Another Day in Paradise – Chaloklum, Koh Ma, Haad Son in Koh Phangan (Thailand)
After a month in Koh Samui, we decide to head to Koh Phangan. Those living in Koh Samui warn us about the boring side of Koh Phangan “there’s nothing to do,” but we go anyway to check it out. We had passed through briefly a few years ago and had fond memories. We were told there’s a community of digital nomads in Koh Phangan, so the infrastructure has been adapted for this type of expat: fiber optics, offices, and even coworking spaces…
Part 1: Travel Journal
Part 2: Practical Tips
Part 1: Travel Journal
Koh Samui – Koh Phangan by speedboat
For the first time, we take a Grab to the port (Thailand’s equivalent of Uber). You have to book in advance because the first driver canceled after 15 minutes, leaving us only 20 minutes of margin to catch the speedboat. Grab is much cheaper than a taxi – even though taxi drivers also do Grab. It’s strange. Anyway, we only paid 120 baht for a ride that would have cost 250-300 baht by taxi. I highly recommend it. Payment by card or cash.
Once we arrive at Maenam port, we buy tickets (300 baht) for Koh Phangan. They ask us to scan a QR code and fill out an online form. At the end of the form, we get a QR code to show to immigration services in Koh Phangan.
The speedboat is open, and there are few waves today, so it’s all smooth and pleasant. No vomit incidents to report. It takes us 30 minutes to cover the short distance between the two islands. Arriving in Koh Phangan, we show the QR code and our passports, and that’s it. I imagine those coming from Bangkok also need to show their PCR test, but most people on this boat seemed to be doing a round trip between Koh Samui and Koh Phangan in a day, as they all already had their scooter or car in the port parking lot.
Along with a few other rare tourists, we’re approached by the only shuttle available at the port. For 200 baht, exorbitant prices, but we have no choice, we’re dropped off in front of our hotel-apartment: Silan Residence (Booking link, Agoda link).
Scooter
As soon as we arrive in Koh Phangan, we have a motorbike delivered by Phangan Wheels. 2000 baht/month + 8000 baht deposit (we don’t want to leave our passports).
Our home in Koh Phangan
Silan Residence is recommended by many expats for a mid-length stay in Koh Phangan. This hotel offers adorable little villas. There’s a beachfront section (overlooking the beach) and, on the other side of the road, a section overlooking the garden. Both sides have their own pool, and you can of course use the facilities of the entire residence. At the time of booking, only one villa was left, so we had to settle for the smallest one, but fortunately it’s well located, with a stunning view over the entire pool. I think it’s one of the best garden-side spots because we’re far from the mandatory shower near the pool and far enough from the main entrance to not be too bothered by noise and foot traffic.
For this villa, I was offered either 10,000 baht/week or 20,000 baht/month (electricity not included). Guess which one I chose: a month, of course!
Beachfront side of the residence
Our work tables. There’s only one dining table, but I recycled the one under the TV and placed it next to the reading nook near the bed. It’s just the right height. We both always have a lot of work and a lot of pressure at work, but with such an environment, at least the stress is greatly reduced.
I invite you to take a virtual tour of the apartment by watching our video:
Unfortunately, with expats staying for months, with families… politeness seems nonexistent. People feel too much at home: Kids’ toys are scattered all over the pool. A little girl screams her lungs out for everything: when she’s happy, when she’s unhappy. And I feel like her parents are so used to it they’ve become deaf. Unfortunately, all the villas overlook the garden, so there’s no other way to get away from this family 😀
However, when this family leaves us alone, we live a dream life, like paradise.
Chaloklum Beach
We settled in Chaloklum because we did a little tour of Koh Phangan 5 years ago, looking for the most beautiful beaches. And I noted on the blog that Chaloklum was the most beautiful beach: deep, with fine white sand, and plenty of local restaurants. It’s a fishing village with a paradise vibe.
