Airport to island · Gulf of Thailand
Samui Airport to Koh Tao
Boats to Koh Tao leave from three piers on Samui’s north and west coasts; Bangrak is closest to the airport. Lomprayah and Boonsiri sell through tickets from the airport with the van to the pier included.
- Drive 10 min
- Boat from 1h 25m
- Land by 13:50 for the last boat
- Boat from €11.92
✓ Checked 3 Nov 2026 against the operators’ and partners’ own pages
Updated 3 Nov 2026 · Sources · How we check
Book the boat: Maenam → Koh Tao
E-tickets from trusted operators, with live seats and prices.
Fares from €11.92 per person, seen 2 Nov 2026
- E-ticket on your phone
- 5 operators, 17 departures listed
- Fastest crossing 1h 25m
- ★ 4.4/5 from 3,128 traveller reviews of this route on our booking partner
Loy Krathong, 24 Nov 2026 (Nationwide). Boats around these dates are busier than usual: book ahead. Events calendar
New Year's Eve, 31 Dec 2026 (Nationwide). Boats to Koh Phangan, Koh Samui and Koh Tao are very busy around New Year's Eve, which coincides with a Full Moon Party; book ahead. Events calendar
Songkran (Thai New Year), 13 Apr – 15 Apr 2027 (Nationwide). Ferries and boats are busy with Thai holidaymakers in the days around Songkran; book ahead. Events calendar
The short answer
The drive from Samui Airport to Bangrak takes about 10 minutes; Kiwitaxi lists private cars from US$35 per car. Boats from Bangrak to Koh Tao take from 1h 25m, with 10 departures listed for 5 Nov 2026 (first 08:00, last 14:30) and fares from €15.97 per person. The last boat is at 15:30 (Lomprayah direct speedboat from Bangrak, operator timetable): to make it, land by about 13:50. One ticket from Samui Airport (van from Samui Airport + boat, one ticket) is listed from €22.54, leaving at 07:30, 11:30.
Your trip, step by step
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Step 1 · Land
Arrive at Samui Airport (USM)
Allow about 30 minutes to collect your bags and meet your driver or van. A pre-booked car meets you in arrivals; one-ticket vans name their meeting point on the ticket.
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Step 2 · By road
Samui Airport → Bangrak
- About 10 min
- Private car from US$35 per car (≈ €31.21)
- Minivan 4PAX US$35 · Comfort US$37 · Minibus 10PAX US$55
Kiwitaxi’s fixed price per vehicle with meet & greet, read 3 Nov 2026 (“Taxi Transfer from Koh Samui Airport (USM) to Bangrak Port”).
Pre-book a car -
Step 2 · By road (other pier)
Samui Airport → Pralarn Pier (Maenam)
- About 30 min
- Private car from US$37 per car (≈ €32.99)
- Minivan 4PAX US$37 · Comfort US$38 · Minibus 10PAX US$55
Kiwitaxi’s fixed price per vehicle with meet & greet, read 3 Nov 2026 (“Shuttle and Taxi Transfer from Koh Samui Airport (USM) to Pralan Pier”).
Pre-book a car -
Step 3 · By boat · Runs all year
Maenam / Bangrak / Nathon Piers → Mae Haad Pier
- from 1h 25m (route: 1h 25m – 2h 30m (longer with a change on Koh Phangan or on the slow ferry))
- 10 departures listed, 08:00 – 14:30
- Fares from €15.97 per person
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Step 4 · Arrive
On Koh Tao
- Mae Haad pier is in Koh Tao’s main village; taxis serve Sairee Beach and the dive resorts
- Fast boats continue from Koh Tao to Chumphon for buses and trains to Bangkok
Time and cost at a glance
| Option | Time | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Private car to Bangrak | about 10 min | from US$35 per car |
| Private car to Pralarn Pier (Maenam) | about 30 min | from US$37 per car |
| Boat Maenam → Koh Tao | from 1h 25m | from €15.97 per person |
| One ticket from the airport | from 2h 15m | from €22.54 per person |
| Car + boat, two travellers | – | about €31.58 each |
Car prices are Kiwitaxi’s per vehicle in US dollars (converted at ECB rates); boat and one-ticket fares are per person as listed on our booking partner for the date shown. “Two travellers” is half the cheapest car plus the cheapest fare from that pier.
Which boat can I catch?
Boats from Bangrak listed for 5 Nov 2026. “Land by” = departure minus the 10-minute drive, 30 minutes through arrivals and 60 minutes’ check-in at the pier (Lomprayah asks for 60). Leave more if your flight might be late.
