Bottle Beach Koh Phangan is a fun adventure away from the noise and bustle of this popular island in Thailand.
After a short boat trip youโre rewarded with white sands, green mountains, crystal clear water, and a big beach that you have almost entirely to yourself!
For even more scenery, you can do a short hike up to the Bottle Beach viewpoint to see the whole bay from above. Itโs becoming known as one of the best Koh Phangan viewpoints, so naturally we had to go take a look.
This travel guide will explain how to get there, and everything you need to know before you go!
Bottle Beach: What To Expect
Bottle Beach is great for a little bit of everything.
The white sand is soft and easy walking, with almost no rocks. There arenโt too many people. And there are several restaurants and volleyball nets at the beach if you want to stick around longer.
If youโre looking for more scenery, thereโs even a Bottle Beach viewpoint you can hike to on the hill above (more on that below).
Entrance Fees
FREE as of 2020.
Thereโs no entrance fee for the beach or the viewpoint.
The only cost is the boat ride to get there.
How To Get To Bottle Beach
Bottle Beach is located on the north side of Koh Phangan island.
The best way to get there is to hire a longtail boat from Chaloklum Beach or Haad Khom Beach. The boat ride only takes about 15 minutes and costs 150 baht (~$5 USD) per person, per way.
You can also drive to the beach, but the road gets very rough and the last part pretty much requires a 2 kilometer (1 mile) trek unless you have a 4ร4 vehicle.
The third option is to trek to Bottle Beach from Haad Khom Beach, which takes about 1-2 hours one way. After the hike you can take a boat back if youโre tired, but just keep in mind the last boats leave at 5 PM.
Bottle Beach Viewpoint
After youโre done exploring the beach, thereโs a great viewpoint at the top of the hill where you can see the whole area from above.
The trailhead for the Bottle Beach viewpoint starts behind one of the food shacks in the middle of the beach, near the river wash. Just look for the makeshift sign or ask a local to point it out to you.
Hiking to the Bottle Beach viewpoint takes about 30-60 minutes going up. The trail is shaded, but itโs all uphill so it can be pretty strenuous in the midday heat. Bring water!
The hike to the Bottle Beach Koh Phangan viewpoint takes you through a nice jungle and youโll most likely meet some lizards along the way.
After scrambling on some big boulders and crawling through an opening in the rocks, you step out into a panoramic view of Bottle Beach and the green mountains around it.
Itโs an amazing view, but be very careful here because the rocks are slanted in some spots and the drop-offs are huge โ youโre much higher than it seems at first!