5 years later, we barely recognize the village, but the beach is still just as extraordinary. I’m talking about deep water because Koh Phangan has a huge problem with tides. there are beaches that are only 10cm deep for 500 meters. You can’t swim, or there are beaches with lots of rocks, dead corals, sea urchins, and sea cucumbers over 500 meters, and you cut your foot trying to find deeper water. So you shouldn’t trust only photos, but also check hotel reviews before booking, so you don’t end up realizing the beach isn’t as nice as it seemed.
Beach Garden Koh Phangan
What’s even more extraordinary is that right across from us is the best French restaurant in the area! It opened during Covid. But the food is so amazing it’s never empty.
When I saw the Fine de Claire No. 3 oysters on the menu, I jumped for joy. Check out this insane view, this lush garden by the beach, its loungers (and its shower)… many customers stay all afternoon, alternating between swimming and snacking.
The attention to detail is incredible: salted butter, organic lemons from Menton, bread so melt-in-your-mouth that I was in seventh heaven.
You wouldn’t think it, but the plates are huge. I really struggled to finish my plate because the portions are so generous (but way too delicious). The homemade béarnaise sauce, the mash… OMG OMG! Not to mention the dark chocolate mousse, so intensely chocolatey that you need a few hours’ nap for digestion afterward.
Chatting with the owner, Bertrand, I realized he’s been in the trade and has loads of contacts that allow him to import ultra-fresh fruit from Rungis within 72 hours. The boxes arrive in Koh Samui and in a quick 7 minutes, by speedboat, he can go pick them up. Hence oysters even fresher than at some Parisian restaurants! Since it’s his job, he manages to find fresh, quality produce at competitive prices, which keeps the price super affordable for fresh, homemade food.
I think we eat better French food HERE than in France 😀 At least we can be sure it’s not frozen.
The menu changes every week, based on what’s in season and the chef’s orders. And he’s just created a to-die-for sushi/sashimi/maki menu. We can order whatever sushi we want: we made our own 100% salmon California rolls: salmon and avocado inside, salmon on the outside. With real wasabi that stings all the way to your brain.
Remember this address:
Beach Garden Koh Phangan overlooking Chaloklum beach
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/beachgardenkohphangan
Website: http://www.beach-garden.com/
Open Monday, Friday, Saturday, Sunday from 11am to 11pm. Tuesday and Thursday from 3pm to 11pm. Closed on WednesdayExpect to pay around 1,500 to 2,000 baht for two
We’ve never seen such generous California rolls and sashimi slices. It’s an excellent spot, for seafood lovers or those craving the true taste of French dishes. There are also plenty of Thai dishes, much more affordable.
Night markets
There are two night markets always open and bustling on Koh Phangan: Phantip Night Food Market every evening of the week, and the one at Chaloklum (at the port), right in front of our place, on Sunday nights. They don’t have the same stalls, so it’s important to try both.
Phantip Night Food Market
We even made an immersive video to show you the Chaloklum night market:
Even though everyone wears a mask, having such a lively place, full of food stalls, like pre-Covid, does a world of good. After going around the stalls, people often rent a bamboo mat for 20 baht and eat together, while stray dogs watch for anyone who’ll give them food. There’s one dog, hilarious. Seeing the piece of meat I offer, he automatically starts drooling… but when I run out of meat and offer a piece of cabbage, he completely changes his attitude, looks disdainful, and walks off. Another dog seems super attentive to what we say and ends up sitting, as if actively joining the conversation. Watch the dogs, they’re super cute.
Stray animal association
We also discovered at the night market a PACS stall, an organization that cares for stray dogs. Website: https://pacsthailand.com/
We got to chat with the lady who volunteers for this association. She has a van and heads out immediately wherever sick animals are reported. She tends to them, spays/neuters, and vaccinates them, thanks to donations. 500 baht can already vaccinate 5 stray dogs.