| Boat departs | Operator & pier | Crossing | Land by |
|---|---|---|---|
| 08:00 | Boonsiri High Speed Ferries Koh Samui Bangrak Pier Catamaran → Koh Tao Catamaran | 2h | 06:20 |
| 08:00 | Lomprayah Lomprayah Bangrak Pier → Mae Haad Koh Tao | 1h 45m | 06:20 |
| 08:00 | Lomlahkkhirin Samui Bangrak Pier LK → Tao Mae Haad Pier | 1h 45m | 06:20 |
| 09:30 | Songserm Petcherat Marina Bangrak → Koh Tao Songserm | 1h 25m | 07:50 |
| 09:30 | Songserm Express Petcherat Marina Bangrak → Koh Tao Songserm | 1h 25m | 07:50 |
| 10:30 | Songserm Express Petcherat Marina Bangrak → Koh Tao Songserm | 1h 30m | 08:50 |
| 11:30 | Lomlahkkhirin Samui Bangrak Pier LK → Tao Mae Haad Pier | 2h 45m | 09:50 |
| 11:30 | Songserm Petcherat Marina Bangrak → Koh Tao Songserm | 2h 15m | 09:50 |
| 12:30 | Lomlahkkhirin Samui Bangrak Pier LK → Tao Mae Haad Pier | 2h | 10:50 |
| 14:30 | Lomlahkkhirin Samui Bangrak Pier LK → Tao Mae Haad Pier | 3h 15m | 12:50 |
Later boats run than this sample day lists: the last is at 15:30 (Lomprayah direct speedboat from Bangrak, operator timetable on the route page), so land by about 13:50 for it.
One ticket from the airport
Van from Samui Airport + boat, one ticket. Departures listed for 5 Nov 2026 (checked 2 Nov 2026); the ticket names the meeting point.
See every operator, seat availability and the live price.
When to book
Book the boat when your flight is fixed
- Pick a boat that leaves after your “land by” time with room to spare: if your flight is late, a boat you booked may leave without you.
- Around holidays and island events, boats fill up: book a day or more ahead.
- Booking the car and the boat separately? Book the car for your landing time, and the boat with the buffer above.
Season and sea
The Gulf has a different weather pattern from the Andaman coast: services run all year, but the northeast monsoon can disrupt crossings around November and December, mostly on the open-water legs to and from Koh Tao and Chumphon.
Good to know
- From Samui Airport, Lomprayah and Boonsiri sell through tickets with the van to the pier included (850 THB to Koh Tao); otherwise Lomprayah’s van around Koh Samui costs 150 THB per person per trip.
- Lomprayah asks you to be at its pier office 60 minutes before departure; one bag up to 20 kg is included.
- Boats that change at Koh Phangan take longer; for the quickest trip pick a direct boat.
- Mae Haad pier is in Koh Tao’s main village; taxis serve Sairee Beach and the dive resorts.
Samui Airport to Koh Tao: questions
How do I get from Samui Airport to Koh Tao?
Boats to Koh Tao leave from three piers on Samui’s north and west coasts; Bangrak is closest to the airport. Lomprayah and Boonsiri sell through tickets from the airport with the van to the pier included. The drive from Samui Airport to Bangrak takes about 10 minutes; Kiwitaxi lists private cars from US$35 per car. Boats from Bangrak to Koh Tao take from 1h 25m, with 10 departures listed for 5 Nov 2026 (first 08:00, last 14:30) and fares from €15.97 per person. The last boat is at 15:30 (Lomprayah direct speedboat from Bangrak, operator timetable): to make it, land by about 13:50. One ticket from Samui Airport (van from Samui Airport + boat, one ticket) is listed from €22.54, leaving at 07:30, 11:30.
How long does it take from Samui Airport to Koh Tao?
About 10 minutes by car to Bangrak, then from 1h 25m on the boat, plus the wait for your departure. The quickest one-ticket trip from the airport listed 2h 15m door to door.
How much does it cost to get from Samui Airport to Koh Tao?
A private car to Bangrak: from US$35 per car on Kiwitaxi (read 3 Nov 2026). The boat: from €15.97 per person (listed 2 Nov 2026). One ticket from the airport: from €22.54 per person (listed 2 Nov 2026).
What time does my flight need to land to reach Koh Tao the same day?
The last boat from Bangrak is at 15:30 (Lomprayah direct speedboat from Bangrak, operator timetable). With about 10 minutes’ drive, 30 minutes through arrivals and 60 minutes’ check-in at the pier, land by about 13:50. Later than that, stay near the pier and take a morning boat. Times change by season: pick your date for live times.
Is there one ticket from Samui Airport to Koh Tao?
Yes: 2 departures combining the road and the boat leave from the airport (Lomprayah 07:30, Lomprayah 11:30), from €22.54 per person on 2 Nov 2026.
Sources and checks
- Koh Samui to Koh Tao ferry: operator, port and timetable sources listed on that page, departures and fares read on our booking partner (12Go) 2 Nov 2026
- Booking partner (12Go) public page for koh samui → koh tao, one-ticket departures read 2 Nov 2026
- Kiwitaxi public transfer page “Taxi Transfer from Koh Samui Airport (USM) to Bangrak Port”: drive time and per-car prices read 3 Nov 2026
- Kiwitaxi public transfer page “Shuttle and Taxi Transfer from Koh Samui Airport (USM) to Pralan Pier”: drive time and per-car prices read 3 Nov 2026
- “Land by” times and per-person totals are our arithmetic on those figures, as explained above.
Photo: Shark Bay on Koh Tao seen from the John-Suwan viewpoint (kallerna, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0).
🙏 Spotted something out of date? Tell us at sawadee@thaiferries.co and we’ll check it.