Our bumpy flight from
Vientiane to
Bangkok arrived at night so we decided to spend a night at an
airport hotel before boarding the
bus to Koh Chang the next day. It's a
5-hour drive from
Suvarnabhumi Airport to the ferry port, followed by a
40-minute ferry ride to
Koh Chang then however long it takes to your accommodation.
At Bangkok's
Suvarnabhumi Airport, you can find the
bus ticket counter to Koh Chang on the
first floor by
Gate 8. Buses operated by
Burapha leaves at
7:30 am,
11 am, and
2 pm. Another operator charges
600 baht for one way and
900 baht for round trip departing at
7:50 am,
11 am, and
2 pm.
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We got the 11 am van for 600 baht each, all inclusive from airport to hotel drop off on Koh Chang. We waited by the bus ticket counter to Koh Chang on the first floor by Gate 8 and were called to board the 10-person van parked outside. The 5-hour drive to the ferry pier was not very scenic - the road was pretty straight and flat so the driver was going 100 km/hour most of the time. There were two 20-minute snack/bathroom breaks in between.
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At
4 pm, the van drove onto the ferry and we could get off for the
40-minute ferry ride. When the ferry got to Koh chang, we got back on the minivan and were driven to a travel agency where a lady collected our bus tickets and asked about our hotels so the driver can drop us off. The roads on Koh Chang are narrow,
steep, and
windy between the main beaches. We didn't get to our
hotel on Lonely Beach until
5:45 pm.
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Koh Chang to Central Bangkok
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As for the return trip back to
Bangkok, there are
VIP buses advertised for
290 baht. We booked a
door-to-door minibus to our
hotel near Sukumvit MRT Station for
750 baht each, departing at
8:30 am. Getting dropped off the
airport will cost
650 baht. Like the way to
Koh Chang, it took about
6 hours from
Koh Chang to
Suvarnabhumi Airport and
an additional hour to
Sukumvit, mostly due to heavy traffic.
