Boat Information Part One

The Lomprayah Catamaran is the quickest boat leaving Koh Phangan. It goes from the Tongsala pier opposite the 7-11 convenience store. In Bangkok it starts from the street behind Khao San Road. You can buy Lomprayah tickets at the pier, at its Khao San Road office or any travel agent in Koh Phangan. The combined boat/bus ticket from Koh Phangan to Bangkok costs 900 thb for the 1pm departure and 1,200 thb for the earlier 8.30am departure. The journey from Koh Phangan is done in a day; whereas the reverse journey involves spending a night on the bus. For the journey between Koh Phangan and Koh Samui a taxi journey to anywhere in Koh Samui is included in the price of the ticket which means you avoid the avaricious Koh Samui taxi drivers.

Seatran plies the same route as Lomprayah, but when the weather is bad it goes to the closer port of Donsak. On calm days the extended Lomprayah boat journey is picturesque, but on choppy waters it can be stomach churning.

The Songserm is a smaller boat and can rock and roll in bad weather. However, its cheap. The cheapest bus/boat tickets from Bangkok invariably use the Songserm. Tickets from Khao San Road to Koh Phangan can cost as little as 600 thb. However, the combined travel time is 2 hours more than Lomprayah. The Songserm stops at Nathon in Koh Samui. Nathon is the administrative capital of the island and is miles away from the main resort areas. People embark/disembark from Nathon because either the timing is convenient or they have to go to the immigration office to renew their visa.