Driving From Jomtien To Samui

[whatchamacallit]

We have never been to Koh Samui - but on Feb 4th we will be driving from Jomtien to Koh Samui. Plan to drive to Surat Thani the 1st day and spend the night there. Get up early and head up to the ferry after breakfast.

1: Where is the ferry? and How often does it leave for Koh Samui? and How long and how much?

On Google map we noticed Donsak International Port and Donsak Ferry to Koh Samui. We are guessing there will be signs and we will see where to catch the Ferry - is this so?

2: Where would be a good place to stay on Koh Samui in the medium range? At this time of the year, we will be able to just walk in and find a room at a hotel. Chaweng Beach area okay??

The reason we do not want to make reservation is - we are not exactly sure of our arrival date as we will be driving - and would like to option to stay in Hua Hin if we like it for an extra few days.

Thank in advance for your replies.

[Rooo]

There are 2 ferries to Samui.Raja & Seatran. They share the main entrance road, but then you have to follow the signs to their respective terminals. They are situated about 70kms out of Suratthani, heading south.

Ferries leave on the hour & they run till 7pm. The first ferry from Donsak, not sure, but the Samui one fro Seatran is 5 am.

If you use Raja, the older of the two, try & book a VIP return ticket (date will be left open) , that almost guarantees you a place on the next ferry, if there is no room on the first one, as you line up in the VIP line.

Seatran, advise you to book your ticket , you can do that through any Bank of Ayudhya ( spelling ?) yellow bank, cost , as the wait can be long, that will only give you one way, but you can repeat the process on Samui.

As for hotels, there are several, some in the vicinity of the ferry or in nearby little townships. Kanom, Sichon,etc...

There was another thread running here can give you more ideas.

As for booking a room here on Samui,no probs this time of year. suggest you book for one night , then drive around & see what suits you. Chaweng is lively, with heaps of restaurants & night life.

Some other members , might be better at giving you a run down of pros & cons of different areas.

[chiang mai]

Jomtiem to Surat is not a short journey but it can be done in one very full day, getting around Bangkok will be the hardest part. The road from Hua Hin to Surat is a good one, a fast dual carriage way for much of the way but based on your day of travel, watch out for long distance truck and buses, not always the best drivers. Maybe consider stying in Cha Am instead of Hua Hin, only a short distance away and much cheaper/nicer in my view, good quality hotels on the beach for circa baht 1,500.

[Birdman]

There is a good resort on the highway a few km after Chumphon on the left side, in Surath Thani the Diamond Plaza and Wang Thai are good hotels not too far away from the highway.

Consider that the week around Chinese New Year (14.02.) is also peak season in Samui.

[Boater]

i take it you are renting a car... if so rent a Sat Nav to go with it, as the above post, Jomtien to Bangkok, and Bangkokto Samui are both easy routes, but getting through Bangkok could lose you alot of time.., and the sat navs in thailand are all in english and very up to date

[Lovedog100]

Why not fly?

[whatchamacallit]

@Rooo: Thank you for your advice - it is much appreciated. We will buy the VIP Ferry ticket from Bank of Ayutdhya.

@ChiangMai, Birdman, and Boater: We will be driving our own truck and we do have a GPS Navigation. We will consider taking a break half way and split the trip into two days. Because of you we now have options as to which cities we can stay in on the way down.

@Lovedog: The reason we are not flying is because we are buying a sail boat in Samui and towing it back to Jomtien. With this comes our next question: When we buy the return ticket for the Ferry at Ayudya Bank - do we buy two tickets?

[Rooo]

@Rooo: Thank you for your advice - it is much appreciated. We will buy the VIP Ferry ticket from Bank of Ayutdhya.

@ChiangMai, Birdman, and Boater: We will be driving our own truck and we do have a GPS Navigation. We will consider taking a break half way and split the trip into two days. Because of you we now have options as to which cities we can stay in on the way down.

@Lovedog: The reason we are not flying is because we are buying a sail boat in Samui and towing it back to Jomtien. With this comes our next question: When we buy the return ticket for the Ferry at Ayudya Bank - do we buy two tickets?

Answer to your question regarding the trailer cost. Dongsak is the best place to check Re the cost.They have the office there at the arrival terminal, check with them before you get on the ferry , don't bother trying to get answers from the bank .

[Rooo]

Try & call Seatran on 1672 for your enquiry.

[BigC]

wow u have along drive. if i was you i would stop in huia hin and maybe surathani. place called 100 islands. love hotel very cheap. likea spa hotel. then 1.30 hrs to ferry from there. it is a killer of a drive. as for hotel reservations as long as you don't pay in avance you have nothing to lose i have done it before when going to pattaya. if pisses the hotels owners off but that is life

[whatchamacallit]

@Rooo: Thank you - we will definitely take the Ferry to Samui from Dongsak and inquiry re: cost - returning with a trailer.

@BigC: Indeed it's a long drive. We may break it into two if we get tired - we're in no hurry :-). FYI: we used to live in Bali and drive all over Java - so long drives are nothing new to us. But thanks again for your input.

Edited January 27, 2010 by whatchamacallit

[Gulfsailor]

@Rooo: Thank you - we will definitely take the Ferry to Samui from Dongsak and inquiry re: cost - returning with a trailer.

