This deserted and quiet beach is an excellent place for relaxation and contemplation, offering the beauty of pristine nature just 10 miles (16 km) from Ao Nang. However, there is little tourist infrastructure here, aside from a few small hotels with bamboo huts.
Beach Overview
This beach borders Nopparat Thara Beach to the east but is separated from it by a river. Three beaches—Ao Nang, Nopparat Thara, and Pan Beach—divide the large bay into three parts. Pan Beach is the most deserted and secluded of the three. There is practically nothing here.
Well alright a couple of houses and several simple bungalow hotels. But that’s it. Just fishing boats, an excellent view of distant islands and coastal cliffs, light-coloured sand and casuarina trees occasionally interspersed with palms and other vegetation.
It’s very deserted and quiet here. In the morning and evening there’s nobody at all. On the western side the beach ends with a river flowing into the sea (or a bay), and on the eastern side it’s also separated from Nopparat Thara by a river near which small rocks covered with shrubs stick out of the water.
Swimming
The water entry at this beach is very long and shallow. Far far out the sea remains knee-deep. Which in principle might be convenient for swimming if you don’t like jumping in waves. Here, just like on the neighbouring beaches, the tides are strongly pronounced, during which the sea retreats from the shore to such a great distance that the deep water becomes practically unreachable from the shore.
During such times you can see the exposed seabed – even, without large stones and all dug up by crabs. The sand on the beach is light, greyish with a bit of silt on the bottom near the shore.
Sunbeds and Shade
There are no sunbeds with umbrellas for rent on the beach nothing at all except sand. However, trees grow along the entire beach including sprawling tall casuarinas which provide good shade. You can hide from the sun during the day in this natural shade. In the mornings the entire strip of beach is in the shade from the trees. Loungers may only be found near the resorts.
Beach Photos
Amenities
There’s absolutely nothing on the beach. Just sea, sand and trees. And a few simple bungalow hotels. But no other infrastructure whatsoever. So if you’re going there you need to bring water and something to snack on.
Accommodation
This beach mostly features hotels with bungalow accommodation. The names speak for themselves:
- Pan Beach Bungalows Thap Prik
- Sand Beach Bungalow
- J2B Beach Bungalows
And these are very simple huts, not expensive beach resorts or luxury hotel complexes.
How to Find the Beach
You can reach the beach either by taxi or with your own transport. From Ao Nang you need to go on the same road that leads to Klong Muang beach and village. For example like this: first you need to go along the Ao Nang waterfront towards Nopparat Thara beach then along Nopparat Thara after which the road goes inland away from the sea to the right.
Then following the signs you need to drive towards Klong Muang. After the bridge over the river you need to turn left onto road 6024. From road 6024 there will also be a turn to the left onto a small forest road. This will be approximately 6 miles (10 km) from Ao Nang.
The turn is inconspicuous with only a small house standing by the road on the left and a road going into the forest. Further on this narrow road winds through the forest and leads to a fork. It’s better to go right – the road then runs along the beach with bungalow hotels on the left. Where Pan Bungalows hotel stands there’s a drive directly onto the beach. This will be roughly the middle of it.
