Point To Point Bus Service ?

[LivinLOS]

Trying to assist a Thai girl to get from CM to samui for a holiday with her mate. They have cars but the drive is too much for them (why have the car).. And the flights are not cheap, also if you dont use Bangkok Air they are also messy time systems. Flying out of DM at 6am etc.

Bus services that have been used before, stop in all major cities on route, and she is adamant it is impossible to book a bus that goes from CM to samui as one ticket, that it will have to be CM to bangkok, find another one Bangkok to Samui or perhaps even Chumpon, bus, ferry, etc..

Is there any good online booking systems and or resources I can find scheduling and pricing ??

Is there any company that operates VIP buses that are more point to point. Eg one bus, one run, CM to Bangkok, and one that has fewer (of course best none) stops and changes all the way down to Samui ?? Does anyone with mini buses do something like this ?? My thinking is bigger the bus, more times its going to stop in every town.

I am trying to make this as painless and cost effective as I can for her. Shes not too snobby to use the bus, but the slow buses used in the past, stopping in every major town, will make a long journey in days of hellish travel. I might just treat her to the bangkok air flights rather than put her through that.

[LivinLOS]

Train service for CM to BKK and then BKK to Surat Thai with VIP sleeper tickets seems appealing.

Times work, connections work, and a sleeper carriage for 24h travel with one change doesnt seem so awful.

[xanax]

Train service for CM to BKK and then BKK to Surat Thai with VIP sleeper tickets seems appealing.

Times work, connections work, and a sleeper carriage for 24h travel with one change doesnt seem so awful.

TRUE. and I guess they can book all the way from CM to Samui including bus and boat transfers....I have just booked mine bkk to samui 1339thb one way all included (1st class sleeper lower berth) and 1139thb (1st class sleeper upper berth)...

[Baloo22]

As mentioned, the train system has overnight sleeper trains from Chiang Mai to Bangkok and from Bangkok to Surat Thani.

As for the bus, have her look at Green Bus http://greenbusthailand.com/ Much of the site is in Thai. I think that they have buses that go all the way to Phuket so it's possible that they also have them to Surat Thani. Long trip though.

Air Asia has flights CM to BKK and also BKK to Surat Thani. If you are flexible on dates, you can get some good prices. Watch the add-ons as you step through the booking process. Just say no to each add-on.

Edited May 25, 2012 by Baloo22

[Lakegeneve]

They have many options. Train all the way to ST (changing at Bang Sue if the train is on time....which from CM they are often late).

Fly all the way to ST. In this case Nok Air might be the easiest as they have their Samui flight package which includes bus and ferry (depart at 6am for arrival at 11am). Though you suggested a 6am DMK departure would not be to their liking.

However, check out http://www.lomprayah.com/E/index.htm the bus/ferry combo from Bkk to Chumphon then ferry to Samui via Koh Tao & Koh Phangan. This is a nice scenic. option

The 6am departure gets one into Samui by 4:40pm. They also have a 9pm O/N departure but it is a longer journey with 2hrs wait in Chumphon. Then they now seem to have an option of a Solar Air flight to Chumphon then take the ferry but that is obviously twice as expensive.

Bus wise it is easy to get a VIP Express bus from CM & another from BKK to Surat which doesn't stop at too many places. The one problem is the CM bus arrives at Mo Chit 2 and the Surat bus departs from the Southern Bus Terminal. Expect 1 hour travel between both.

An important thing to remember is that whatever the travel mode to Surat there are then the added travel costs to get to the pier, catch the ferry to Samui, then from the ferry to where ever they are staying on the island. Knowing the ferry departure times is helpful.

There are numerous stories of hassles & people being ripped off at the train station and taken for a ride literally (even Thais on their first visit to ST/Samui) so keep that in mind. An all inclusive package can avoid this. Do a search and maybe also ask your query on the Samui part of TV.

You'll find the suitable combo price and journey wise but from BKK I'd go for the bus & ferry trip from BKK for the scenic value and less hassle.

[NoshowJones]

Always beware of using small vans anywhere in Thailand, especially between Bangkok and the Nakhon Sawan and Phichit areas. they regularly stop to fill up with gas behind big queues of traffic, sometimes having to wait more than an hour. Better with the big buses, they are much quicker. Anyone else had these experience with the mini vans?

[Dogbreath]

Always beware of using small vans anywhere in Thailand, especially between Bangkok and the Nakhon Sawan and Phichit areas. they regularly stop to fill up with gas behind big queues of traffic, sometimes having to wait more than an hour. Better with the big buses, they are much quicker. Anyone else had these experience with the mini vans?

I had a two hour wait for LPG on a van ride to Hua HIn from Pattaya. Station's tanks were empty. The driver was a maniac and had an obvious dislike for farangs. Same driver on the trip back. The wait for LPG was only an hour on the return trip with the same driver. This time he showed his inability to control his anger and erupted in fits of road rage, cutting off other vehicles, swerving at them. Drove very fast and had a spastic foot on the accelerator and brake. Never again. This service is on Pattaya Thai east of soi Khopai.