There’s also a man who feeds stray dogs on the island. You can also financially support this man, through this lady. I think together they do excellent work: you should never feed animals without sterilizing them – because feeding them also helps increase their population. I find the dogs on Koh Phangan gentler than those on Koh Samui. They often lie in the middle of the road, but very few bark or chase after motorbikes, unlike Koh Samui where some can have a bit too territorial an attitude.
Since the association was established, there’s been no more rabies on Koh Phangan. You can support them financially via PayPal here
Blue crabs at Alex Restaurant
I’ve been on the lookout for THE restaurant that’ll make blue crabs to order, and it’s at Alex Restaurant, run by a German and his Thai wife, where we regularly order lavish dinners: 1kg of blue crabs + 500g of king prawns sautéed with garlic and pepper + 2 coconuts. Their papaya salad (somtum) isn’t spicy but has plenty of garlic, so it’s full of flavor. Each meal like this costs us 1,200 baht (under €30).
As I explained on Instagram (by the way, follow our Instagram account here, I’ve been posting stories more regularly since we’ve been in Thailand), in Asian cuisine, we consider some ingredients “cold” and others “hot”. If you eat too many “cold” or “hot” ingredients, you risk a stomachache. So you need to mix and match to achieve balance. With seafood, considered “cold”, you should always pair it with soup (hot), or hot ingredients. That’s why the accompanying sauces are often very spicy: with garlic, ginger, chili… to avoid a stomachache later.
Blue crabs are best eaten at the end and beginning of the lunar month (I explained this in the other article). If you eat them during the full moon, it’s better to choose only the females. I made the mistake of getting males during the full moon and they had no meat left at all.
You can find my stories on blue crabs & how to eat them on Instagram, here
Koh Raham Restaurant/Bar
Five years ago, we were at Haad Son Resort (Booking link, Agoda link) for several days, and the restaurant next to this hotel was very popular, thanks to its many hammocks, swings…
Five years later, the hotel has become very pretty, and the restaurant has transformed into a real “Robinson Crusoe hut” with tables and huts everywhere. The internet connection is excellent (30mbps), so it’s great for working! They’ve set up tables at the right height for working.
Unfortunately, with Covid, they’re taking advantage of it to do renovations, so you have to go all the way to the rocks near the sea to avoid the noise.
Before, there weren’t as many fish here, but they started feeding them, so this place has turned into a real aquarium. It’s quite deep, so you need to know how to swim. There’s a staircase leading down.
It’s this place that made JB want to come back here as a digital nomad (cf. his post from 5 years ago). The place has changed, we have changed, but our dream has also come true.
Salad Beach Resort
Apart from Paris, Hanoi, and major air hubs, it’s very rare that we return to the same places. So, having already been to Koh Phangan, even if it was a long time ago, gives us this feeling of coming back home a bit. We recognize some beaches, some places… Before, the island was even wilder. Thanks to the implementation of 7eleven & FamilyMart (two convenience store brands) all over the island, these less frequented areas become a bit more so. Near each FamilyMart and 7eleven, there’s always some street food in the evening, a restaurant (and stray dogs).
We returned to Salad Beach Resort (Booking link, Agoda link), a place that really left a mark on me. The first time we came, we parked the motorbike in the parking lot and walked along a small path to get to the hotel. At the end of this little alley, we came face to face with a magnificent pool, with frangipani flowers floating on the water. There was a delicious scent of frangipani, humidity, and the wind that announces the coming rain… and I wondered why we hadn’t chosen this hotel instead of Haad Son.
We stayed to eat on site because of a huge storm.
And today, we are exactly in the same place, but there are no more tourists. The restaurant that was so busy back then is empty. We are the only customers. The pool is still extraordinary, filled with that overwhelming scent of frangipani. On our dining table, a few bright red flowers fall. And a cat meows nearby hoping for my leftover shrimp.
They show me the bungalows and offer them to me for 15,000 bahts per month (€400). It’s clearly less luxurious than at Silan’s, but it’s very close to the beach. Vacation vibe, guaranteed relaxation. Gorgeous sunset, every day. The food is delicious and very affordable. I highly recommend it!
