Ao Tong Nai Pan Noi beach is a neighbour to the equally gorgeous Ao Tong Nai Pan Yai on the northwest coast of Phangan. A small, beautiful beach with deep water, far from the main tourist trails. Nai Pan Noi instantly wins your heart and leaves no room for negativity – you’ll fall in love with it.
It has a light but quite decent tourist infrastructure and is located at the end of a new, brilliant road that runs through the mountainous middle of the island. There are loads of accommodation options and everything you need is close at hand, albeit on a miniature scale. Also, from here you can catch the cheapest boats to the introvert’s paradise – Bottle Beach (for 200 baht per person).
Beach Overview
Ao Tong Nai Pan Noi beach stretches for 2000 feet (600 metres) along the shore of a bay, bounded at the edges by steep cliffs and boulder formations. Getting to Nai Pan Noi along the sea from another beach is impossible; you can only access it from inland via a rather challenging road.
Therefore, you should consider the beach either as a permanent place to stay and relax or for a one-off swim. Coming here every day would be difficult and dangerous.
On the left near Cape Pak Chong sits the Santhiya Koh Phangan Resort & SPA 5.
And on the right, at the top of Cape Klang which separates the twin beaches, stands the Panviman Resort koh Phangan 4. The cliffs on which Panviman stands are separated from the rest of the beach by a small river that doesn’t dry up even in the hot season.
The beach itself is quite wide, about 50 feet (15 metres) on average during high tide and reaching 100-150 feet (30-40 metres) of clean, coarse and loose sand with a yellowish tint at low tide.
Swimming
The shore gradient at Tong Nai Pan Noi is quite steep but not extreme. Generally, after all those shallow flat-bottomed beaches that run in a continuous line on the west coast, at Pan Noi you want to run and shout: “Here it is, the fish of my dreams!”
Given the fact that the beach is quite small and the shore is divided between a dozen resorts that groom it from early morning, Pan Noi can be called the classic beach holiday. Clean shore, uniform width along the entire beach, water entry without stones and irregularities, shoulder-deep water ten metres from shore – what more could you ask for on holiday?
Sunbeds and Shade
For a complete experience, you need a lounger in the shade. There are sunbeds at Ao Nai Pan Noi. Lots of them. Everywhere. True, they belong to the resorts, but nobody has cancelled the option of ordering a cocktail in exchange for the privilege of lounging like a proper tourist. Shade on the beach comes mainly from trees, which are abundant and everywhere.
Plus, Nai Pan Noi is located on the east coast, meaning the relatively hot start of the day will be compensated by increasing shade after noon. This is very relevant when you remember that at low tide the water recedes, so the shade always remains close to the sea.
Beach Photos
Amenities
This small beach has tourist-oriented infrastructure. Roughly speaking, all amenities are located within 650 feet (200 metres) of the sea, behind the front line occupied by resorts.
Besides two mini-markets, the streets of Tong Nai Pan Noi have tourist and rental offices, laundries, cafΓ©s, bars, restaurants and massage parlours. There are also several ATMs from different banks, and even public telephone machines. Essentially, everything you might need for a two-week holiday.
Accommodation
Along the shore of Ao Nai Pan Noi, you can count about fifteen hotels, resorts and guesthouses.
The top ones, besides those already mentioned, are:
- Buri Rasa Koh Phangan 4
- Sandee Bungalows 2
- Anantara Rasananda Koh Phangan Villas 5
- Thongtapan Resort 3
Hotels Santhiya Koh Phangan Resort & SPA 5 and
Panviman Resort koh Phangan 4 are located on elevated ground and cliffs, which on one hand creates inconvenience when walking to the beach.
But on the other hand, only from their windows do you get a magnificent view of the bay and the eastern horizon. By the way, all first-line hotels at Nai Pan Noi have high ratings based on visitor reviews, and when thousands of people are giving thumbs up and raving about the location and hotel – that speaks volumes.
Personally, I really liked Panviman visually, despite the nearby river. First I walked around its grounds, and then I also read reviews and looked at photos on booking sites. Perhaps I’ll stay there on my next trip. Everything is so close that the river doesn’t matter.
Hotels on Thong Nai Pan Noiβ
How to find the beach
Here you’ll need a taxi driver or navigator. From Tong Sala, you’ll need to go right, along the southern shore, to the turn-off to the new road, which can be found by eye, following signs, but it’s easy to get lost in Phangan’s maze of turns. I’ve marked the needed junction on the map; after that, you’ll follow a new and good road.
However, it’s worth knowing that the road is full of turns and gradients, so careless driving can lead to falls – I witnessed some folks come off their bike due to sand on a turn.
You’ll have to drive for a while, past the deer statue, past the roundabout and the stele with balls, to the turn onto the concrete road to Tong Nai Pan Noi (also on the map). Drive to the Panviman hotel barrier, then left and all the way to the end. At the end, there’s a large car park in the shade of trees.
