Koh Phangan travel guide

Full Moon Party bucket cocktails

Ko Phangan's contribution to global party culture — a sand bucket filled with ice, a mixer bottle and a spirit miniature; cheap, dangerous, and completely part of the experience for those attending; the mixers are ubiquitous on Haad Rin beach and at party bars throughout the island

Khao niaw mamuang (mango sticky rice)

Thailand's greatest dessert in perfect island conditions — sweet glutinous rice steamed with coconut milk and palm sugar, topped with sliced fresh mango and drizzled with more thick coconut cream; Ko Phangan's mango vendors on the beach do this perfectly from April through June when mangoes are at their peak

Massaman curry

Thailand's richest curry — a slow-cooked Southern Thai curry with Persian/Malay influence, using coconut milk, potatoes, roasted peanuts, cinnamon, cardamom and star anise; chicken or beef; a famous dish on Thailand's Muslim-influenced south coast; deeply aromatic and not as spicy as other curries; available at every island restaurant

Suki Thai (Thai hotpot)

A social evening meal adapted from Suki Yaki — a tabletop broth in which you cook sliced meats, seafood and vegetables, dipped in a sweet-sour-spicy Suki sauce; popular at Ko Phangan's north coast seafood restaurants and local Thai restaurants; Thailand communal eating culture at its best