Bus times from Khao Lak to Koh Phangan

By joint bus and ferry service the journey from Khao Lak to Koh Phangan is scheduled to take from 8 to 16 hours depending upon which service you take.

Bus Timetable from Khao Lak to Koh Phangan

Click on the Khao Lak – Koh Phangan link below for more information and to buy tickets.

Khao Lak Bus Stop

One of the departure points for services from Khao Lak to Koh Phangan is from outside the McDonald’s Restaurant in Khao Lak.

Arrival in Koh Phangan

All joint bus and ferry services from Khao Lak to Koh Phangan terminate at Thong Sala Ferry Pier.

About Travel to Koh Phangan

The journey from Khao Lak to Koh Phangan as two stages: a bus or minivan journey, and then a ferry crossing.

Travel by Road

The first part of the journey from Khao Lak to Koh Phangan is by road from Khao Lak to one of the ferry ports in Surat Thani Province on the east coast of Thailand. Travelling via the most direct route, without breaks, it’s a journey of about 250 km that takes 3 hours 45 minutes.

In practice if you travel by public transport whichever bus or minivan you take will stop on the way, and perhaps make some detours to pick up and drop off customers on the way. The bus or minivan part of the journey will normally take around 5 hours 30 minutes as a consequence.

Travel by Ferry

If you take a joint bus and ferry service from Khao Lak to Koh Phangan the sea crossing will be completed in different types of ferry depending upon whether you take one of the daytime services or one of the overnight services.

Daytime services from Khao Lak to Koh Phangan complete the sea crossing to Koh Phangan in a Seatran Ferry. The Seatran Ferry is car ferry service which depart from the Donsak District of Surat Thani and takes around 2 hours 30 minutes to sail to Koh Phangan.

Overnight services from Khao Lak to Koh Phangan complete the sea crossing to Koh Phangan in a Night Boat service. The Night Boat service is the collective name for a group of independently operated fishing or commercial vessels that have been converted to accommodation passengers in sleeper berths. These services travel overnight arriving in Koh Phangan at around 05:00. The sea crossing in a Night Boat service takes 7 to 8 hours.

Local Transport in Koh Phangan

Koh Phangan has no public bus services. The only forms of public transport in Koh Phangan are shared taxis and motorbike taxis, and a small number of people operating taxi like services on an ad hoc basis. On arrival by ferry in Koh Phangan passengers will be approached by shared taxi touts who will direct you to shared taxi services travelling to various different destinations in the island. The prices are fixed, unless passengers want to depart quickly before the shared taxi fills up with other customers who will share the cost of the journey.

Where to Stay in Koh Phangan

Koh Phangan has 34 beaches. Some of these beaches, such as Haad Nam Tok, have no accommodation nearby and can only be reached on foot or by boat. Most of the beaches, however, have either a town or village or collection of bungalows close to them.

One of the things about Koh Phangan that makes it so popular is that each of these beaches and surrounding areas have their own character. Visitors to Koh Phangan have a choice of different types of holiday experience depending upon where on the island they stay.

Here’s our brief guide as to what to expect in each of the different parts of the island:

• Thong Sala: Koh Phangan’s main town and the place with the widest range of food options, including the island’s main night market.
• Ban Tai: Popular for kite surfing and close to many of the dance parties, such as the Half Moon Festival.
• Haad Rin: Location of the Full Moon Party with a wide range of bars and nightclubs in the town. The beach is excellent.
• Haad Yuan and Haad Thien: Beautiful beaches which are difficult to reach by road. The main business operating in the area is The Sanctuary which runs yoga and wellness courses.
• Haad Sadet: Beach in the Than Sadet national park which is accessible by road. Haad Sadet has very basic accommodation and tends to attract lots of visitors from France.
• Thong Nai Pan: Double bay with possibly the best beaches on the island. Thong Nai Pan is also the location of the island’s 4 top luxury hotels.
• Bottle Beach: Just to the north of Thong Nai Pan, Bottle Beach is difficult to reach by road, has fairly basic accommodation, and an amazing beach.
• Chaloklum: Located on the north coast of the island, Chaloklum is a large fishing village best known for its many seafood restaurants and laid back atmosphere.
• Haad Yao and Sri Thanu: Good beaches and a concentration of yoga and wellness centres. The area is very popular with long stay visitors and has a bohemian feel.
• Haad Salad: A small beach with several large mid range resorts which are very popular with families.