Salad Beach Koh Phangan or Haad Salad is one of our favorite beaches on the island. Imagine yourself sinking your toes into the soft sand, watching waves crashing on the shore, and enjoying your cold drink while soaking in the sun.
This will certainly send you into a state of blissful relaxation.
The beach was always clean during our stay on Koh Phangan in Thailand. It has crystal clear water, swaying palm trees and amazing marine life. After all, it’s one of the best places for snorkeling on the island.
Read our detailed guide about Salad beach Koh Phangan. We describe the location, beach facilities, how to get here, tides as well as best restaurants and hotels in the area.
Where is Salad beach?
Haad Salad is located on the northwest coast of Koh Phangan. It’s around 20 minutes ride on motorbike from Thong Sala which is main ferry terminal and jumping off point on the island.
You can also save the location to your Google maps app.
Where to stay on Koh Phangan
For party lovers, the best area to stay is near Haad Rin beach. That’s where you’ll also find the famous Full Moon Party. If you’re looking for a hippie laid-back vibe head to Zen Beach. Other alternatives can be found in the northern part of the island, too.
Best hotels on Koh Phangan
Check availability
How to get to Salad beach
Entrance fee: free
Parking fee: free
To reach Salad Beach Koh Phangan you can take a taxi or rent a scooter from Thong Sala or anywhere around your accommodation.
Roads are in good conditions and you certainly won’t have any problems with finding the beach.
There isn’t any paid parking. As far as I remember we left our motorbike right at the entrance to the beach (map).
Salad beach description
Haad Salad Beach Koh Phangan offers a picturesque setting for relaxation. During our visit there were almost zero people on the beach. But we came in summer months when there is less visitors generaly.
So whether you would like to lounge under the shade of a beach umbrella, enjoy fresh seafood at a seaside restaurant or simply explore the vibrant coral reefs just offshore, Salad Beach is the right place for you.
Especially if you’re looking for a beach that isn’t crowded and noisy.
When we were looking for showers, unfortunatelly we didn’t find any. When it comes to toilets you would probably have to use some of the restaurant’s toilets but this should not be a problem at all.
The water here is calm and shallow which is perfect for families with kids. But this also depends on the tides which we will discuss later in more details.
In case you would like to chill on a sunbed all day long you’ll have to use sunbeds provided by restaurants on the beach. Some of them are free if you buy food or more drinks in the restaurant.
Don’t forget to bring some snacks with you because nearest 7-eleven is not so close.
If you want to visit a more secluded beach we highly recommend going to Haad Khom Beach. But you should visit the beach only during high tide to fully enjoy swimming.
Snorkeling at Salad beach
Snorkeling at Salad beach was certainly the second best on Koh Phangan according to us. We really enjoyed diverse marine life full of colorful corals and fish.
Corals are just 100 meters offshore and they are easily accessible thanks to passage which you’ll see from the shore. It’s more or less somewhere in the middle of the beach.
We recommend you to bring your own snorkeling gear since we didn’t find any rental shop on the beach.
Other good thing about bringing your own gear is that you won’t have any problems with old used gear which might not be in good conditions.
But If you really want to experience the best beach for snorkeling you should certainly visit Mae Haad Beach. It is not so far away so you can visit both beaches in one day.
Read more: Heading to Koh Samui next? Don’t worry we got you covered. Read about how to get from Koh Phangan to Koh Samui.
Best activities on Koh Phangan
Tip for the beach: Want to explore more beautiful beaches on Koh Phangan? Head out to see Zen Beach. It has amazing laid-back hippie vibes. You should stay there for a sunset.
Best Restaurans around Salad beach
- Pure pure kitchen – simple, delicious and authentic Thai food! 4.9 score according to reviews on google
- Flow Cafe & Eatery – really good restaurant for people looking for western food and tasty coffee. Prices are higher compared to local family restaurants, but views are amazing!
- Anjali – another authentic Thai restaurant with really good prices, tasty food and friendly staff
Best time to visit Salad beach
Dry season: december – march
Rainy season: late september – early december
The high season falls between December and March. The weather is nice and sunny with little to no rain. The prices are higher and everything is more crowded.
Between March and August there is dry and hot season on Koh Phangan. We came in June and had a lovely weather.
And lastly the wet season is between late September and early December. That’s when the island is hit by many heavy rains. It is not a good time to explore Koh Phangan and Koh Tao, Koh Samui too.
Generally speaking the best time to visit Salad beach and Koh Phangan is during dry season. But during dry season there is also “high tide season”. You might not enjoy the beach because it will be underwater almost all day. More below.
Tides on the island/beach
Not many people realize this but Koh Phangan, Koh Samui and Koh Tao do not have typical 4 tides per day. There are only 2.
The high season between December and March is also a high tide season. This means high tide is stronger and water is deeper than in the other season.
During summer months it’s low tide season and water is too shallow on some beaches. Some months you only get low tide during daylight. Then it’s really important to choose the right beach to actually enjoy swimming.
Salad beach conclusion
In conclusion Salad Beach Koh Phangan has amazing tropical vibes, white soft sand, diverse marine life and few beachfront restaurants. What else do you need for a day full of relaxation and some snorkeling?
Hope this guide was helpful and in case you have any question we will be more than happy to answer them below in the comments section. Thank you for reading!
