3.58/5
834 reviews
Photo by Milada Vigerova via Unsplash

Ko Pha Ngan

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island

food

scooter

work

nomad

great

good

community

party

prices

beautiful

bali

samui

coworking

parties

full

Ko Pha Ngan attracts a mix of wellness seekers, party-goers, and remote workers, and delivers a balance of nature, affordability, and chill lifestyle. The island has a beautiful, mountainous landscape ideal for scootering, along with various healthy food options, yoga, and fitness centers. Most visitors highlight the friendly people, safety, and laid-back vibe. Mobile internet performs well, and it’s possible to work remotely in cafes, though coworking spaces are lacking and not community-centric. Power and internet stability are generally improved but can vary by area.

Affordable villas and accommodations are available, but demand is increasing alongside prices, partly due to an influx of European nomads and expats. Getting around by scooter is necessary, though driving conditions require caution due to uneven traffic behavior. The social scene is dominated by conscious communities, hippie culture, and party events, which may not suit everyone. Traditional Thai cultural experiences are minimal, and the digital nomad scene is still developing. Despite this, many find the island enjoyable for a temporary stay. It's recommended to trial the island before committing long-term, to see if the lifestyle aligns with your preferences.

AI-generated summary of reviews
1 year ago

If you're into astrology, new age, veganism, ecstatic dance, beach parties, this could be your home away from home. Please wear protection, within 1 hour of arriving I heard of someone who barely dodged an STD. Personally, I couldn't leave fast enough. You will depend on a scooter to do anything and they don't check your driving licence. There are no thai people on the island as others have mentioned. On the boat, there was a lady on a Zoom work call, she had a fake background and was trying to speak into the microphone to mask over the sounds of the motorboat. Some "work-friendly" cafes don't have AC which in March is questionable. Sound proofing in general is pretty bad and the motorbikes are loud. A lot of food is westernised and costs same as in Europe. People are super nice and friendly, and the island *is* a tropical paradise. But personally I would seriously question going in blind for 1 month here. Definitely do a 2-3 day trial, you'll know very quickly if it's your vibe or not.

2 years ago

Ko Pha Ngan is like a "Western resort". It feels like you see less than 1 local per 10-15 foreigners. Value as you wish, but it doesn't feel like you are in Thailand

There are predominantly two groups of people: homeless skinny hippies smoking weed all day and party-goers gym bros. If you are into that, you will have an amazing time. If not, you can also have an amazing time enjoying nature and a really peaceful and beautiful place. I could not find any relevant "digital nomad" scene.

The wellness and fitness community that is supposed to be here is nothing worth coming for. Unless for you wellness means eating very little vegan food and overcrowded and low-quality gym and infrastructure.

2 years ago

It's veryyyy chill (especially compared to Bali, Chiang Mai, Da Nang and Kuala Lumpur). Houses and villas are a bit simpler. There are like 30+ great cafes, restaurants and Thai places to eat and enjoy. There are hardly any hotspots here, so don't expect much exploration and culture. It's mainly relaxing (read: chilling, sunsets, beaches, coconuts, thai food, parties, weed, alcohol, fun people).

We got some solid work and gym training in there as well during the day. We are coming back for sure to work, train and chill the fook out.

2 years ago

The island is beautiful. Many tourists, especially for overrated Full Moon Party that elevates prices a lot. Roads are in good condition, you would need a scooter to get around, tourists drive very bad and irresponsibly. Wear a helmet! It is not a computer game, do not let the paradise island delude you, there are many accidents. A few places to work from. To get here you need to fly to Samui or Surat Thani and then take a ferry. Prices are not so different from other Thai islands. Nice beaches, nature, kitesurfing spot, friendly people, some modern "hippies" living in luxurious places :D I really enjoyed my time here but after 1 month I was ready to leave.

3 years ago

Agree with other reviewers about the influx of refugees and the increased prices. I'm there now and from my last visit a year ago prices have inflated significantly. There's also development everywhere now so the word is out.

