How to get to Koh Phangan from Bangkok and from Koh Samui - bus, car, ferries

Koh Phangan is an island without an airport. You can get there only by sea. Sea transportation to Phangan is carried out by different companies, but only from four places in Thailand, three of which are located on the mainland (Chumphon, Surat Thani and Donsak cities), and another place is the neighboring island of Koh Samui (it has its own airport). Here in this article I have already told in detail about how to go to Koh Samui (and this is in the same place as Phangan), including the version where you are an absolutely independent and fearless unit. This is when you buy tickets for each section of the route yourself. But in fact, it is difficult, even for experienced people, to guess so that all three shoulders dock in time. Today I am focusing on a more light version of the trip - joint ticket only.

The content of the article

Airplane

Koh Phangan is located eight kilometers north of Koh Samui and does not have its own airport. Rather, there are the beginnings of an airport in the form of a clay square, somewhere deep in the mountainous region of the island. The square has been empty for several years, bulldozers are rusting in the same place, but from time to time in Thai resources there is a joyful announcement about the imminent completion of the construction of the Pangan airport, which no one believes. In short, there are no direct flights from Bangkok to Phangan. However, there are also connecting flights. The maximum that you can do is get to Koh Phangan by plane as close as possible and there are already options.

Airplane from Bangkok Airways + ferry

The fastest, most convenient and expensive option is a direct flight from Bangkok to Samui with Bangkok Airways. For 3,500 baht and an hour of time, you will find yourself a kilometer from the three passenger piers of Koh Samui, from where boats run to Koh Phangan (described below). Unfortunately, you won't be able to buy a joint ticket from Bangkok Airways until Koh Phangan, there is no such service.

Take care of booking tickets for such a plane in advance, because buying a ticket on the day of your arrival will definitely not smile at you, and book better through Aviasales.ru and Skyscanner.ru, we use them ourselves, very convenient services. Although it is possible on the airline's website.

At the Koh Samui airport, you will need to catch a taxi to Bang Rak pier (about 350 baht) or take a minivan (150 baht) - both types of transport are on duty right outside the arrivals area, where the greeters are always pushing. Well, or go on foot outside the airport and catch a motorcycle taxi driver for 50 baht, provided that you have one backpack from your luggage.

Aircraft of low-cost airlines + bus + ferry

A more budgetary and longer option is to use AirAsia or NokAir flights that fly from Don Muanga to the cities of Surat Thani or Nakhon Si Tammarat. Dong Muang is a domestic airport where low-cost airlines are based and is also located in Bangkok. Immediately add an hour to your schedule to move from Suvarnabhumi to Dong Muang.

From Surat Thani or Nakhon Si Tammarat, you have to drive an hour and a half by bus to the piers near the city of Donsak. Then transfer to the ferry and another two and a half hours of crossing to Koh Phangan. And if you flew from Nok Air, then they won't take you for a long time - they ferry passengers by Lompraya ferries from Tapi Pir pier in Surat Thani. It used to be in Donsak, closer to the island, but in 2017 they moved to the Tapi River in Surat Thani. Time by sea now takes 1 hour 55 minutes.

The plus is that when buying a plane ticket, you can immediately indicate the final point of arrival and you will be immediately calculated the price of a joint ticket, and this greatly facilitates the trip. Roughly speaking, for 1200 - 1800 baht you will be taken by the hand from the plane to Koh Phangan. I flew like that, I tested it on purpose, but I did not like.

NokAir flight via Nakhon Si Tammarat and then bus and ferry

Train + ferry

How to buy a train ticket online

Unfortunately, only the Songserm Express ferry company has a joint ticket with the option «train + ferry» from Bangkok to Phangan. Beloved by all, Lompraya does not do such things. But there is a solution - a Russian-language online booking site that shows you both the official joints and just convenient combinations of tickets. There will be more options. True, the price of such options turns out to be slightly higher, but the transfer from the place of arrival by one means of transport, to the place of departure by another, is included in the ticket price..

