Staying Sober on Party Island

We don’t want to be boring, Koh Phangan is known as a ‘party island’, but does that mean that you have to be in ‘party mode’ every hour of every day?

It’s so easy here to find yourself in the flow of afternoon beers, you’re lazing on a beautiful beach and the sun is blazing, it’s that holiday vibe that relaxes everyone with no job or work to commit to the next day or the day after that.

We’ve all been there and it is nothing to be ashamed of, the week long partying, the non sleeping, it all finishes off in a week sesh and then comes the hangover, but as long as you made good memories and know when to stop then it's all fun and games.

You shouldn’t feel like you ‘have to’ drink all the time though, did you know that Koh Phangan is actually an island of opposites?

On the one side you have the Full Moon Party and all the other parties that go with it and on the other you have a health conscious, outdoor life living community, and of course all the people in the middle who have seemed to have got the balance right.

Of course it is hard to stay sober though if you work or are part of a lively community, the temptation is always around and having a few drinks can boost your confidence if you are presented with new faces.

It does get easier, the longer you are here the more you understand that you cannot just party all of your life, the hangovers take their toll and the parties are not top of your list anymore but how do you cut down to a ‘normal’ level?

Some steps that you can take may be a bit drastic but others can be simple like ‘willpower’, now we say simple however, willpower can be hard to achieve straight away yet once you have mastered this great art form it will be your best friend.

Start by finding your triggers, is it that all of your friends and acquaintances drink all the time? Then in this circumstance you may want to think about changing this, or at least changing certain situations.

Instead of meeting up with friends at bars and parties why not start to have dinner dates, at your house or at a restaurant. With the focus more on food than alcohol this can be a step in the right direction.

Remember when you were a child and you used to meet with friends to play games, do projects or just chill out together with a film on the sofa without any alcohol because one, you were too young and two, you just didn’t need it. You can implement the same into your adult life as well.

Why not find a new hobby you all enjoy doing together, it can be anything from crafts to sports or set up some kind of project or revive your love of chess or some other board game. You don’t need to get drunk in good company…

People won’t judge you if you don’t want to join them on their mission to get steaming and if they do then you’ll know that it wouldn’t be worth it anyway. There’s lots of young folk who are travelling here that WILL join you on your sober fun mission and you’ll get way more done and experience the beauty of the island even more!

The more you have to do the more you will not want to drink, people who work in ‘proper jobs’ here on the island know this all too well. If you are here on holiday however make sure that you plan stuff and get involved wherever you can, going on hikes to find beautiful beaches, giving yourself a project or task to achieve or planning something early in the morning tends to help.

Of course you are here to party and have fun and so we don’t want to be boring and old but we hope that this helps if you feel you are struggling to keep up with the hardcore crowd or even if you just want to be a bit more healthier during your once in a lifetime trip to magical Koh Phangan!