3 years ago

Really enjoyed my time here. Stunningly beautiful island. Like the previous reviewer, I would also take my scooter and just bounce around the island, just to enjoy the landscape. Getting around by scooter is an absolute necessity on Ko Pha Ngan - it’s just not viable to walk or take taxis everywhere. I would really recommend having some practice on a scooter before arriving here. Some of the mountain grades are quite steep and you need to know proper braking to not have an accident IMO. Also, if I’m being real, the local Thai are some of the least aware drivers I’ve encountered. Most don’t have mirrors on their scooters, and will turn into traffic congestion without warning or desire to match the speed of traffic. I found foreign drivers to be more respectful than Thai drivers. Watch out. But I digress.

There’s a lot of partying here, but book a hotel 5 minutes off the main strip and you can easily be in a quieter part of the island. It’s still pretty affordable (for me at least) - I found that a budget of $2,000/month was borderline luxury here. Only 1 power cut for the month I was there, but it was planned and was only effecting a small part of the island.

I guess my only complaint was the lack of “regular” 9-5 nomads. I found most people to either be backpacking, wannabe insta-influencers, or part of the conscious community. But everyone I met was very kind to me, so maybe the burden of negativity is on me.

I understand why Ko Pha Ngan is rated so highly and IMO it’s worth a visit for a month or two.

3 years ago

Still an amazing island, with very diverse adctivities, but prices have gone up massively lately due to an influx of European war 'refugees' and the recent growth of the digital nomad scene. If you book in advance, you can still find something affordable but it is rapidly changing and prices are in general very un-Thai like.

4 years ago

Beautiful island. For me it hits a sweet spot combining some of Canggu and Ubud. There's good stuff like breath work and ecstatic dance close by but you don't have to scooter a whole hour to get there. It's not too hippy and you can easily avoid that vibe if you're not into it. The mountainous landscape makes for some lovely scootering - so nice that I've taken a few rides just for the pleasure of it. The bigger roads are lit at night and pretty good, not much traffic.

Compared to Bali many restaurants are bit more basic with uncomfortable bamboo chairs and the same Thai menus (but great food). There are also good modern/western restaurants but not too many.

Main downside is that there's no really good coworking space. There is Remote&Digital (several locations), High Life has one, BeachHut. None of them is conducive to a community I find. There are regular nomad meetups though and there are whatsapp groups.

The pro/con review below also sums it up quite well, but here are two updates:
- there's food delivery now (phangan-delivery dot com). Takes about 60 minutes (I got used to that) and works well
- electricity is stable, no blackouts in 3 months (except one after a powerful storm that got fixed quickly)

I also enjoy that there are Thai people coming to Phangan for what it has to offer and it's nice chatting with them.

5 years ago

Love this island so much! The first time I went I only stayed in Haad Rin and hated it, second time I went, I ventured west and stayed nearly 3 weeks! Lots of great yoga retreats and healthy food

5 years ago

Koh Phangan has potential to become an awesome nomad hotspot. It's close, but it’s not quite there yet. I’ve spent 5 months here during the 2021 COVID-lockdown.

Pros:
- Stunning nature all around you
- You can live right on the beach, or have a sick view from a hill
- Can be very affordable
- Laid back, Bali-like lifestyle
- Low amount of traffic, very chill to drive around
- Lots of yoga, gyms, muay thai, etc
- Easy to explore other parts of Thailand (when there's no lockdown)
- E-commerce is fantastic, including grocery delivery (e.g. Paleo Robbie)
- Great electronic music parties (when there's no lockdown)
- Barely any crime

Cons:
- Not too many tech nomads. Mostly hippies, party people and families with young children
- No solid co-working space - please build a Tropical Nomad here!
- No ride hailing or food delivery apps
- Shortage of high quality, nicely designed places to rent - they exist, but the demand seems higher than the supply
- Easy to get lost in all the hedonism - be careful if you're prone to indulging
- Plenty of toxic people in the "conscious" community
- Some areas are straight from a zombie apocalypse movie - e.g. Haad Rin, the area of the Full Moon Parties
- Frequent power cuts

5 years ago

The Thai Bali and one of the best place to be in Thailand now. I know I had preconceptions about it too, like there'd be too many hippies, and pseudo-science spiritual bs people. But it's not like that. The people we met were actually mostly really chill and friendly and not at all pushing their stuff on us. Also there seems to be an increasing group of just non-hippie general nomads who I'd say are more focused on living healthily (like in Canggu, Bali). Focusing on good food and fitness. It's a similar crowd you'd meet in Bali, or Mexico, or Portugal. The right people.

