills. I couldn't blame her really because we only had road tyres on and some of the downhills can be a little slippery and dangerous.
I really enjoyed it though, even if my friend hated it! ;-P
I believe the easier way to get there now is by taking a boat from either Haad Rin or Chaloaklum.
But as you can see in these photo's the beaches are beautiful and I would say Thong Pan Yai and Thong Pan Noi as twin coves are definitly worth the trip.
There is a little town here as well as bars and resturants and shops and it has the feel of a real rural retreat.

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Website: http://www.phangan.info/

This is only one of two beaches on Koh Phangan that faces north, but the beaches here and the resorts are as beautiful as any on the island.
It is about an hour, to slowly ride out here from Thongsala, and the journey out to Chaloaklam is just as scenic as the location.
There are a few resorts here as well as shops and if you just want to get somewhere out of the way and relax, then this is a great place to do that.
The beach here is not very wide and you do have to beware of falling coconuts if you lay down and rest on it.
I was here about 12pm one day and I saw no-one for 30 minutes except a couple of Thai's fixing thier fishing boats and a couple of tourists off in the distance.
All I could hear were the waves lapping at the shore.
The huts at Chaloklum bay resort are all amongst the coconut trees and are in the most tranquil setting possible.
At the harbour itself you may see lots of fishing boats coming and going and ladies preparing dried squid.

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Website: http://www.phangan.info/

It was interesting to see so much dried squid being stretched and placed in trays by the Thai ladies on the beach.
It's was amazing also to see how much squid they had, and how much of it was placed along the Chaloaklam jetty to dry in the sun.
Lot's of fishing boats here and lots of hard workers both men and women.

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Website: http://www.phangan.info/

On the west coast of Koh Phangan is this beach resort of Mae Haad which is perfect for those happy with just a quiet bungalo by the beach.
There is an island just off the coast of Mae Haad named Koh Ma and in low tide you can walk there.
There are boating trips you can do from here but basically you are in a quiet little world of your own if you stay out here.
The resorts here have some excellent resturants by the beach too.

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Website: http://www.phangan.info/