Thailand forum

Thanks for your quick response lizzy. I guess that's the only way eh? On another note, I think it will be quite easy to get from phi phi to ko jum and then to railay?

Cheers
Ruth

Here's another ferry schedule that might be useful.

http://www.andaman-island-hopping.com/traffic/ferrycentral.htm#krabijum

I got to the Trang islands from Lanta the first time I went to Thailand ... I just took the snorkelling trip boat from Lanta and hopped off on Ngai. It should be possible to do get on the snorkelling trip boat in the other direction from either Ngai or Kradan too. Ask your GH to book it.

Failing that, you could always take a bus/minubus from Trang to the pier to Ko Jum. I think it would be more logical to go to Jum before Phi Phi to save backtracking.

Nip into one of the travel agencies next to the railway station in Trang when you arrive there and ask about transport options to Jum. Take their card so you can call and book if you aren't sure how many days you want to stay on Kraden.

Thanks for all the info guys. I will be there say 1st week of Dec, so it shouldn't be a prob. I think I'll do something similar to what you've suggestion captain.

Cheers

Hi Tezza, thanks for the info. I'm gonna change the plan a bit cause I thought about visiting vietnam too. So now I think I'm gonna skip ko jum and from phi phi head straight to railay, maybe spend a couple of nights and then go straight to krabi to fly back to bangkok. Can you update your profile so I can send you a private message with my itinerary (I'm sure you'll manage to change it) and let me know what you think. I would greatly appreciate. Cheers

We have used Tigerline quite a few times ( Including from Kradan - But not in the direction you are enquiring about, sorry! ) and have never had a decent experience with them... They're not cheap either.

Even by Thai standards they are pretty hopeless. If you do use them, set your expectations low... Very low...

My 'favourite' trip with them was from Lipe to Phi Phi for Christmas 2009.

We were scheduled to leave Lipe at 9am but didn't actually leave there until 10.45am... No explanation either... Although strangely, the boat that Tigerline always use, and is moored overnight on Lipe, was mysteriously missing - A speedboat eventually turned up and transferred everyone to Trang...

Thats something Tigerline never tell you either, that you will always have a lengthy stop at Trang, where they make you disembark and then board another boat ( This happens whichever direction you're travelling in ). This particular trip was even better because the boat we transferred to was both late and broken down once it had finally arrived?!

Again, Tigerline didn't inform us of any of this, it was only when we saw the engineers dismantling the engine that we got any hint!

Eventually we left Trang at about 4.30pm... Which was roughly the time we should have been arriving at Lanta/Phi Phi!!

Darkness fell as we approached Lanta and the staff on the boat were simply using their own eyesight to navigate the boat into Saladan on Lanta - Pretty nervy stuff as there was barely any lighting on the boat and its obviously pitch black at sea!!

At exactly 9pm we arrived on Phi Phi feeling thoroughly knackered and almost losing our reservation at our guesthouse due to our late arrival. We, in theory had been 'travelling' for 12 hours ( It was meant to be about 7-8 hrs in total! ).

Not a good experience at all. You have been warned!

We have also used the day trip boats out of Saladan on Lanta to get back from Kradan to Lanta. Tezza is right, the timings are wrong for a transfer to Phi Phi. The boats all leave Kradan between 2 and 3pm and don't get back to Saladan until about 4.30-5pm... So a night on Lanta would be necessary.

They are much cheaper than Tigerline though ( About 200-300 baht per person from Kradan to Lanta ). You can just ask the staff on any boat moored on the beach if they can take you, most will.

The other point to be made here is that the Tigerline boat doesn't always stop at Kradan, a longtail boat may be necessary from Kradan to Mook to catch the connection, which will obviously push the price up.

Guys, what do you think about visit ko tao/phangan round about the end of november? Someone suggested that I should scrap it. That was my first choice. What do you reckon?

then the andaman it is. Cheers for all the help, much appreciated.

Really? hehe....then i guess i have to find another option aside from tigerline cause they seem very unreliable. Could one get a private longtail boat from Trang's pier Kantang anyways? I would rather pay a few bucks extra and get to Kradan

Hey, thanks all for the great info people