Surat Thani to Koh Samui: ferry and speedboat options (2026)

8 ways to make this trip, from ฿200 one way, and 1h30–1h40 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

Ferry

1h30–1h40 · ฿200–฿250 · Raja Ferry

Our pick for budget

Ferry

฿200–฿250 · 1h30–1h40 · Raja Ferry

Same option twice: on this pair the quickest way is also the cheapest, which is rarer than it sounds — it usually means one operator has the route to itself.

All options

Surat Thani to Koh Samui: every option with mode, time, fare, operators and frequency
Option	Time	Fare	Operators	How often	Change
Ferry	1h30–1h40	฿200–฿250	Raja Ferry	Through the day from Donsak, first sailing around 05:00	Direct
Ferry	1h30–1h50	฿250–฿400	Seatran Discovery	Through the day from Donsak to Nathon	Direct
Ferry + Speedboat / catamaran	3h45–6h	฿520–฿750	Raja Ferry, Lomprayah High Speed Ferries, Seatran Discovery	Several sailings a day from Donsak to Thong Sala · Several catamaran departures a day from Nathon, Maenam and Bangrak	via Koh Phangan
Ferry + Ferry	4h15–6h45	฿470–฿650	Raja Ferry, Seatran Discovery	Several sailings a day from Donsak to Thong Sala · Through the day	via Koh Phangan
Speedboat / catamaran + Speedboat / catamaran	5h15–8h50	฿1,400–฿1,950	Lomprayah High Speed Ferries, Seatran Discovery	Once or twice daily, routed via Koh Phangan · About two direct departures a day from Nathon, around 08:00 and 13:00	via Koh Tao
Minivan + Bus + ferry (one ticket)	7h45–11h50	฿900–฿1,500	Shared minivan operators from Surat Thani town and airport, Phantip Travel, Local minivan and ferry combinations	Several a day, timed loosely to flight arrivals · Usually one morning departure	via Khao Sok
Day train + Flight	10h25–13h30	฿2,428–฿7,028	State Railway of Thailand (trains 40/41 diesel railcar), Bangkok Airways	Daily · Around 20 departures a day from Suvarnabhumi	via Bangkok
Bus + Bus + ferry (one ticket)	10h45–15h50	฿1,000–฿1,700	Local and tourist bus operators, Phantip Travel, Seatran Discovery	Through the day · One or two combined departures a day, morning	via Krabi & Ao Nang

Booking notes

Ferry · 1h30–1h40 · ฿200–฿250

฿200 is Raja's own published passenger fare on the Donsak–Lipa Noi crossing, one of the few numbers on this page that comes straight off an operator's board. Donsak pier is 60–90 minutes by road from Surat Thani town.

Ferry · 1h30–1h50 · ฿250–฿400

Seatran lands at Nathon on Samui's west coast rather than Lipa Noi to the south, which is a shorter taxi to Chaweng and Bophut. Sold as a combined coach-and-ferry ticket from Surat Thani town and airport.

Ferry + Speedboat / catamaran · 3h45–6h · ฿520–฿750

Surat Thani → Koh Phangan: ฿270 is Raja's published passenger fare for the Donsak–Thong Sala crossing. Around the Full Moon these sailings fill; book the day before rather than at the pier.

Koh Phangan → Koh Samui: Thirty minutes. The choice that matters is which Samui pier you leave from — Bangrak is next to the airport, Nathon is the far side of the island from Chaweng.

Ferry + Ferry · 4h15–6h45 · ฿470–฿650

Surat Thani → Koh Phangan: ฿270 is Raja's published passenger fare for the Donsak–Thong Sala crossing. Around the Full Moon these sailings fill; book the day before rather than at the pier.

Koh Phangan → Koh Samui: The vehicle ferries take twice as long as the catamaran for about ฿100 less, and they carry motorbikes — which is the actual reason to take one.