Ko Pha Ngan is MUCH more driveable with a motorbike than Samui. The roads are a bit worse, BUT there's no real fast cars traffic like in Samui. It's all jungle roads which is heaven to drive through. Then at random spots you'll find hipster cafes with great coffee and food (and aircon!). There's also lots of beautiful accommodation for very affordable prices. Think beautifully architecture designer houses in the jungle with night-lit luxury pools.

The only negative I heard about Ko Pha Ngan from people is there's no real good coworking space yet. But there's enough big cafes.

To get to Ko Pha Ngan: fly from Bangkok to Ko Samui, then take the 30 minute speedboat ferry from Samui.

5 years ago

I have been staying on this island for about 2 years, and would like to remind everybody something : working remotely is illegal in Thailand, and can get you in serious troubles if you do any kind of work without a work permit. There has been in the past reported cases of arrests in so called "co-working spaces". I think it is only a fair warning to people who plan to come here and hang in co-working spaces. 2 years ago koh phangan did not have a good rating on nomad list, not much as changed since, but i've seen over this time a group of european businessmen investing in many facilities for digital nomad, they are now craving for customers and massively trying to market the island as a digital nomad heaven.
That being said, for anyone aware of the risks, it is an amazing place to live, nature is beautiful and you will find wifi ranging from wacky to high speed depending on your location on the island, and mobile internet is really handy and cheap. Because of tourism, it is also one of the most expensive places in Thailand when it comes to food and housing, which makes it difficult for thais to move in, but you will find the local families who have been staying there forever and others who come for jobs in tourism. There is a big hippie/yogi community here and a lot of activities around this. And of course, it is a party island.

6 years ago

This island is a total gem. It has everything one desires in a paradise island! There is a huge higher consciousness/yoga/meditation/vegetarian/vegan community plus epic full moon and half moon parties, omg totally worth checking out! And the internet connectivity and speed on the island is good too. I've had no problem doing work from my laptop as a Digital Marketing Specialist either.

7 years ago

- Mobile internet is great, Wifi heavily depends on your place
- A scooter is needed to get around, but that's easily organized and not too expensive
- For people coming from Chiang Mai, expect things to be at least 50% more expensive
- The food is great! Not as cheap as in other places in Thailand (although cheap street food can be found), lots of vegan and health-oriented restaurants
- Cafes are of decent quality, there are definitely some in which you can get work done, although they close early (most around 6-7 pm). The coworking space situation has massively improved in the last year and although I don't want to advertise here you'll figure out what I mean by a quick Google search

Although the island is small, it heavily depends on your location and yourself what kind of lifestyle you can live here:

You could stay around Haad Rin and permanently live for the party (not recommended if you are actually a Nomad and intend to work, although it can be a lot of fun once or twice).
You could stay around Sri Thanu and live a perfectly healthy lifestyle, working out, doing Yoga and meditating, this could be a very good experience, but mind that people there are usually quite spiritual (or pretend to be), so it's up to you.
You could live in the main village in Thong Sala, but I honestly don't see the point of doing that, as it's the most polluted area, so only stay here for budget reasons.
You could stay in the very east of the island (Haad Yang) or in the very north (Chaloklum) and enjoy the laidback experience, although you might need to commute quite a while to get to any workable place.
If you stay anywhere else on the island, it's about the same experience as in other places in the South of Thailand, so I would say medium-level touristy but very convenient and doable for anybody.
Some places are not listed here and they kind of have their unique vibe, I'll let that to you to find out ;)

I personally recommend sticking with one place and one lifestyle here on the island. It's quite tempting to jump into something else, but for me, it is sometimes a huge distraction and quite bad for my overall productivity and happiness switching between those different lifestyles. That's why I developed some kind of love-hate relationship with the island. The only other place with such vast differences between spots I found so far is Bali.

7 years ago

Spent a lovely two weeks in Hin Kong in a guest house. Only had a car for a week. You can get around without a car on the songthaews, but they are overpriced. Scooter is better, they are cheep and easier to park. The island is mellow and very relaxed. A great place to escape. Internet is very reliable.

7 years ago

A really great island. One week before the full moon party it's full of tourists, and a great place to be single. After the party, it empties out completely except for locals, couples and expats. You don't need to go to the party and if it's not your thing you won't really notice. Still lots to do if you have a scooter and make some friends.