Unfortunately, Thai railways do not support the e-ticketing system and that is why they only sell them at their box office, and not through the railway website. Therefore, 12go goes to the railway ticket office and buys a ticket for you, but you still have to pick it up in person at one of the pick-up points or receive it by mail.

Tickets Bangkok-Phangan>

Train to Chumphon and transfer to ferry

Trains run from Bangkok to the south of Thailand on a single line. To the city of Chumphon - about 350 km, to the city of Surat Thani (almost near Koh Samui and Phangan) - about 730 km. Relatively speaking, Chumphon is half the way to the intended goal. From it you can go further by train or change to a ferry.

If for some reason you decide to buy train tickets yourself offline, then study my article «How to get from Bangkok to Koh Samui» in the section about trains. The main thing is to check that the time of arrival of the train and departure of the ferry allows you to safely get from the railway station to the pier. By the way, for clarity, all piers are displayed on the map at the end of the article..

Lompraya pier is located 30 km from the station, the journey time to it without traffic jams is about 45 minutes. The company's office is located right next to the station building, on platform 1. Catamarans depart twice a day: at 07:30 am and at 13:00 pm. Travel time from Chumphon to Phangan is 3 hours 45 minutes, ticket price is 1000 baht per person. Moors on Koh Phangan to Thongsala Pier

The Songserm Express Mataphone Pier is closer - 18 km from the railway station, but the road passes through the village, so it still takes about 35 minutes. Songserm boats leave daily at 07:00. Ticket price - 800 baht per person, travel time 4 hours 40 minutes. Moors on Koh Phangan to Thongsala Pier.

If you booked a combined ticket using the link indicated above, then under the terms of sale of that site, you must pick up the train tickets, bus + ferry voucher in person and take the train yourself at Hua Lampong Station. Upon arrival in Chumphon, you will be greeted by representatives of the ferry company. The price for train + bus + ferry tickets is about 1500 - 2200 baht per person.

By train to Surat Thani, bus taxi to the pier in Donsak, ferry

Here the picture is more interesting. Lompraya does not provide official combined tickets, but you can book a ticket through the guys from 12go.asia, pick up your train ticket and voucher for a bus + ferry, then sleep for 13 hours on the way from Bangkok to Surat Thani and, upon arrival in Surat, search eyes at the exit from the station, where there you will be met by a transfer with a sign. The price for train + bus + ferry tickets is about 1500 - 2200 baht per person.

But the Songserm company offers joint tickets train + bus + ferry. When buying online, a couple of dozen options are offered, which differ in the class of the carriage and the location of the shelf. TRAIN TICKETS ALSO SHOULD BE PICKED UP AT THE OFFICE. The price is from 1280 to 1980 baht per person. Departure of trains from Hua Lamphong Station in Bangkok: 17:05, 18:30, 19:30 - in short, all night trains that travel 12-13 hours. In Phangan, you will be at 12:15, regardless of the train departure.

Interestingly, Songserm, in all of its online bookings, takes people by bus from the train station to the piers in Donsak, although they have a pier right in Surat Thani, which is much closer. And yet - if you did get to Surat Thani on your own by train, then look to the left, leaving the station building - there will be ugly buses, near which there are stands with prices and travel options. For example, the Phantip company will take you to Koh Phangan for 350 baht and this price includes the ferry crossing..

A taxi to the same pier will cost about 1,700 baht.

There are more exotic ferry options, all of which are in Surat Thani:

  • Pierce Bandon. High-speed passenger boats of the SeaTran Express company run between Surat Thani and Phangan from this pier. Departure once a day at 07:00 am, travel time is about 4 hours. Ticket price 550 baht per person.
  • Tatong pier. The passenger boats of the Songserm Express company go from here. Twice a day, on the Koh Samui - Phangan - Koh Tao route. Departure: at 08:00 and 14:00, with a mandatory stop in Koh Samui, they arrive in Phangan at 11:30 and 18:20, respectively. The price of the trip is 550 baht per person.
  • And again the Bandon pier, in case you arrived very late in Surat Thani and you definitely do not have time for any of the ferries. From here, a night ferry goes - a two-story ship of a private company, equipped with berths (trestle beds like in a concentration camp), which transports only people. It departs from Surat Thani, from the Bandon Road pier once a day, at 11:00 pm and arrives at the Pangan pier in Thong Sale at 6:00 am. Tickets are sold there near the pier and the trip costs 400 baht per person. Travel time is 7 hours. Seven o'clock, Karl!