Speedboat / catamaran + Speedboat / catamaran · 5h15–8h50 · ฿1,400–฿1,950

Surat Thani → Koh Tao: Nothing runs Surat Thani to Koh Tao directly — the boat calls at Phangan or Samui on the way, which is why the time band is so wide. Coming from Bangkok, Chumphon is the shorter door.

Koh Tao → Koh Samui: Lomprayah runs this one nearly alone. Children 3–11 travel at roughly half fare. In rough weather this crossing gets cancelled before the shorter Phangan hop does.

Minivan + Bus + ferry (one ticket) · 7h45–11h50 · ฿900–฿1,500

Surat Thani → Khao Sok: The link that turns Khao Sok from a detour into a stop between the Gulf and the Andaman. Vans fill rather than depart on the hour.

Khao Sok → Koh Samui: Minivan to Donsak, then the Samui ferry. Booked as one ticket in Khao Sok village; there is no walk-up alternative if it's missed.

Day train + Flight · 10h25–13h30 · ฿2,428–฿7,028

Surat Thani → Bangkok: Air-conditioned 2nd class seats, about 9 hours in daylight. Cheaper than a sleeper but it costs a full day rather than a night.

Bangkok → Koh Samui: Bangkok Airways owns Samui airport and runs a near-monopoly on the route, so the floor here sits where other islands' ceilings do. Flying to Surat Thani and continuing by bus and boat is the standard way around it.

Bus + Bus + ferry (one ticket) · 10h45–15h50 · ฿1,000–฿1,700

Surat Thani → Krabi & Ao Nang: The overland link between the Gulf and Andaman coasts. Sold as part of most Samui-to-Krabi combined tickets rather than bought on its own.

Krabi & Ao Nang → Koh Samui: Ferry to Donsak, coach across the peninsula, arrive Krabi in the late afternoon. It's the standard way to swap coasts without flying, and it eats a full day whichever operator sells it.

Both ends of the trip

Surat Thani

Not a destination — the mainland interchange every Gulf island ticket routes through.

Airport URT: The cheap way into the Gulf islands: low-cost flight here, then a bus-and-ferry combination to the pier.

Koh Samui

The Gulf's biggest island and the only one with its own airport.

Airport USM: Privately owned and served almost entirely by Bangkok Airways, which is why fares here sit well above the low-cost market.

Koh Samui is driest Feb–Aug and wettest Sep–Jan on its own monthly rain-day normals.

Koh Samui weather Koh Samui guide

Frequently asked questions

How long does it take to get from Surat Thani to Koh Samui?

1h30–1h40 on the quickest option we hold — ferry with Raja Ferry. The slowest of the 8 options here takes 10h45–15h50, so the spread between them is about 11h43. Times are for the scheduled leg and exclude the transfer at either end.

How much is Surat Thani to Koh Samui?

From ฿200–฿250 one way by ferry, checked 7 September 2026 — and on this pair that is also the quickest way, so there is nothing to trade off. The dearest of the 8 options here runs to ฿2,428–฿7,028. That bottom figure comes off the operator's own fare board.

What else runs between Surat Thani and Koh Samui?

7 other options. The next one after ferry with Raja Ferry is ferry with Seatran Discovery at ฿250–฿400 and 1h30–1h50 — dearer and slower. All of them are in the table above with their operators and frequency.

Where does the Surat Thani to Koh Samui service leave from, and how often does it run?

Going the other way, or further

The return trip is on the Koh Samui to Surat Thani 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

Raja Ferry Port fare and timetable board — the carrier's own fare board.
Seatran Discovery route list — the carrier's own fare board.
InsideSamui Koh Samui–Koh Tao ferry guide (2026 edition) — a dated route reference.
Lomprayah High Speed Ferries route list and journey times — the carrier's own fare board.
12go.asia route listings (band from what was on sale, not a tariff) — aggregator listings, not a published tariff.
seat61.com Thailand rail fares (page updated 8 July 2026) — a dated route reference.
InsideSamui Bangkok–Koh Samui transport guide (2026 edition) — a dated route reference.

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

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