Surat Thani Getting there & around

Getting there & away

Land

Bus & minivan

Most long-distance public buses run from the Talat Kaset bus terminals 1 and 2. Air-con minivans leave from Talat Kaset 2; they tend to have more frequent departures than buses, though they’re not always cheaper.

There’s a bus terminal 2km west of town (on the way to Phun Phin train station), but it’s used less frequently than the two terminals in town. To get into town from there, take an orange local bus (15B), which comes by every 10 minutes. Just make sure it’s going back into town rather than out to Phun Phin (it does a loop). Sǎwngthǎew are another option into town; they also cost 15B.

Air-conditioned buses and minibuses to Khao Sok (two hours) can be booked through travel agencies and should cost no more than 80B to 100B. You can also catch certain Phuket-bound buses from the two bus terminals in town and ask to be let off at Khao Sok – a better option since some pushy minivan drivers double as touts for Khao Sok hotels.

Train

There are several trains from Bangkok to Phun Phin. Fares for fan/air-con are: 227/297B in 3rd class, 368/478B in a 2nd-class seat, 498/658B in an upper 2nd-class sleeper, 568/748B in a lower 2nd-class sleeper, and 1179B in 1st-class. The trip takes around 11 to 12 hours, so if you take an early evening train from Bangkok you’ll arrive in the morning.

The train station has a 24-hour left-luggage room that charges 20B a day. The advance ticket office is open from 6am to 6pm (with an 11am to noon lunch break) daily.

At certain busy times it’s difficult to book long-distance trains out of Phun Phin; taking the bus can be easier, especially if heading south. Trains are often full, and it’s a pain to take a bus to the train station just to be turned away – though you could buy a ‘standing room only’ 3rd-class ticket and see if a seat becomes available. Many travel agencies in town make advance train reservations, so if you have a fixed return schedule you can make an onward reservation before getting on a boat to the islands.

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Boat

From Surat there are nightly ferries to Ko Tao (500B, eight hours), Ko Pha-Ngan (200B, seven hours) and Ko Samui (150B, six hours). All leave from the night ferry pier at 11pm. These are cargo ships, not luxury boats, so bring food and water and watch your bags.

In the high season there are usually bus/boat services to Ko Samui and Ko Pha-Ngan directly from the train station. These services don’t cost any more than those booked in Surat Thani and can save you a lot of waiting around. Seatran (0 7727 5060-2; www.seatranferry.com; 45/1 Th Talat Luang), whose office is near the night ferry pier, operates a bus/boat combination to Ko Samui (180B, three hours, departing hourly from 5.30am to 5.30pm) and a combo to Ko Pha-Ngan (280B, four hours, 3.30pm). Raja Ferry (0 7747 1151; Don Sak) also operates bus/boat combinations to Ko Tao (500B, four hours, at least two daily), Ko Pha-Ngan (280B, 3½ hours, hourly) and Ko Samui (180B, 2½ hours, hourly). You can buy any of these boat/bus tickets at Phantip Travel (0 7727 2230; 442/24-5 Th Talat Mai).

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Air

There is a twice daily service to Bangkok on Thai Airways International (THAI; 0 7727 2610; 3/27-28 Th Karunarat) for 2745B; it takes 70 minutes.

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