On a quiet hillside above Ban Tai, 4km from Thong Sala, Wat Khao Tham holds ten-day meditation retreats most months of the year; the American and Australian teachers emphasize compassion and loving kindness as the basis of mental development. Only forty people can attend each retreat, so it’s best to pre-register; for further information, write to Wat Khao Tham, PO Box 18, Pha Ngan Island, Surat Thani 84280, where the schedule of retreats is posted.
If you need to stay around Thong Sala, walk 800m north out of town to Siriphun. The owner is helpful, the food very good and the bungalows are clean and well positioned along the beach; all have showers and mosquito screens on the windows, and an extra wad of baht buys air-con and one of the island’s few bathtubs. Alternatively, Charm Beach Resort, a friendly, sprawling place only 1500m southeast of Thong Sala, has a wide variety of decent bungalows and good Thai food. The incongruous white high-rise overshadowing Thong Sala’s pier is the Pha Ngan Chai Hotel, makes a fair stab at international standard features, with air-conditioning, warm water, TVs, mini-bars and, in some rooms, sea-view balconies.
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