Your Travel Guide to Thailand
All information & tips to prepare your trip in Thailand
Koh Samui has its own airport. It belongs to the company Bangkok Airways which has a monopoly on flights that land there. A monopoly that allows it to charge much higher prices than on lines with competition for the same distance traveled. Bangkok Airways offers direct flights to Samui from the 2 airports in Bangkok (Suvarnabhumi and Don Muang), Krabi, Pattaya, Chiang Mai or Phuket. The prices are rather expensive compared to the average price of domestic flights in Thailand. However, the more in advance you book, the lower the price will be unless there is an exceptional promotion that would allow you to have an even better rate. Otherwise, you can reach the island by boat from Surat Thani (well, Donsak is a 1h30 drive from Surat Thani) accessible by plane, train (from Bangkok, I recommend a sleeper on a night train because the journey is long, you can book your train tickets to Surat Thani here) or bus. There are bus + boat packages from Bangkok, some of which leave from the Khao San Road district (book online HERE) and take the ferry to Chumphon. But these are quite long trips. Otherwise, you can create your own flight combinations to Surat Thani (the most common with the most boat departures), Nakhon Si Thammarat or Chumphon then ferry to Ko Samui. This is a good compromise to reach the island without a too long journey (count 5-6 hours of travel) while escaping the high price of direct Bangkok Airways flights. There are transfers to the Donsak pier from Surat Thani station, from the city or from Surat Thani airport, it's up to you to choose the most convenient for you.
Beware of thefts in the luggage in the bus's hold during the ferry crossing or the night bus journey.
Otherwise from the neighboring islands of Koh Tao and Koh Phangan, between the different companies, you have the choice mainly between Koh Phangan and Koh Samui. Lomprayah, Seatran and Phantip offer bus + boat packages to Samui departing from Krabi, Phuket, Koh Phi Phi, Koh Lanta or Khao Lak in particular.
Please note that the direct flight Chiang Mai - Surat Thani by Air Asia changes schedule regularly and is not always on an arrival time that allows you to follow up with a ferry to Koh Samui. So check your dates.
Taxis in Koh Samui are still reluctant to use their meter and the prices they even offer even after negotiations are often very high. The motorcycle taxis are cheaper but less safe. Otherwise, there are songthaews (shared taxis) touring on the main roads of the island You can get on and off at any time. Negotiate the price with the driver before getting in. They do not go everywhere, they follow fixed routes but connect at least the main beaches of Koh Samui. Count 20 baht for a short ride to several hundred baht for a long drive.
You can rent a scooter (about 200 THB per day) or a car (800THB per day) in Koh Samui but check their condition and don't hesitate to take pictures. And be careful on the roads especially with scooter. Tourists accidents make aKoh Samui hospitals very rich. We also remind you that wearing a helmet is mandatory. You can also use GRAB app (similar to UBER but UBER does not operate in Southestern Asia any more) or Navigo to order a transportation in Samui.
This festival generally takes place in the month of September
The best mome,nt to come to Koh Samui is from January to April but Samui is also enjoyable during the months of July and August. At this time of the year Koh Samui, Koh Phangan and Koh Tao are the islands of Thailand where the weather is the best. The months of October and especially November (sometimes until mid-December) are not recommended for a stay in Ko Samui.
We have been waiting for it for months, hoping it will happen on July 1, but it will finally be October 1, 2022, when Thailand will lift the last COVID restrictions to enter the country. From this date, it will no longer be necessary to show...