It's not as touristic as Samui or Koh Tao. A scooter is absolutely necessary. If you can't drive you'll need a friend who can. There's a small nomad community and a couple of co working spaces. Overall it's a lovely island with many different scenes.

7 years ago

✅ Beautiful nature

✅ Friendly people

✅ Chill and relaxed vibe

✅ Very safe

✅ Good food options

✅ Easy to get around with scooter

✅ Affordable accommodation

✅ Strong wellness and fitness scene

✅ Decent mobile internet

✅ Fast internet

✅ Lots of fun stuff to do

✅ Warm now

✅ Warm all year round

✅ Good air quality on average

✅ Nomads.com members liked going here a lot

✅ Many Nomads.com members have been

✅ Spacious and not crowded

✅ Easy to make friends

✅ Easy to do business

✅ Very safe for women

✅ Family friendly

✅ Very friendly to LGBTQ+

✅ Not many people smoke tobacco

✅ (Medical) marijuana MAY be legal, unenforced or decriminalized (always double check this)

❌ No solid coworking space

❌ Rising prices

❌ Lack of real digital nomad community

❌ Scooter-dependent and risky driving

❌ Unstable infrastructure in some areas

❌ Party-heavy and hedonistic vibe not for everyone

❌ Freedom of speech is weak

❌ Not very democratic

❌ Very sweaty and humid now

❌ Not many Nomads.com members right now

❌ Quality of education is low

❌ Hospitals are bad

❌ Roads are very dangerous

❌ People don't speak English well

Jan

Feb

Mar

Apr

May

Jun

Jul

Aug

Sep

Oct

Nov

Dec

Feels (median)

3188°
hot

3290°
hot

3493°
hot

3595°
hot

3290°
hot

3188°
hot

3086°
warm

Real (median)

2781°
warm

2882°
very warm

2984°
very warm

2882°
very warm

2781°
warm

2780°
warm

Humidity

sweaty
82%

sweaty
80%

sweaty
81%

sweaty
80%

sweaty
81%

sweaty
82%

sweaty
83%

sweaty
84%

sweaty
83%

sweaty
84%

sweaty
85%

sweaty
81%

Most common

☀️ Clear

☔️ Rain

☀️ Clear

Rain

dry
46mm

dry
17mm

dry
30mm

rainy
105mm

rainy
167mm

rainy
135mm

rainy
125mm

rainy
135mm

rainy
208mm

rainy
278mm

rainy
131mm

Cloud

cloudy
62%

pockets
45%

pockets
49%

cloudy
65%

cloudy
85%

cloudy
89%

overcast
92%

overcast
91%

overcast
92%

cloudy
88%

cloudy
71%

Sun

avoid sun
7 UVI

avoid sun
9 UVI

avoid sun
8 UVI

avoid sun
7 UVI

avoid sun
6 UVI

avoid sun
7 UVI

Remote workers

5,680 people

7,200 people

5,760 people

4,071 people

2,769 people

1,425 people

3,323 people

2,443 people

1,835 people

3,273 people

4,015 people

6,525 people

Green is good. Red is bad. Values shown are the medians of all daily highs in a month based on past few years, not necessarily current numbers. Remote worker count is estimated based on the total amount of trips logged by Nomads.com members.

If you'd like to filter destinations based on their climate, try Nomads.com's Climate Finder

Current weather data from MET Norway (CC BY 4.0)

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⭐️ OverallAll

Indonesia

⭐️ OverallAll

💵 Cost 😙 Affordable

📡 InternetWiFi 🚀 Super fast

👍 Liked good

👮 Safety good

Tap to open

🌥 Feels 34° 93° 28° 83° Barely AC 🥵 AQI 136 😷

✈️4h

$1,974 / mo

🌇 Also went here263 people

Canggu, Bali

Indonesia

⭐️ OverallAll

💵 Cost 🧐 Pricey

📡 InternetWiFi 🚀 Super fast

👍 Liked bad

👮 Safety bad

Tap to open

🌥 Feels 31° 88° 27° 81° Barely AC 🥵 AQI 127 😷

✈️4h

$3,413 / mo

🌇 Also went here325 people

Tokyo

Japan

Members who will be here soon

Members who have been here

Values shown are estimated visits by traveling remote workers based on the total amount of trips logged by Nomads.com members. Visits to a place are only counted once per year per user, even if they visit more in that year. Visits are also normalized by overall trips added per month on the site, so if site usage goes up or down it does not affect trends. Not all digital nomads are on Nomads.com, and not all Nomads.com members log their trips. So the data is only indicative.

