Eden Garden — Restaurant in Surat Thani Province

The good: free entry, a more mature atmosphere compared to the full moon party (you won't find thousands of drunken 18 year olds here!), cozy fires, chill and psychedelic ambiance, cool people, kind of feels like a hidden gem due to its secluded location and the journey it takes to get to/from the bar, good music (obviously this can vary depending on the night you attend and the DJ spinning. And of course personal preference)

The bad: Expensive to get there and back. The journey can be rough. We bought boat tickets on haad Rin beach, and took the roughly 15min boat ride there. It was a small wooden boat that gets absolutely pounded by waves in the darkness. You definitely feel the drop in your stomach when the boat rises and falls. We all got totally soaked, and were holding each other, praying we would safely make it to shore, and occasionally taking shots of liquid courage. A bonding experience though! It probably was one of the riskier things I've done in Thailand, but it's a fun story after the fact. Don't bring anything valuable that can get ruined if wet (RIP portable charger). Once wet and shaken (but safe) on shore, we walked the rest of the way to the bar using our phone flashlights. There is a wooden bridge outside of the bar. At some point during the night as I was walking on it, my whole leg fell through a loose wooden board. I had a few cuts and scrapes and was bleeding, and had big bruises that lasted me weeks afterwards. So just be very cautious while walking! The way back home consisted of a 45min 'jeep ride' over jungle dirt paths (that was way more like offroading), with lots of ups and downs and lots of party goers in the open back of the vehicle. Hang on tight! And if you have the spins or are nauseous, you're probably not going to have a good time lol. The driver dropped us off on a random road in the jungle where a taxi car was waiting. We didn't really have a choice but to take the overly expensive taxi back to our main beach area, as it was the only option.

Long story short - it was a fun party, and a unique adventurous night we won't soon forget, but wish we had a bit more details about how adventurous it would be in advance so we could prepare! So I hope this helps others make an...

Let me write our experience about going to this "not a secret anymore Eden party" from Haad Rin.

Transportation: We started this strange adventure by paying 400 Baht per person for boating from Haad Rin beach (Bargaining definitely does not work, i tried hard. They know the fact that they are your only option). The sea was wavy. Each boat had a capacity of 10 people. We got on the boat and continued to wait there. Meanwhile, the waves had already started to hit the boat and wet us. After rescuing the boat from the sand with the help of other passengers, we started to struggle with the waves. I really thought I was going to die. We were all screaming, hugging eachother and being thrown into the air and left and right in the boat. (my advice to you, please don't forget to wear a life jacket.) We were already completely wet at the beginning of the road. It took about 20 minutes to reach the land. Then we started to walk here in the forest for 15 minutes. When we reached the party, I was wet, tired and nervous. We could literally drown to get to this party, was it worth it? I don't think it was worth it. I say don't go when the sea is choppy.

Party: The party atmosphere was nice, the music was absolutely beautiful as well. I think I would have enjoyed it even more if I hadn't had a life-or-death struggle before the party. It's no longer a secret party, frankly, everyone was there, including British. :D

Coming back: walk until the end of the beach, where the bot is waiting. We got lost on the way to the boat where again the waves kicked us hard. We had to pay this time 500 baht to go back. Yeah, end...

Just not worth it. The bar itself is packed and way over capacity. No one manages the “door” so it’s a free for all. Good luck getting a drink and fitting on the dance floor. Long lines for bathrooms with no toilet paper. Various parts are closed off/not open.

It’s high up in the mountains and there is a very steep incline to get to the top. Many people were falling over, tripping, slipping. It just seemed dangerous, especially with all the alcohol and drugs involved. So many people had scraped faces.

To get there you need to pay 300 baht to ride in an overpacked wooden boat with about 15 other people. It won’t leave until it’s packed, so depending on when you get there it could take an hour to fill up and leave. Getting home is even worse. Barely any taxis take you back, rendering you stranded on the island for hours (no exaggeration we waited over 2 hours). Taxis were returning empty so I think they intentionally did this to trap you. Even after all of this the boat guys still made you push the boat into the wavey ocean and yelled at you if you didn’t help. There were propellers sticking out of the water, and again, just seemed dangerous even for Thai standards.

The whole thing is just poorly managed and the boat people are the sketchiest I’ve seen the entire time I’ve been in Thailand.

Perhaps it’s nice when it’s not overpacked but there are so many better places to...