Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
the seller rats you out to the cops and you're whisked away to the local prison where you
must pay a wallet-busting fine. This type of scenario happens all the time on Ko Pha-
Ngan so it's best to avoid the call of the ganja.
Here's another important thing to remember: your travel insurance does not cover any
drug-related injury or treatment. Drug-related freak-outs
do
happen - we've heard
firsthand accounts of partiers slipping into extended periods of delirium. Suan Saranrom
(Garden of Joys) Psychiatric Hospital in Surat Thani has to take on extra staff during full-
moon and other party periods to handle the number of
fa·ràng
who freak out on magic
mushrooms, acid or other abundantly available hallucinogens.
Women travellers
Female travellers should be extra careful when partying on the island.
We've received many reports about drug- and alcohol-related rape (and these situations
are not limited to Full Moon Parties). Another disturbing problem is the unscrupulous be-
haviour of some of the local motorcycle taxi drivers. Several complaints have been filed
about drivers groping female passengers; there are even reports of severe sexual assaults.
Motorcycles
Ko Pha-Ngan has more motorcycle accidents than injuries incurred from
full moon tomfoolery. Nowadays there's a system of paved roads, but much of it is a
labyrinth of rutty dirt-and-mud paths. The island is also very hilly, and even if the road is
paved, it can be too difficult for most to take on. The
very
steep road to Hat Rin is a per-
fect case in point. The island now has a special ambulance that trawls the island helping
injured bikers.
EMERGENCY
Main Police Station
( 191, 0 7737 7114)
Located about 2km north of Thong Sala. The police
station in Hat Rin (near Hat Rin school) will not let you file a report; to do so you must
go to Thong Sala. Local police have been known to charge 200B to file a report. Do not
pay this - it should be free. Note that if you are arrested you do have the right to an em-
bassy phone call; you do not have to agree to accept the 'interpreter' you are offered.
INTERNET ACCESS
Hat Rin and Thong Sala are the main centres of internet activity, but every beach with de-
velopment now offers access. Rates are generally 2B per minute, with a 10B to 20B min-
imum and discounts if you stay on for more than an hour. Places offering a rate of 1B per
minute usually have turtle-speed connections.
LAUNDRY
If you got fluorescent body paint on your clothes during your full-moon romp, don't
bother sending them to the cleaners - the paint will never come out. Trust us, we've tried.
