Chumphon to Koh Tao: ferry and speedboat options (2026)

4 ways to make this trip, from ฿300 one way, and 1h45–2h15 on the quickest, direct. Below: what each costs, who runs it, how often it goes and the pier or station it actually leaves from.

Fares checked 7 September 2026 and quoted as one-way bands per adult. They move with season, fuel and demand — the flight bands move fastest of all.

Our pick for time

Speedboat / catamaran

1h45–2h15 · ฿600–฿700 · Lomprayah High Speed Ferries

Our pick for budget

Ferry

฿300–฿450 · 6h–8h · Night boat operators from Chumphon pier

All options

Chumphon to Koh Tao: every option with mode, time, fare, operators and frequency
Option	Time	Fare	Operators	How often	Change
Speedboat / catamaran	1h45–2h15	฿600–฿700	Lomprayah High Speed Ferries	Two departures a day, about 07:00 and 13:00	Direct
Ferry	2h30–2h50	฿500–฿550	Songserm	One departure a day, about 07:00	Direct
Ferry	6h–8h	฿300–฿450	Night boat operators from Chumphon pier	Nightly, about 23:00	Direct
Sleeper train + Bus + ferry (one ticket)	21h45–26h10	฿1,518–฿2,018	State Railway of Thailand (train 85 and others), Lomprayah High Speed Ferries	Several overnight southern services call here · One overnight combination a day, bus around 22:00 from Pinklao or Khao San	via Bangkok

Booking notes

Speedboat / catamaran · 1h45–2h15 · ฿600–฿700

Eighty kilometres of open water and the shortest mainland crossing to Koh Tao. The 07:00 exists for the overnight train; miss it and the 13:00 costs you half a day on the island.

Ferry · 2h30–2h50 · ฿500–฿550

Half an hour slower and ฿100–150 cheaper than the catamaran. It's an open speedboat rather than a covered cabin, which is fine in February and unpleasant in September.

Ferry · 6h–8h · ฿300–฿450

Foam mats on deck, six to eight hours, arriving at dawn. It saves a fare and a night's room and it is genuinely uncomfortable — bring earplugs and something warmer than you expect to need.

Sleeper train + Bus + ferry (one ticket) · 21h45–26h10 · ฿1,518–฿2,018

Chumphon → Bangkok: Band shown is a 2nd class air-conditioned sleeper; 1st class runs ฿1,046–1,246. The train reaches Chumphon around 05:30–06:30, which is the whole point — it lands ahead of the 07:00 Koh Tao catamaran.

Bangkok → Koh Tao: The bus runs overnight to Chumphon and hands over to the 08:00 catamaran, landing on Koh Tao around 10:30 — 12 to 13 hours door to door. Lomprayah's own promoted fare for the combination was ฿850 in May 2026; the top of the band covers VIP coach seats and high season.

Both ends of the trip

Chumphon

The mainland town whose pier gives the shortest crossing to Koh Tao.

Airport CJM: A handful of flights a day; the overnight train from Bangkok carries far more Koh Tao traffic.

Koh Tao

The dive-certification island — small, steep, and reached only by boat.

Koh Tao has no weather station of ours; the nearest one we track is driest Feb–Aug and wettest Sep–Jan.

Frequently asked questions

How long does it take to get from Chumphon to Koh Tao?

1h45–2h15 on the quickest option we hold — speedboat / catamaran with Lomprayah High Speed Ferries. The slowest of the 4 options here takes 21h45–26h10, so the spread between them is about 21h58. Times are for the scheduled leg and exclude the transfer at either end.

How much is Chumphon to Koh Tao?

From ฿300–฿450 one way by ferry, checked 7 September 2026. The quickest option costs ฿600–฿700 and saves about 5h, so the gap between them is ฿300 against roughly that much time. That band comes from a dated route listing rather than a published tariff, so treat it as indicative.

What is the cheapest way from Chumphon to Koh Tao?

Ferry at ฿300–฿450, run by Night boat operators from Chumphon pier. It takes 6h–8h against the quickest option's 1h45–2h15, and runs nightly, about 23:00.

Where does the Chumphon to Koh Tao service leave from, and how often does it run?

Eighty kilometres of open water and the shortest mainland crossing to Koh Tao. The 07:00 exists for the overnight train; miss it and the 13:00 costs you half a day on the island. Two departures a day, about 07:00 and 13:00.

Going the other way, or further

The return trip is on the Koh Tao to Chumphon page — fares are the same in both directions on almost every leg here, but the timetables are not. To string this hop into a longer trip with a pace check, use the route planner, and see the island comparison for which coast is dry in the month you are travelling.

Sources

InsideSamui Chumphon–Koh Tao ferry guide (2026 edition) — a dated route reference.
seat61.com Thailand rail fares (page updated 8 July 2026) — a dated route reference.
Lomprayah High Speed Ferries route list and journey times — the carrier's own fare board.

Checked 7 September 2026. Every figure on this page is a range, because every one of them moves.

All guides and tools