Your Travel Guide to Thailand
All information & tips to prepare your trip in Thailand
Transport to go to Koh Tao / leave Koh Tao
To go to Koh Tao ?
The fastest way to get to Koh Tao is by combining plane and ferry. Either with a flight to Koh Samui then boat to Koh Tao or by flight to Surat Thani, Nakhon Si Thammarat or Chumphon then bus or van to the pier then ferry. Knowing that Chumphon is much closer to Koh Tao than Surat Thani or Nakhon Si Thammarat. The fastest but also most expensive solution with plane is to land in Koh Samui then take the boat to Koh Tao. Otherwise, you can also take the boat to Ko Tao in Chumphon which you can reach by train, bus or plane. Si Lomprayah, the most reputable company has moved to the Old Southern Bus Terminal in Pinklao and other bus companies still offer bus + boat packages from Khao San Road in Bangkok via Chumphon that you can book online HERE (be careful, baggage theft even in the hold is sometimes reported so keep your cash and important items with you). The same companies have the same types of combinations from Phuket, Krabi, Koh Phi Phi, Koh Lanta and many others. To go to Koh Tao by train or by road, it is faster to go through Chumphon than through Surat Thani.
Please note that since the direct flight Chiang Mai - Surat Thani of Air Asia changes schedule once a year and when it takes off in the evening, it is no longer possible to follow this flight with a ferry to the islands of Koh Tao, Koh Samui or Koh Phangan. The best, in this case, from Chiang Mai, unless you spend the night in a hotel in Surat Thani, is to take 2 flights with a stopover in Bangkok. Allow enough time between the 2 flights and take a flight from Bangkok that leaves from the same airport as the one where your flight from Chiang Mai will land (there are more possibilities from Don Muang). I would say 2h30 between the 2 flights if you do not change airports. If you take the same airline for both flights, they will not take care of transferring your luggage to the hold automatically on the 2nd flight so also allow time for that.
Buses and minivans to Koh Tao
WARNING: many buses can only be booked 30 days before depature tops. They won't be displayed in the results on our transportation booking partner's website if not bookable yet.
Boats and ferries to Koh Tao
Leave Koh Tao ?
The first step to leave Koh Tao is always to take a boat. Either a boat to the neighboring islands of Koh Phangan or Koh Samui (from where you can fly to Bangkok, Phuket, Krabi and Pattaya) where you want to stay or to Chumphon or Surat Thani and then take a plane, a bus or a train. Lomprayah also offers bus + boat formulas to Bangkok (Khao San Road) which also stop at Hua Hin. You can book it online HERE.If you buy a bus + ferry formula be carefull valuable things are often stolen from the luggage in the bus during the ferry trip especially if you go via Surat Thani
Buses and minivans from Koh Tao
WARNING: many buses can only be booked 30 days before depature tops. They won't be displayed in the results on our transportation booking partner's website if not bookable yet.
Boats and ferries from Koh Tao
Transportation in Thailand
Travelling by train in Thailand
The train is the cheapest way to travel in Thailand especially in 3rd class. This is also where the contact with the population is the most interesting and incredible...
Domestic flights in Thailand
Taking the plance to travel in Thailand is often not that much more expensive than the bus especially with the numerous specials offers and it is so much faster !
Travelling by bus in Thailand
The train does not go everywhere in Thailand. It does not serve some destinations tourists love. But by bus you can get almost anywhere in Thailand...
Boats to the islands of Thailand
Thailand has many many islands with beautiful beaches and except for Koh Samui and Phuket, the boat is the only option to get on the islands.
