How many piers do we need?

[Samui Coconut]

The construction of the new Lomprayah Pier in Bangrak has started and should be completed before Christmas. Thus no need to drive all the way to Maenam if you want to use their services. I understand that the pier is build in co-operation with Singha and perfectly legal. Last Monday/Tuesday the ministry was around and checked all. Lets keep the bay clean.

[samuijimmy]

There is another one supposed to be going in for Grand Sea Tours at the end of Soi One in Maenam... ... where the electric comes in from Khanom ...

[Bsd]

Do you know which services are moving to the new pier? Is it the Donsak - Phangan boats that currently go via Nathon or the Koh Tao boats based at Maenam. Of course the answer of both would be more sensible.

The construction of the new Lomprayah Pier in Bangrak has started and should be completed before Christmas. Thus no need to drive all the way to Maenam if you want to use their services. I understand that the pier is build in co-operation with Singha and perfectly legal. Last Monday/Tuesday the ministry was around and checked all. Lets keep the bay clean.

[Mole]

Aparently, their maenam pier is going to be converted into a pier for cruise ships. Since the ocean around Maenam is much deeper than in Nathon, the cruise ships can anchor much closer to land as well. The Lompraya fleet of vans will also get the shuttle business of the cruise guests.

I've heard there has been ongoing disputes with the pier authorities and the cruise ships for some time, not sure if it's increased prices or what it is, but it appears that this new co-operation between the cruise ships and Lompraya came out of neccesity, since the cruise companies were getting fed up with dealing with the Nathon "mafia".

Lomprayah services which goes via Nathon will still be the same. It appears that they'll move their catamarans which used to stop at their Maenam pier to this Bangrak pier instead. I think this new Bangrak pier will also be used for shutteling people to/from full moon party. They have lots of speedboats and cheapest prices (1000 pax) and I'd rather use their boats to the FMP than other companies with a couple of boats going back and fort all night.

Most of these smaller companies gives huge commissions to agents, so most often you'll find these touted for sale by agents, usually around 1500-2000 pax.

When you get to their pier, you'll have to wait in queue in order to get on their boats and they even try to sell you "VIP" tickets in order to not need to stay in queue and immediately get on the next boat. So without VIP tickets, you may have to wait till the next boat because the current ones may be full with people who bought "VIP".

Edited November 21, 2015 by Mole

[Bsd]

Thank you Mole, helpful as ever.

I don't see there being any problems with Singha helping pay for the pier, as long as no alcohol is sold there they wouldn't be breaking any laws. After all they got Raja to turn at least 2 boats in floating billboards.

[smokie36]

Perhaps this is the solution to the taxi mafia....taxi boat services could hardly be more expensive now could they?

[longtom]

Aparently, their maenam pier is going to be converted into a pier for cruise ships. Since the ocean around Maenam is much deeper than in Nathon, the cruise ships can anchor much closer to land as well. The Lompraya fleet of vans will also get the shuttle business of the cruise guests.

I've heard there has been ongoing disputes with the pier authorities and the cruise ships for some time, not sure if it's increased prices or what it is, but it appears that this new co-operation between the cruise ships and Lompraya came out of neccesity, since the cruise companies were getting fed up with dealing with the Nathon "mafia".

Lomprayah services which goes via Nathon will still be the same. It appears that they'll move their catamarans which used to stop at their Maenam pier to this Bangrak pier instead. I think this new Bangrak pier will also be used for shutteling people to/from full moon party. They have lots of speedboats and cheapest prices (1000 pax) and I'd rather use their boats to the FMP than other companies with a couple of boats going back and fort all night.

Most of these smaller companies gives huge commissions to agents, so most often you'll find these touted for sale by agents, usually around 1500-2000 pax.

When you get to their pier, you'll have to wait in queue in order to get on their boats and they even try to sell you "VIP" tickets in order to not need to stay in queue and immediately get on the next boat. So without VIP tickets, you may have to wait till the next boat because the current ones may be full with people who bought "VIP".

Although I understand the cruise ships complaining about the Nathon (taxi) mafia, it's hard to imagine a 2000 pax cruise ship mooring at that part of Maenam. They need much more infrastructure than just a few Lomprayah buses.

[chiang mai]

You can never have enough piers.

[Master of the court]

The road is already too busy in Banrak , so I guess the traffic will soon be out of control after they start using the new pier.

[khunPer]

Aparently, their maenam pier is going to be converted into a pier for cruise ships. Since the ocean around Maenam is much deeper than in Nathon, the cruise ships can anchor much closer to land as well. The Lompraya fleet of vans will also get the shuttle business of the cruise guests.

I've heard there has been ongoing disputes with the pier authorities and the cruise ships for some time, not sure if it's increased prices or what it is, but it appears that this new co-operation between the cruise ships and Lompraya came out of neccesity, since the cruise companies were getting fed up with dealing with the Nathon "mafia".

Lomprayah services which goes via Nathon will still be the same. It appears that they'll move their catamarans which used to stop at their Maenam pier to this Bangrak pier instead. I think this new Bangrak pier will also be used for shutteling people to/from full moon party. They have lots of speedboats and cheapest prices (1000 pax) and I'd rather use their boats to the FMP than other companies with a couple of boats going back and fort all night.

Most of these smaller companies gives huge commissions to agents, so most often you'll find these touted for sale by agents, usually around 1500-2000 pax.

When you get to their pier, you'll have to wait in queue in order to get on their boats and they even try to sell you "VIP" tickets in order to not need to stay in queue and immediately get on the next boat. So without VIP tickets, you may have to wait till the next boat because the current ones may be full with people who bought "VIP".

Thanks for insight.