Bus + ferry

Bus to Chumphon Pier and ferry transfer

Only the Lompraya company purposefully carries through Chumphon - they have high-speed catamarans and they can afford to cover the remaining half of the journey by sea. You can book your seats online no later than three days before the check-out date, and 24 hours before check-out, you can confirm your reservation in person at the office or by phone. A transfer from the airport hotel to the tourist gathering point is provided by the bus office at Rambuttri Alley. Departure from Bangkok at 6:00, arrival at Koh Phangan at 16:30. Price - 1300 baht per person.

State bus carriers carry directly to Donsak, and Songserm does not offer travel options from Bangkok to Phangan via Chumphon, despite the presence of a pier and its presence in this city. Therefore, here we return our thoughts to our guys from 12go.asia and see what suggestions they have. In case you found yourself in Chumphon on your own - see the ferry schedule above, in the paragraph about train + ferry.

Tickets Bangkok-Phangan>

Bus to Donsak pier and ferry transfer

The first option is public bus transportation from the Southern Bus Terminal in Bangkok (Sai ​​Tai Mai) - here you can see, how to get there.

South Bus Station (Sai ​​Tai Mai)

South Bus Station (Sai ​​Tai Mai)
South Bus Station (in Thai, buses go south from here. We need a new Sai Tai Mai. Ticket offices on the 3rd floor.
More details.

Southern Bus Station (in Thai, buses go south from here. We need a new Sai Tai Mai. Ticket offices on the 3rd floor..

You can buy tickets online or come yourself - the ticket offices are located on the third floor of the bus station. The cost of a regular ticket is about 800 baht, and a VIP ticket will cost 1500. Travel time is about 13 hours. Take tickets only for night buses and prepare warm clothes - air conditioning works brutally.

Seatran Discovery sells a joint ticket online on its website for THB 1200 per person. Collect passengers near their office in Bangkok on Chakapog Road (shown on the map). Departure at 20:00, arrival at 13:30. Travel time 17:30 minutes.

Songserm Express also sells joints. They gather tourists in two places in Bangkok: near their office on Khaosan Road and near the Hua Lamphong train station. The buses are all night, departure time at 18:00, 19:00, 20:00, arrive in Phangan at 12:15 the next day. Price - from 900 to 1,100 baht per person. By the way, there are a lot of complaints about this company that during a long trip someone manages to rummage through the suitcases of tourists in the luggage compartment. So do not put anything valuable in your suitcase, but rather do not unwind it after the flight..

For those who travel to Donsak on their own, we remind you:

  • Raja Ferries leave at: 07:00, 10:00, 12:00, 13:00, 16:00 and 18:00. The journey takes 2 hours 30 minutes an hour, the ticket costs 210 baht per person.
  • SeaTran ferries leave at 11:00 and 14:30. The travel time is the same and the price is 450 baht. I assume that the difference in price is due to the condition of the fleet and the quality of service. Ferries in Citran are more modern and cleaner. Raja is upset in this regard.
  • Lomprayah catamarans leave from Tapee Pier in Surat Thani (it used to be in Donsak, closer to the island, but in 2017 they moved to the Tapi River in Surat Thani). Departure at 9:00, 11:30 and 15:30. Travel time - 1 h 55 min, ticket costs 600 baht per person.

Catamaran Lompraya

By car

The ferry to Koh Phangan, where cars are launched on board, is located just near Donsak. The drive from Bangkok to Donsak is about 730 km. By time - 13 hours exactly. It is better to reserve a car in advance in a well-known company, so you will get a working car, a full tank, insurance and guarantees, which is important on such a long stretch. All the details about car rental in Thailand, read the link.

