Looks like I'll need to transfer (switch trains) in Butterworth and again in KL. Am I missing anything? Many thanks.

Looks like I'll need to transfer (switch trains) in Butterworth and again in KL. Am I missing anything? Many thanks.

You are missing one other option, but the end result would be the same:

You could take a train from Surat Thani to Hat Yai; transfer to the Malaysian-run Langkawi Ekspres leaving Hat Yai at 14:50 in the afternoon and arriving KL Sentral at 06:35 the following morning; then transfer to the Ekspres Sinaran Pagi leaving KL Sentral at 08:30, arriving Singapore at 14:59.

Timing-wise, what I suggest is better than your original plan unless you had planned to stop-over in Penang. You can also book e-tickets for the Malaysian trains on-line at the KTM website.

Low cost flight from Hat Yai a possibility? Shorter trip for sure.

Looks like I'll need to transfer (switch trains) in Butterworth and again in KL. Am I missing anything? Many thanks.

You are missing one other option, but the end result would be the same:

You could take a train from Surat Thani to Hat Yai; transfer to the Malaysian-run Langkawi Ekspres leaving Hat Yai at 14:50 in the afternoon and arriving KL Sentral at 06:35 the following morning; then transfer to the Ekspres Sinaran Pagi leaving KL Sentral at 08:30, arriving Singapore at 14:59.

Timing-wise, what I suggest is better than your original plan unless you had planned to stop-over in Penang. You can also book e-tickets for the Malaysian trains on-line at the KTM website.

Glad I asked! Thanks much.

Glad I asked! Thanks much.

You're welcome.

PS - Forgot to mention that the Langkawi Ekspres is currently the only Malaysian train that plies the route between Butterworth and Kuala Lumpur. Once again, unless you were planning a stop in Penang, you may as well just pick up the Langkawi Ekspres at the start of its run in Hat Yai. The connection time in Butterworth between the Thai-run International Express (from Bangkok) and the Langkawi Ekspres is eight hours or so.