@BigC: Indeed it's a long drive. We may break it into two if we get tired - we're in no hurry :-). FYI: we used to live in Bali and drive all over Java - so long drives are nothing new to us. But thanks again for your input.

Hi, Have you considered to just have the boat trucked to you. We recently sold a small sailboat on a trailer to a customer in Pattaya and after calculating all the costs and time lost, it was a much better deal to ask a transport company to ship. A truck with loading space of 8 meters long and 2,2 meters wide will cost around 15,000 THB from Samui to Pattaya. That is including ferry. Please also be aware that officially you are not allowed to carry a trailer behind your car, unless it is registered and carries a licenseplate. For local transport, no official will bother, but that might be different driving between Surat Thani and Bangkok. You might also want to check with your car insurance, if you are covered in case of an accident, while towing a trailer (licensed or not). Should you wish to pickup the trailer and boat yourself, make sure that the size of your hitch and the size of the trailer connection are the same! US standard is 2", whereas in Europe 50mm is the standard. Cars in Thailand can have either seize ball installed.

Good luck and have a safe trip.

[whatchamacallit]

@Gulfsailor: First thanks for your input. We want to make this into a little bit of a road trip/adventure and you're right it will cost about the same by the time we got back. We do have the proper insurance for both the truck and the boat and will have a few thousand baht in 100 baht note should there be a need to donate to the local police on the way back. We also already have the right size trailer ball (2 inch) as confirmed by the seller.

Again thank you - any other input anyone can think of as well is always welcome and appreciated.

We will let you know how it all turns out of course :-).

[NALAK]

i did the journey in reverse last week got 8 clock ferry donsak about 10 arrived in patters just before 7pm. doable in the day but i have heard from several people the other way as in the way you are going is difficult as no raod signs. coming this way just follow chon buri and pattaya signs. friends here say they follow signs for Ding Dang then you should pick up signs for south cities. i used ferries 3 times in last 2 weeks every time got on next ferry none full car decks half empty. when you get to ferry seatran is first when you get to, ask at booth what time ferry you get if its to long go out turn left and you will see raja signs only about half mile apart again ask what time they are usually quiter. hopefully i will never have to make the return journey to Samui

[Birdman]

No road signs, where? In Bangkok? There are plenty. Just follow the signs to Dao Khanong. After Surat Thani there are big road signs to Koh Samui and to the port as well. And between Bangkok and Surath Thani it's just a long straight drive, also with signs.

Drove in both directions even much further than Patty several times. Peace of cake for sure. Moreover the OP is doing breaks.

[challenger99]

Jomtiem to Surat is not a short journey but it can be done in one very full day, getting around Bangkok will be the hardest part. The road from Hua Hin to Surat is a good one, a fast dual carriage way for much of the way but based on your day of travel, watch out for long distance truck and buses, not always the best drivers. Maybe consider stying in Cha Am instead of Hua Hin, only a short distance away and much cheaper/nicer in my view, good quality hotels on the beach for circa baht 1,500.

since new highway and new bridges between Bang Na and Samut Prakan you can avoid go into Bangkok. Me it take from Suvarnabhumi Airport (close motorway no 7 fm /ChonbureiPattaya) to Hua Hin near 2 hours.

[NALAK]

No road signs, where? In Bangkok? There are plenty. Just follow the signs to Dao Khanong. After Surat Thani there are big road signs to Koh Samui and to the port as well. And between Bangkok and Surath Thani it's just a long straight drive, also with signs.

Drove in both directions even much further than Patty several times. Peace of cake for sure. Moreover the OP is doing breaks.

only passing on what several people who live in pattaya have told me. the problem seems to be around bkk, what part of samui is Doa Khanong.

[Birdman]

Dao Khanong is in Bangkok.

Bangkok-Suvarnabhumi-Expressway-Map

[NALAK]

Dao Khanong is in Bangkok.

Bangkok-Suvarnabhumi-Expressway-Map

great map worth saving for those going south, when i came up i used the bottom route onto 3 then 7 but top route seems clear. can see why people say din deang as thats right near south road. friends just said they had problem picking road signs for south around BKK. anyway hope never have to go back to samui myself

Edited February 1, 2010 by NALAK

[whatchamacallit]

Thank you all for your replies and advise. It has been very helpful for us in making our plan. We are leaving on the 5th in the morning. We will pay a close attention when we reach Din Daeng to make sure we don't go astray. We have also printed the Map - so between this map and our GPS hopefully we will not get lost.

See you in Koh Samui :-)

[Birdman]

"............close attention when we reach Din Daeng to make sure we don't go astray........."

Don't go to Din Daeng! That's the wrong way. You will drive on the Bang Na-Trat Highway straight on this highway to Port (sign) and then after a while left to Dao Khanong (sign) by crossing the river on the Rama IX Bridge and at Dao Khanong turn left to Highway 35. You can see that on the bottom of the map. Drive slowly.

There is also a new bridge in the South of that as a short way, where I did not drive yet.

[whatchamacallit]

@birdman: Thank you - okay no Din Daeng :-) We will follow the instruction - don't worry there will be 3 of us to help navigate. We will report back and let you know how it goes :-)

[whatchamacallit]

Left Pattaya at 12:00 noon - now it's 3:55 in Hua Hin having a lunch break at Mc Donald's :-). Heading on to Chumphon and will look for a place to stay for the night - should arrive around 7:30 tonight.