Rent a car with a discount>

The car must be taken through Economybookings, this is an intermediary broker. The price will be lower than directly. I usually take to Hertz, because if you take a car from them for a period of 5 days or more, you can return it elsewhere for free (other companies charge a commission for this). There are some nuances on the ferry crossing - the last ferry leaves at 19:00 and even it can be canceled for various reasons. The queue for the ferry is lively and on holidays you can stand for a long time, booking a parking space is not possible for non-club members.

How to get from Koh Samui to Koh Phangan

And now I will describe all the Samui versions, based on the fact that you have already reached Ko Samui and now you are faced with the question: how to get to Koh Phangan? You have five options:

  • Lomprayah. Catamarans leave the Maenam pier at 8:00 and 12:30, as well as from the Nathon pier at 11:15, 13:30, 17:00 and 19:00. Arrive at Thong Sala pier. Travel time is about half an hour. The ticket price is 300 baht per person, only passengers are transported. Tickets can be bought online (no later than 3 days in advance). As a bonus to online purchase, there is a free transfer from the place of residence. Very important! You must confirm the reservation a day before the trip, or in person - at the box office, or by phone.
  • Seatran Discovery Speedboats leave Bang Rak Pier at 8:00, 13:00, 16:30 and arrive at Thong Sala Pier. The ticket price is 300 baht per person. Travel time is half an hour. Tickets can be booked online on the company's website.
  • Haad Rin Queen Ferry (Sea Flower) departs from Big Buddha Pier at 10:30, 13:00, 16:00, 18:30 and arrives at Haad Rin Pier. The ticket price is 200 baht. Travel time - about an hour.
  • Songserm Express departs from Nathon Pier at 11:00 and 17:30, travel time is 1.5 hours and 45 minutes, respectively. Ticket price - it is not clear yet, I specify because of their repair on the site.
  • Raja Ferry. Departure time from Koh Samui: 09:00, 14:00, 18:00. Pedestrian ticket price - 130 baht, scooter with driver - 180 baht, car with driver - 420 baht.

As you can see, there are more than enough options. The Raja Ferry and Sitran Ferry ferries are suitable for ferrying both passengers and equipment, all other boats, boats and ships are exclusively passenger. All ships arrive at two piers on Koh Phangan: Tong Sala and Haad Rin. The first is a rather impressive concrete structure in the center of the largest settlement in Phangan. The second pier is smaller, simpler and is located a five-minute drive from the most famous beach in the people of Haad Rin, where all these fun midnight madness take place - Full Moon Party.

To Koh Phangan from Koh Samui, Big Buddha pier

Berths map

Well, as a summary to all of the above, here is a map showing various services on Koh Samui and Phangan, including transport: berths, bus stations and railway stations. To make it easier for you to navigate, otherwise the devil himself will break his leg with these route options. I strongly recommend that you take a good look at where Surat Thani Airport is, where the city of Surat Thani is, where is Donsak and where are the piers on Koh Samui. These are four completely different places that constantly confuse people. Don't get confused)

Transport Koh Samui, Phangan and Tao

Samui Airport:
Raja Ferry Pier:
SeaTran Ferry Pier:
Raja Ferry Pier:
Raja Ferry ticket offices:
SeaTran Discovery Pier:
Lomprayah Pier:
Gas station for the cafeteria and minimarket:
Tha Thong Pier:
Pierce Bandon:
Surat Thani Airport:
Surat Thani Railway Station:
Nakhon Si Thammarat Airport:
Pier Matapon:
Lompraya Pier:
Ta Yang Pier:
Phra Lan Pier:
Bang Rak pier:
Tong Sala pier (transport and passenger):
Tong Sala pier (passenger):
Haad Rin Pier:
Pierce Petcherat:
Big Buddha Pier:
Lompraya Office:
SeaTran Explorer's new office:
Phantip CO Tickets:
Yellow Bus Office:
Stop Songteo:
Pier on Koh Tao:
Car rental at Koh Samui airport:

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