How to get from Pattaya to Koh Samui

Pattaya sits on the eastern shore of the Gulf of Thailand, and Koh Samui lies off Surat Thani province, 838 km away by road. So the trip is either a flight, from U-Tapao or from Suvarnabhumi, or a long overland run through Bangkok that ends on a catamaran or ferry. Below are timetables and fares from the carriers, the airports and the AirAsia MOVE flight listing, checked on 11 November 2026.

All options in one table

The overland times are our own sums from the carriers’ timetables, counted from the 16:00 Pattaya bus to arrival on Samui. They do not include the ride across Bangkok or from the pier to your hotel.

By plane from U-Tapao: 1 h 5 min

U-Tapao (UTP) is the airport people mean by “Pattaya airport”. In the AirAsia MOVE listing on 11 November 2026 the direct flight to Samui is operated by Bangkok Airways, leaves at 17:25 and lands at 18:30. One-way fares in the listing:

• 25 November: 3,501 baht, the cheapest date shown
• 1 December: 4,092 baht
• 29 November: 4,806 baht
• 23 November: 5,294 baht
• 16 and 19 December: 5,649 baht

The listing names Bangkok Airways and Thai Airways International as the airlines selling direct flights on this route. The airport’s own domestic schedule shows the same service as PG 294, daily, at 17:20-18:25, and the flight back from Samui as PG 293 at 11:10. That page carries no date, so we rely on the dated listing for times. We could not check fares on the Bangkok Airways site, which blocks automated access (11 November 2026). The listing does not show baggage rules, so check them when you book.

From Central Pattaya to the U-Tapao terminal it is 43.3 km, about 44 minutes without traffic (OSRM). The Suvarnabhumi Burapha minibus leaves Pattaya for the airport at 09:30, 12:00 and 15:00; the airport page gives 150 baht per person for the ride between the airport and Big C in South Pattaya and asks you to arrange a hotel pick-up at least a day ahead. Taxis and other transfers are covered in the guide to Pattaya’s airports.

By plane from Suvarnabhumi: more flights

Suvarnabhumi (BKK) is further away but has far more Samui flights. Roong Reuang Coach buses leave Pattaya bus station on North Pattaya Road at 08:00, 10:00, 12:00, 14:00, 16:00, 18:00 and 21:00, cost 135 baht and take about 2 hours depending on traffic. The carrier asks you to be at the stop 15 minutes before departure.

Direct flights from Suvarnabhumi to Samui take 1 h 10 min. In the AirAsia MOVE listing on 11 November 2026 the departures shown run from 06:00 to 19:15, and one-way fares by date are:

So on the cheapest dates this route, bus included, costs less than half the lowest U-Tapao fare in the listing, and on other dates it costs as much or more. What else flies to Samui from Bangkok, and how the airport works, is in Bangkok to Koh Samui.

By bus through Bangkok with a Lomprayah ticket

There are three legs, and you buy them separately:

• Pattaya to Bangkok. Roong Reuang Coach runs from Pattaya bus station to Ekkamai at 04:30, hourly from 08:00 to 20:00 and at 22:00 for 144 baht, and to Mo Chit 2 at 05:00, 07:30 and hourly from 09:00 to 18:00 for 155 baht. The ride takes about 2 hours depending on traffic. More options are in Bangkok to Pattaya, which works the same in reverse
• Across Bangkok. Lomprayah departs from Khao San Road and from Pinklao. From Ekkamai terminal to Khao San Road it is 12.6 km, 17 minutes by OSRM without traffic, and much longer in the evening rush, so leave a few hours between the bus and the departure
• Bangkok to Samui. On Lomprayah’s 2026 timetable (effective 25 August 2026) the bus and catamaran from Khao San leaves at 22:00 and reaches Pralan Pier at 11:30 for 1,450 baht, or 1,750 baht on the VIP bus. With a minivan to your hotel on Samui it is 1,600 or 1,900 baht, arriving at 12:30. The bus and night ferry to Bangrak Pier leaves Khao San at 21:30 and arrives at 11:15 for 1,250 baht

Taking the 16:00 bus from Pattaya and the 22:00 departure from Khao San, you reach Samui at 11:30 the next day: 19 h 30 min and 1,594 baht before the ride across Bangkok. Lomprayah also has a 06:00 daytime departure from Khao San that arrives at 17:30, but you cannot catch it from Pattaya the same morning: the first bus leaves at 04:30 and takes about 2 hours.

Boonsiri offers a way to skip the city. Its timetable post of 22 June 2026 lists a daily bus and catamaran from Suvarnabhumi Airport at 20:00, arriving on Koh Samui at 11:30 the next day, which the 16:00 airport bus from Pattaya reaches with time to spare. The post gives no fare for this ticket, so check it when you book.

Aggregators such as 12Go sell through tickets from Pattaya to Samui. On 11 November 2026 the 12Go page did not open for our automated check, and we found no timetable for a through ticket on a carrier’s own site: Boonsiri’s booking form includes Pattaya pick-up points, but its published timetables start in Bangkok. We therefore quote no times or prices for it. Raja Ferry and Seatran tickets from Bangkok and the train to Chumphon are covered in Bangkok to Koh Samui.

By car: 838 km and a ferry

From Central Pattaya to Don Sak Pier in Surat Thani province it is 838.2 km, about 10 h 10 min without traffic or stops (OSRM). Raja Ferry sails from Don Sak to Lipa Noi Pier on Samui every hour from 04:00 to 19:00 and takes about 1 h 30 min, on the timetable the operator brought in on 23 October 2026. The fare table gives 200 baht per passenger and 640 baht for a car. That is a full day at the wheel before any stops, so plan a night on the way.

What changes with the season

Samui’s rain peaks from October to December. Under TMD normals for 1991-2020 the Ko Samui station gets 294.9 mm in October, 444.6 mm on 18.7 rain days in November and 263.1 mm in December, against 64.3 mm in February. Flights and ferries keep running, but rough days are more likely, so in these months leave slack before an onward flight. The month-by-month figures are in Koh Samui weather.

Fares rise towards the holidays. In the same listing the U-Tapao flight costs 3,501 baht on 25 November and 5,649 baht on 16 and 19 December, and the Suvarnabhumi flight is 5,731-5,943 baht on every date shown from 14 December to 2 January.

Common mistakes

• Counting on the 15:00 minibus for the 17:25 flight. The drive alone is 44 minutes without traffic, and the minibus collects passengers from hotels. The 12:00 run is the safer one
• Planning the 06:00 Lomprayah departure straight from Pattaya. The first bus reaches Bangkok after it has left. Either sleep in Bangkok or take the evening departure
• Not checking the pier on the ticket. Lomprayah’s catamaran lands at Pralan Pier, its night ferry at Bangrak Pier and Raja Ferry at Lipa Noi Pier. Unless you bought the minivan option, the ride to your hotel is on you
• Comparing only one airport. On the cheapest dates the Suvarnabhumi flight with the bus costs less than half the lowest U-Tapao fare, on others as much or more

After you arrive

The island’s areas are covered separately: Chaweng, 5.1 km from Samui Airport by the measurement on that page, Bophut and Lipa Noi, where the Raja Ferry pier is. For the areas, the season and what to see, read holidays in Koh Samui and the Koh Samui overview. If you go on to the neighbouring islands, see Samui to Koh Phangan and Koh Tao. Coming from the Andaman coast instead, the route is in Phuket to Koh Samui.