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Tha Yang pier is 10km from Chumphon, while Talaysub is 1km past that; Talaysub is often lumped with Tha Yang. From Tha Yang a slow night boat (200B, six hours) departs at midnight. If you fancy sleeping on the deck of a slow boat and a lovely moon is out, this could be a memorable trip. However, if it’s raining or the seas are rough, it could be a long and uncomfortable night. It’s a gamble.

A car ferry leaves Tha Yang at 11pm (with cabin 300B, six hours). It’s possible to get a bunk or mattress on this boat, making it a more comfortable (and fun) option than the other night ferry.

From Talaysub, the Songsrem Express (450B, 2½ hours) departs at 7am.

The Lomprayah express catamaran (www.lomprayah.com) leaves Tummakam pier (25km from town) at 7am and 1pm (550B, 1½ hours).

Seatran Discovery runs a catamaran out of Pak Nam pier (or Seatran Jetty), 10km from Chumphon, at 7am (550B, two hours).

A shared taxi to Tha Yang pier costs 50B. Sŏrng·ta·ou to Tha Yang and Pak Nam piers are 30B.

If you get stuck at Tha Yang pier and don’t want to return to Chumphon, try the Thayang Seaport Hotel (0 7755 3052; r 200-450B; ).

BUS

The main bus terminal is on the highway, 16km from Chumphon. To get there you can catch a local bus or sŏrng·ta·ou (30B) from Th Nawaminruamjai. There’s a small ‘sub bus station’ on Th Poramin Mankha, though there are plans to move it next to the train station. These also stop at the main bus terminal.

Much more convenient is Chokeanan Tour (0 7751 1757; Th Pracha Uthit), in the centre of town, with six buses a day to Bangkok (air-con 375B, VIP 419B to 550B) or Suwannatee Tour (0 7750 4901), 700m southeast of the train station, with 12 departures per day (2nd class/air-con/VIP 310/398/464B). Most Bangkok buses stop in town so get off there and save yourself the sŏrng·ta·ou fare from the bus station. Ask the driver or local passengers to tell you where to disembark.

Other destinations from Chumphon include Hua Hin (165B to 230B, five hours), Bang Saphan Yai (100B, two hours), Prachuap Khiri Khan (120B to 160B, 3½ hours), Ranong (100B to 110B, three hours), Surat Thani (170B, 3½ hours), Krabi (270B, eight hours), Phuket (320B, seven hours) and Hat Yai (310B to 350B, seven hours). Tickets can be bought at travel agencies.

TRAIN

There are frequent services to/from Bangkok (2nd class 292B to 382B, 3rd class 235B, 7½ hours). Overnight sleepers range from 440B to 770B.

Southbound rapid and express trains – the only trains with 1st and 2nd class – are less frequent and can be difficult to book out of Chumphon from November to February.

Getting Around

Sŏrng·ta·ou and motorcycle taxis around town cost 30B and 20B respectively per trip. Sŏrng·ta·ou to Hat Sairi and Hat Thung Wua Laen cost 30B.

Motorcycles can be hired at travel agencies and guesthouses for 200B to 250B per day. Car hire costs around 1500B per day from travel agencies or from Suda Guest House (Click here).

Return to beginning of chapter

Lower Southern Gulf

* * *

SURAT THANI PROVINCE

KO SAMUI

KO PHA-NGAN

KO TAO

ANG THONG MARINE NATIONAL PARK

SURAT THANI

AROUND SURAT THANI

NAKHON SI THAMMARAT PROVINCE

AO KHANOM

NAKHON SI THAMMARAT

AROUND NAKHON SI THAMMARAT

* * *

It really isn’t fair – there are over 200 countries around the globe and Thailand has managed to snag a disproportionate amount of the world’s top beaches. These creamy stretches of sand undulate along the paper-thin coast, and scallop tonnes of jungly bumps out at sea. They’re everywhere. So how are we ever supposed to choose from these honey-tinged paradises when every acre boasts enough beach options to give Goldilocks a complex?

It’s simple. If you’re plagued by indecision, head here – to Thailand’s lower southern gulf, and follow three simple steps to reach your ultimate beach-holiday nirvana.

Step 1. Before hitting the waves, start below the surface. Ko Tao is the ultimate playground for scuba neophytes, sporting shallow reefs teeming with slippery reef sharks, skulking stingrays and radiant blooms of waving coral.

Step 2. Now that you’ve swum with