Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
(350B) departs daily at 10am and arrives on Ko Pan-Ngan at 11.30am. Hotel pick-ups are
included in the price.
To/From Ko Samui
The
Lomprayah
catamaran offers a twice-daily service (600B), leaving Ko Tao at
9.30am and 3pm and arriving on Ko Samui via Ko Pha-Ngan, around 11.30am and
4.40pm. The
Seatran Discovery Ferry
(600B) offers an identical service. The
Song-
serm
express boat (450B) departs daily at 10am and arrives on Samui (again via Ko Pha-
Ngan) at 12.45pm. Hotel pick-ups are included in the price.
To/From Surat Thani & the Andaman Coast
The easiest option is to stop over on either Ko Pha-Ngan or Ko Samui to shorten the trip
and lessen the number of connections. Otherwise, a combination bus-boat ticket from
travel agents around the island shouldn't cost more than going it alone. But if you don't
feel like being herded like a sheep onto a tourist bus, there are two routes you can take.
The first, and more common, approach is to board a Surat-bound boat (you may have to
transfer boats on Ko Pha-Ngan or Ko Samui), then transfer to a bus upon arrival.
The second option is to take a ferry to Chumphon on the mainland and then switch to a
bus or train bound for the provinces further south.
BUS
Bus-boat package tickets to/from Bangkok are available from travel agencies all over
Bangkok and the south; tickets cost about 1000B and the whole journey takes about 12
hours. Buses switch to boats in Chumphon and Bangkok-bound passengers can choose to
disembark in Hua Hin (for the same price as the Ko Tao-Bangkok ticket).
TRAIN
Travellers can plan their own journey by taking a boat to Chumphon, then making their
way to Chumphon's town centre to catch a train up to Bangkok (or any town along the
upper southern gulf); likewise in the opposite direction. A 2nd-class ticket to Bangkok
will cost around 300B and the trip takes around 8½ hours.
From Ko Tao, the high-speed catamaran departs for Chumphon at 10.15am and
2.45pm (600B, 1½ hours), and a Songserm express boat makes the same journey at
2.30pm (500B, three hours). There may be fewer departures if the swells are high.
Getting Around
MOTORCYCLE
