Guides · Published 2026-09-15 · 3 min read

Surat Thani to Koh Samui — Seatran and Raja Bus + Ferry ฿290–540, Lomprayah Catamaran ฿330, Times from Station, Town and Airport (September 2026)

Bus-and-ferry tickets from Surat Thani railway station, town or airport to Koh Samui run hourly from 06:00 to about 17:30 — Seatran ฿340 (3 hours to Nathon), Raja Ferry ฿290–540 (to Lipa Noi) — and the Lomprayah catamaran does the sea leg in under 2 hours for ฿330. Which pier on Samui each lands at, and what to do with a 03:00 train arrival.

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Quick answer: a bus + ferry ticket. Seatran (hourly 07:30–17:30, ฿340, 3 hours, lands at Nathon on Samui's west coast) or Raja Ferry (06:00 onwards, ฿290–540, lands at Lipa Noi). The bus collects at Phun Phin railway station, Surat Thani town or the airport and drives 1–1.5 hours to Don Sak, where the ferry takes 1.5 hours. Lomprayah's 10:00 catamaran (฿330, arrives 11:45) is the quick one.

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The route in numbers

Surat Thani → Koh Samui	checked September 2026
Road + sea	60 km to Don Sak pier, then 30 km by sea
Seatran bus + ferry	07:30, 08:30, 09:30, 10:30, 11:30 … hourly · ฿340 · about 3 h · arrives Nathon
Raja Ferry bus + ferry	06:00, 06:25, 06:50 (฿540, from the station), 08:00, 09:00, 11:00, 12:00 (฿290) · 2–3.5 h · arrives Lipa Noi
Lomprayah	10:00 → 11:45 · ฿330 · catamaran to Nathon/Pralan
Minibus + ferry (12Go Transport)	05:30 → 09:30 · ฿392
Pick-up points	Phun Phin railway station · Surat Thani town · Surat Thani airport
On Samui	Nathon and Lipa Noi are on the quiet west coast: 30–45 min by taxi or songthaew to Chaweng/Lamai, ฿300–600 shared van, ฿600–900 taxi

Two ferry companies, two Samui piers

Seatran Ferry sails Don Sak → Nathon, Samui's main town on the west coast, hourly from early morning to late afternoon; the combined bus + ferry ticket is ฿340 and the whole trip from Surat town about 3 hours. Nathon has the songthaews and taxi rank.
Raja Ferry sails Don Sak → Lipa Noi, a car-ferry pier 5 km south of Nathon with fewer onward options; its bus + ferry tickets are the cheapest on the listing (฿290 from town, ฿540 for the early departures from the railway station). Slightly slower boats.
Lomprayah runs a fast catamaran from Don Sak to Nathon (and on to Phangan and Tao); the 10:00 bus from town connects to it, ฿330, on Samui by 11:45. Best value if the timing works.

Whichever you take, your resort's transfer or a shared van from the pier to Chaweng or Lamai is another 30–45 minutes; most tickets can add it.

Arriving by train

The Bangkok sleepers reach Phun Phin (Surat Thani's station, 14 km west of town) between about 03:00 and 06:40. The ferry companies' buses collect from the station forecourt — Raja's 06:00–06:50 departures (฿540) are the ones that meet the night trains and put you on Samui by 09:00–13:00. Touts on the platform sell the same tickets at a mark-up; the counters and the online listing are cheaper. 12Go's "train + ferry" combination books the whole thing with the pier transfer.

Arriving by air

Surat Thani airport, north of town, has counters for Seatran, Raja and Lomprayah in arrivals, with buses timed to the low-cost flights from Bangkok. Landing to Nathon is 3.5–4.5 hours. It is half the price of flying direct to Samui (Bangkok Airways, ฿3,000–6,000) — see the Gulf islands guide.

The night ferry

An old passenger boat leaves Surat Thani town pier late in the evening (the listing shows departures up to 17:30 for the day boats and the night boat around 23:00 when running) and reaches Nathon at dawn: mattresses on deck, ฿300–400. Useful only if you arrive in Surat in the evening and want to save a room.

Season

The Gulf is roughest November–December; the car ferries keep sailing, the catamaran occasionally does not. From Samui, Lomprayah and Seatran continue to Koh Phangan and Koh Tao — see Koh Samui, Koh Phangan and Koh Tao ferries.

Flights

Compare fares across all airlines in one search (prices depend on the date; last-minute is the expensive way): Bangkok → Surat Thani · Bangkok → Koh Samui

Where to stay

Compare hotels and guesthouses along this route (prices change by season; check the live price on the booking page): Koh Samui · Surat Thani

Sources and last check

Checked 15 September 2026 against: 12Go listings for Surat Thani → Koh Samui (Seatran, Raja Ferry, Lomprayah and 12Go Transport departure and arrival times and fares). Samui pier-to-beach transfer prices, night-ferry fare and the rough-sea months are traveller-reported figures, not official tariffs.

Thailand Surat Thani Koh Samui Ferries Don Sak

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