The chart below shows visitors by nationality normalized for population size. This means we take all trips logged on Nomads.com, check which country of origin the user is from, then divide that total visit count by the country of origin's population. If we didn't, it'd just show the big countries like US, Brazil and India always on top. Instead, this shows which nationalities worldwide proportionally visit more or less, which is more useful.

🎒 Nomad Score™	3.58/5 (Rank #129) 834 reviews
❤️ Liked by members	👍22 liked it 👎2 disliked it
👍 Quality of life score	Good
👶 Family score	Good
🎒 Community score	Okay
🤯 Overcrowding score	5% is nomad here
💵 Cost	😙 Affordable: $2,301 / mo
📡 Internet	🚀 Super fast: 70 Mbps (avg)
😝 Fun	Great
⛅️ Temperature (now)	🥵 Hot: 29°C84°F (feels 34°C93°F)
💦 Humidity (now)	🥵 Sweaty: 79%
❄️ % of buildings with AC	🥵 Low: 37%
💨 Air quality (now)	😐 Moderate: 67 US AQI
👌 Safety	Great
👩 Safe for women	Great
🌈 Safe for LGBTQ+	Great
🤮 Food safety*	Bad
👮‍♀️ Lack of crime*	Good
🤝 Lack of racism*	Great
🎓 Education level*	Mediocre
⚡️ Power grid	Great
🌊 Resilience to climate change	Okay
💰 Income level*	Very poor: $671 / mo
🙊 English speaking*	Bad
🚶 Walkability	Bad
🚦 Traffic safety*	Bad
✈️ Airline scores*	Great
🧳 Lost luggage*	Great
😄 Happiness*	Good
🍸 Nightlife	Good
📶 Free WiFi in city	Bad
🖥 Places to work from	Great
❄️ A/C or heating	Okay
😁 Friendly to foreigners	Great
🗯 Freedom of speech*	Okay
🎅 Startup Score	Okay

🌍 Continent	Asia
🚩 Country	Thailand
🗓️ Average trip length	20 days
📡 Internet speed (avg)	70 Mbps
⛅️ Weather (now)	🌧 29°C 84°F + 🥵 Sweaty (79%) = feels 34°C 93°F
💨 Air quality (now)	👍 67 US AQI 🍃 OK
🔌 Power	230V 50Hz
🚕 Best taxi app*	Grab
🚑 Travel medical insurance	Safetywing
💸 100 THB in USD	USD 2.97
🏧 Suggested ATM take out:	THB 10,000 = USD 297
💸 Tipping	Yes, 5%
💳 Cashless	💳 Yes, cards OK almost everywhere
💻 Best coworking space	Koh Space
🚰 Tap water	🚫 No, not drinkable
🦷 Fluoride added	🚫 No fluoride added
♻️ Return rate	👍14% of visitors return
📸 Visitors per year	428,688 visitors
📸 Tourists now	8,216 tourists
👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Population	12,000 people
👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 GDP per capita*	$8,057 / year
👫 Gender ratio (nomads)	👨 81% 👱‍♀️ 19%
⛪️ Religious government	Non-religious
💻 Online electronics shop	Lazada
✈️ Best short-haul air carrier	Air Asia
✈️ Best int'l air carrier	Air Asia

💵 Cost of living for nomad	$2,301 / month
💵 Cost of living for expat	$2,039 / month
💵 Cost of living for family	$3,315 / month
💵 Cost of living for local	$947 / month
🏨 Hotel (median price)	$638 / month
🏡 Airbnb (median price)	$4,352 / month
🏠 1br studio rent in center	$820 / month
🏠 Median home price	$223,614
🏨 Hotel (median price)	$30 / night
🏠 Airbnb (median price)	$143 / night
🏢 Coworking hot desk	$116 / month
🍛 Dinner	$4
🥤 Coca-Cola (0.3L)	$1
🍺 Beer in cafe (0.5L)	$2
☕️ Coffee in cafe	$2
👩‍🏫 International school	$7,912 / year
🚕 Taxi price (avg trip ~3km/2mi)	$4 / trip

Ko Pha Ngan

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