Hin Kong Beach
On the east side of the island, near the port, the beaches are so shallow that you can walk/run on the sandbars.
From here for about 1km, there are only expats. Among the coworking spaces that are not super well-equipped, very nicely decorated cafes, and yoga clubs or “yoga retreat” hotels, there are also organic, healthy, vegan restaurants… It feels a bit too much like “little Europe” in Asia, we don’t really like it. I find some nice clothes, organic oils… I’ll go there when I run out of cosmetics.
However, we were told about the restaurant l’Alcôve, which we absolutely must try.
After having this huge concentration of farangs (white people), we are happy to return to our fishing village, where 7 out of 10 people are still Thai. Our German restaurateur explains that if the fishing boats are all grouped together (aka the lights are all in the same place), it means a storm is brewing. But despite the current wind, the lights are still scattered, so all is well. At Chaloklum port, in the evening, there are always about ten fishermen… we can’t see what they manage to catch, but they’re there every day, except on night market day.
Koh Ma Beach
Not far from Chaloklum is the island’s best snorkeling beach: Koh Ma. There’s a resort there (you can use the pool for a fee), and the restaurant/bar there is very affordable.
The beach is not deep, but deep enough for snorkeling. I saw lots of sea cucumbers, sea urchins, and several live giant clams. They are half open and have a red antenna. When they see me, they retract the antenna and are ready to close at any moment. It’s truly magnificent!
Most of the corals are dead, but some are still alive and it’s just too beautiful! The fish are less colorful and smaller than at Koh Raham restaurant, but in exchange, we see more variety.
Be careful, the road is not 100% paved, so avoid coming after heavy rain. Come with your aqua shoes or sandals, as well as your snorkeling gear.
For snorkeling, follow the sandbar, then turn left. As soon as you see the black area full of corals, that’s the place to be. Then go around the rock, and that’s the “aquarium”. You can take a fresh water shower at the restaurant for 10 bahts.
Other restaurants we like
- Ristorante Rimini: by a true Italian
- MyThai Guesthouse: homemade burgers, so so good
- A’s Famous: burgers, typical American bagels
- Jsay: Thai restaurant, really good
- Indy Kitchen: Thai restaurant, everything is homemade. It’s full of flavors, I love it. They also offer laundry service for 40 bahts/kg
- Leo Thai Food: Thai restaurant, simple and efficient
Massage
Massages are a bit more expensive here than on Koh Samui (300 bahts instead of 200). We really like PURE RELAX. The facilities are top-notch, it’s spacious, the AC is present but not too much, the therapists are professional and skilled. I hurt my ankle missing a step on Koh Samui, and I feel like the foot massage here already fixed half the problem.
We like Koh Phangan much more than we thought. I love the huge choice that Koh Samui offers, but the quiet life of Koh Phangan appeals to me a lot too.
The rest of our adventure, is right here
Part 2: Practical Tips
Budget
- Bungalows/villas/hotel rooms: between 15,000 and 20,000 bahts/month. Generally, they’ll ask you to pay extra for electricity (AC is expensive)
- Restaurants:
- French restaurant: Beach Garden: between 1500 and 2000 bahts/meal for two
- Blue crabs & shrimp at Alex’s: a feast for 1200 bahts/meal for two
- Local restaurants: expect 60 to 100 bahts per dish
- Koh Samui – Koh Phangan by speedboat: 300 bahts/person
- Shuttle on Koh Phangan: 200 bahts
- Scooter rental: 2000 bahts/month with Phangan Wheels
Recommended hotels
- Silan Residence (Booking link, Agoda link): between 20000bahts and 33000bahts per month. Before booking, ask if the family with a screaming child is still there
- Salad Beach Resort (Booking link, Agoda link): 15000bahts per month
Planning a trip to Thailand? Our partner Get Your Guide offers entry tickets and guided tours with French-speaking guides at very reasonable rates. Click here to see what they offer and book online.
