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Koh Phangan
Transportation |
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Bus
Most travel agencies will be able to sell an all-in-one ticket from Bangkok to Koh Phangan which includes the bus and ferry ticket for about 650 Baht per person. The price is low because the journey takes all night and is the least comfortable way to travel. Buses depart from Bangkok at around 7pm, arriving early morning in Suratthani in time for the frist ferry to the islands. Coming back, there are numerous ferries, but for the bus you will need to depart no later then 1pm. Usually a shuttle bus will drop passengers off in Suratthani to wait until about 7pm at which time the bus will depart to Bangkok.
As a more convenient option consider buying a ticket on the well- organised Government Bus which actually goes on the Raja Ferry and saves times and discomfort changing modes of transport - although it is more expensive and will set you back up to 1,000 Baht.
There are also several other bus routes (mostly via mini-bus) linking Suratthani with other major destinations.
Train
Second Class (Air Con or Fan) Sleeper trains are the best as you get a table and sofa that turns into fairly spacious beds; the lower bunk is bigger so best. The best of course is Frist Class with a sink and double bunks in each room, good if you are travelling with a lot of stuff. It is worth booking ahead with a travel agent as the train is a popular choice of transport and fills up quickly during peak periods.
All trains for Phangan stop at Suratthani railway station which is a few miles out of town, so if you have to stay in Suratthani, it is cheapest to lodge near the station otherwise you must rent a Songthaew taxi. Most trains arrive in the morning and guides take you to buses which transport to the ferry port, approximately a 1 hour drive away.
If you arrive at the train station without an onward ferry ticket there are plenty of travel offices opposite the railway station, any of which can arrange the transfer to the pier.
Air
Koh Samui Airport is the most convenient airport, with Bangkok Airways (www.bangkokair.com) flying in over 40 times in a day from Bangkok, Krabi, Phuket, Pattaya, Singapore, Penang, Kuala Lumpur or Hong Kong. The last boat leaves for Koh Phangan from Big Buddha Pier at 6.30pm, so for flights arriving later than 5pm you may have to hire a private speedboat or stay in Koh Samui; during FMP there are boats all night from Samui 300 Baht per person.
It is cheaper to fly from Bangkok to the government airport at Suratthani where a couple of budget airlines are now operating from, especially as One-Two-Go (www.fly12go.com) is now offering one-way flights from 1,750 Baht per person and with Air Asia (www.airasia.com) flights are available at slightly cheaper rates, though taxi fares and journey time tend to negate savings. It takes a minimum of 5 hours to get to Koh Phangan from Suratthani Airport at a cost of around 450 Baht which includes bus transfer and boat ticket, while the journey is just a minimum of 1 hour from Koh Samui Airport, where you can also buy a convenient minibus and boat joint ticket from around 300 Baht up.
Ferry
If you are coming to Koh Phangan from the mainland, buses, trains and planes all stop around Suratthani where you will where you will be transferred to either a Suratthani jetty for the Songserm Ferry service (3.5 hours to Koh Phangan) or to Donsak which is a 50 minutes bus ride away. If you stay overnight in Suratthani, the hotel can book you a ferry, or alternatively head for Phangan Tour as they are the main agent for bus transfer to Koh Phangan.
From Donsak Raja (3 hours) car ferry has five services a day.
From Koh Samui the shortest crossing point is from the Bophut and Mae Nam area where several services run to Koh Toa via the main Thongsala pier on Koh Phangan:
Lomprayah Catamaran (25 mins)
Seatran Discovery (25 mins)
The only service direct to Haad Rin is the Haad Rin Queen (50 mins) which also runs the most frequent service and also has a last boat at 6:30pm if you fly in late.
Songserm Express (45 mins) also runs to/from the
main port of Nathon.
Koh Phangan Ferry Departs from Thongsala.
Air-Con Bus Available to/From Bangkok
If you are in a hurry or arrving too late for
any of the regular ferry services then a
speedboat may be a good option from
Koh Samui, there is now a regular service
running between Bohput and Baan Tai pier (Koh
Phangan) which departs every hour. While coming
from Suratthani the Night Boat departs at
10.00pm which may be able to help out if you
don't want to spend the night in a hotel there.
Departing Phangan at 10.00 pm, the Night Boat arrives at 04.00am and is a popular choice for quick VISA trips to Ranong (Burma) as you can return the same day. On arrival at Suratthani you'll find travel agents offering the return minibus service at a cost of around 1,500 Baht per person which will include boat transfer to and from the boder. This service should have you back at the pier by around 04.00pm at the latest.
Ferry to Koh Phangan
| Type of Boat | Company | Tel. | Suratthani | Koh Phangan |
| Ferry | Raja Ferry | - |
Donsak 077 371151, 077 371205-6 |
Thongsala 077 3774523 |
Ferry from Suratthani to
Koh Phangan
To Koh Phangan
| Boat Type | Company Name | Pier | Service Time | Duration (hrs) |
| Ferry | Raja Ferry | Donsak |
07:00 10:00 14:00 17:30 |
2 1/2 |
| Sleeping Boat | - | Baandon | 23:00 | 6 |
To Suratthani
| Boat Type | Company Name | Pier | Service Time | Duration |
| Ferry | Raja Ferry | Thongsala |
07:00 10:00 13:00 17:00 |
2 1/2 |
| Sleeping Boat | - | Thongsala | 22:00 | 6 |
Ferry from Koh Samui <--> Koh Phangan
| From | Boat Type | Company Name | Service Time | Duration (hrs) |
|
Nathon (Koh Samui) |
Ferry | Ferry Line | 18:00 | 1 1/4 |
| Speed Boat | Songserm Travel | 09:00, 11:00, 12:00, 17:30 | 45 min | |
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Thongsala (Koh Phangan) |
Ferry | Ferry Line | 06:00 | 1 1/4 |
| Speed Boat | Songserm Travel | 07:00, 12:30, 14:00, 16:00 | 45 |
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