Just checked with my friend, who is guide at Lomprayah. He says, that they are going to operate two piers, the Maenam pier and Bang Rak. Next year they will receive two new catamarans, each for 700 pax, for the Koh Tao/Chumphon route, the two biggest ones they operate now are for 350 pax each. They probably need to expand the pier to accommodate the bigger ferries. He has not heard about the cruise ship plans; which means, that cruise passenger arrivals at Maenam may be planned, but he has not yet heard about it.

Some times in November/December the catamarans has docked at Bang Rak pier due to high waves at Maenam Beach.

Some years back cruise ship passengers were commuting to the old Bang Rak pier - that was real a traffic mess - then they moved to Nathon, where there is more space to handle the waiting cars and taxis. Hard to believe how they will manage big catamarans in Bang Rak, when one have experienced the number of buses and vans needed for some 300 to 500 passengers, some time two ferries, one of them the original smaller ones for about 200 pax, arrives almost same time in the afternoon between 4pm and 5pm at Maenam.

The Lomlahk (Lomprayah) speedboats for Full Moon Party has been operating from Bang Rak for quite some time; Lomlahk is a kind of sister company owned by relatives. They are not the cheapest, but the 1,000 baht round-trip includes minibus transfer from/to your hotel. If you come to the pier (Bang Rak beach) by own mean of transportation, the price is lower. Number of boats commuting are depending of season, but should be at least one per hour between 7pm and Midnight, returning between 3am and 7am. Checking in at the pier, either from minibus transfer or own transportation, you get a queue number for next boat - when I arrive around 10pm, it's usually boat number 10, 11 or 12, so there depart a couple of boats an hour. Most of the Lomlahk speedboats are used for day-trips around the archipelago.

[khunPer]

There is another one supposed to be going in for Grand Sea Tours at the end of Soi One in Maenam... ... where the electric comes in from Khanom ...

Grand Sea was originally operating 3-4 speedboats from so-called Maenam Pier at soi 4 - today the Walking Street market - they still have their office in the soi. They moved "temporary" to Bang Rak some 4-5 years ago while rebuilding their house/restaurant at the corner of the beach, but for some reason they never moved back and rented out their new house; it was first for sale, for 40 or 45 million baht. Could be, that the small soi is too narrow to handle all the vans coming with passengers - it was often a mess, especially the night of the Full Moon party. I think Grand Sea at the moment operates from the beach next to Lomlahk (Lomprayah) in Bang Rak, close to the old pier (must be the long middle landing bridge on my attached photo).

[samuijimmy]

Well unless things have changed with the Cruise ships in the last couple of years, there is a company Insight that comes from Phuket as tour guides, when the ships are in Nathon and works with a local company Samui Ships and trips who look after the Cruise ship tours around the island.... not local taxi's grabbing people as they land!

As for Grandsea running out of Maenam Soi 4 that came to an end when walking street started, plus the fact the street is too narrow and caused too much disruption both in the mornings and afternoon... I can see a conflict with traffic at Soi one area when Samui Immigration opens in the new year!

[oldsailor35]

Cruise ships at Lompraya Maenam OMG ! there is hardly room for the mini busses to get in and out via those narrow soi's as it is. First thing they need is a proper road from the pier to the ring road. I don't suppose any planning has been done for this !

[dotpoom]

I thought by your headline that you disapproved of another pier being built....but then when reading your comments it looks like you approve.

[crazykopite]

The new immigration office which supposedly opens on January 4th 2016 is located on Soi 1 , Maenam the closest ferry would have been Maenam which appears now to be moving to Bang Rak if this is the case it appears those living in Koh Phangan will either have to get the ferry to Nathon or Bang Rak both being equall difference no doubt the motor bike taxi or the cab drivers on Samui will have a field day ripping off those who have to go to do their immigration visit ! Am I right in thinking that Koh Samui immigration is the only office in the Kingdom that still has not got the 90 day reporting via internet meaning Phangan long stayers still have to spend the day travelling just to confirm their address !

[thailanddogerator]

We need as many beers as we can drink ?

:-)

[Bsd]

Am I right in thinking that Koh Samui immigration is the only office in the Kingdom that still has not got the 90 day reporting via internet meaning Phangan long stayers still have to spend the day travelling just to confirm their address !

Last time I was there I was told to try reporting online, but I haven't come up for my 90 day report since so cannot confirm if it is working.

[Rooo]

Have a look here Bsd on the steps & what you should receive..

http://news.thaivisa.com/thailand/good-news-from-thai-immigration-90-day-report-is-now-possible-online-2/7172/

[Gulfsailor]

Am I right in thinking that Koh Samui immigration is the only office in the Kingdom that still has not got the 90 day reporting via internet meaning Phangan long stayers still have to spend the day travelling just to confirm their address !

Last time I was there I was told to try reporting online, but I haven't come up for my 90 day report since so cannot confirm if it is working.

I tried my 90 day report online last month. The system accepted my application and I received a pending status. A few days later the entire system was out for a few days. When it came back up my status was still pending and it remained so for a few more days. At that point I was already a few days after my report date, so decided to drive to Nathon and do it in person. So don't know if the online report is accepted by Samui immigration. The system did accept it, but maybe no one here bothered to actually process it. Could also have been due to the system outage during my pending status. Will try again in a little over 2 months...

[khunPer]

Just wonder how 90-days reporting ended up as a new pier-issue - may be better to post Immigration subjects in the ongoing tread about that, as many posters may be interested if address-reporting can be done online, but not in the number of piers.

Edited November 23, 2015 by khunPer

[PoorSucker]

We need as many beers as we can drink ?

:-)

How many piers, not how many pints..... :-D