Choose the route that reaches your hotel
For Bangkok to Koh Chang, choose a shared road-and-ferry transfer if keeping the cost down matters most, a private vehicle if you want hotel pickup and fewer changes, or a Bangkok Airways flight to Trat if avoiding the long mainland road journey is worth the extra cost. The flight leaves Suvarnabhumi (BKK) and lands at Trat (TDX), on the mainland: it does not land on Koh Chang.
Keep the journey as the main task of arrival day. The regular car-ferry route is Ao Thammachat on the mainland to Ao Sapparot on Koh Chang’s northeast coast. From there, you still need the west-coast road journey to White Sand Beach, Klong Prao, Kai Bae or a more distant hotel. A ticket marked Trat, ferry pier or Koh Chang can end at three different stages of that journey.
Compare the complete Bangkok–Koh Chang journey
Swipe or scroll sideways to compare every column.
| Your decision | Journey and best fit | What still needs arranging |
|---|---|---|
| Shared through-transfer | Bangkok meeting point → mainland pier → ferry → stated island endpoint. Best for a solo traveller or couple who can use the offered pickup. | Read the final stop: an island office or pier is not a hotel drop-off. Check luggage and ferry inclusion on that particular fare. |
| Independent bus to Trat | Bangkok bus terminal → Trat Bus Terminal → separate road transfer → ferry → hotel. Useful if you want a mainland stop. | Buy the pier transfer separately unless expressly included. An evening bus arrival is not a same-evening island arrival. |
| Private road transfer | Bangkok hotel or airport → ferry → named Koh Chang hotel. Useful for a family, group or substantial luggage. | Agree the vehicle total, passenger and bag capacity, child seat, ferry inclusion and hotel area. Road and ferry queues still apply. |
| Flight to Trat | Suvarnabhumi → Trat Airport → road transfer → ferry → island hotel. Best when avoiding the long mainland drive justifies the airfare. | Add airport access, check-in, baggage collection and the full Trat-to-hotel transfer. The roughly one-hour flight is only one leg. |
Bangkok departures: pier-bound and Trat-bound are different
Ekkamai and Mo Chit 2 have road services toward Trat; Suvarnabhumi also has shared services toward Koh Chang. Choose the departure you can actually reach with your luggage, rather than crossing Bangkok to save a small amount on the first ticket. Ekkamai is convenient if already staying near the eastern BTS corridor; an airport departure makes more sense when staying near Suvarnabhumi.
For an independent bus, distinguish Trat Bus Terminal from Ao Thammachat pier. The BKS 999 Ekkamai–Ao Thammachat route is a useful service to look for because it targets the mainland crossing rather than ending in Trat town. Its exact departure and fare need a dated booking result; do not assume every bus bearing a Koh Chang destination crosses onto the island.
With a through-ticket, write down the Bangkok pickup address, reporting time and Koh Chang drop-off. If it ends at the operator’s office, include the onward hotel ride. With a bus-only ticket, keep enough cash and time for the separate pier transfer, ferry and island ride. Arriving at Trat after the crossings have ended means a mainland night, not an unadvertised night ferry.
Flying: Suvarnabhumi to Trat, then road and ferry
Bangkok Airways serves Trat from Suvarnabhumi, with a flight of about one hour. Compare the flight against a road transfer from your actual starting point: a traveller already at BKK and a traveller checking out of a central Bangkok hotel have different airport-access costs. Do not book a Don Mueang arrival as though it were a connection in the same terminal.
Reserve a Trat Airport-to-hotel transfer, not merely an airport-to-pier ride, if you want fewer arrangements after landing. A shared airport shuttle may include the ferry and hotel delivery; a private airport transfer is priced for a vehicle with stated passenger and ferry-ticket limits. Have the hotel name and beach area included in the confirmation.
An afternoon flight is not proof of a guaranteed final ferry connection. Give the transfer provider the flight number and establish its late-arrival plan before paying. Do not rely on a general promise that a ferry will wait or an extra boat will be arranged. If the available flight leaves too little room, choose an earlier arrival or a mainland night.
Search Bangkok Airways flights to TratThe road-and-ferry journey, step by step
Bangkok pickup or bus terminalYour Koh Chang hotel
- 1
Leave Bangkok for the correct mainland endpoint
Board at the confirmed meeting point. A private transfer should name your hotel as the eventual destination; a bus-only ticket should state whether it ends at Trat Bus Terminal or Ao Thammachat. Keep the confirmation and driver contact available offline.
- 2
Reach Ao Thammachat and join the crossing
If the bus finishes in Trat, take the separate road transfer to Ao Thammachat. This is not Laem Sok, the mainland pier used by relevant Koh Kood services. Allow for the ticket queue and boarding; a private car booking does not by itself reserve ferry space.
- 3
Cross to Ao Sapparot on Koh Chang
The sea crossing is roughly half an hour, with some vessels taking longer. Carry your bags if travelling as a foot passenger; follow the crew’s boarding instructions. The crossing duration excludes any mainland queue and the island drive.
- 4
Continue along the west coast to your hotel
If a through-transfer includes your hotel, follow its driver’s instructions. Otherwise agree a shared songthaew fare or private vehicle price before boarding at Ao Sapparot. White Sand Beach comes before Klong Prao and Kai Bae; Lonely Beach and Bang Bao require a longer journey south.
Ferry hours, cash and the last-crossing decision
The published 2026 reference window for Ao Thammachat–Ao Sapparot is 06:30–18:30. Use 18:30 as a planning limit, not as your target arrival at the pier. Queueing, weather and altered sailings can affect the day. Do not build a late Bangkok departure around a transfer advertisement promising a later crossing.
An adult foot-passenger reference fare is 90 baht one way, with cash payment at the pier. A vehicle charge is separate unless included in your transfer. This is not a Bangkok–Koh Chang ticket price. Child fare descriptions differ between published pages, so have the carrier apply the current rule to your child rather than assuming an age-based discount.
Buy the independent ferry ticket at the pier. A prepaid transfer that includes the crossing is a different product from a reserved place on a particular ferry. Keep cash for onward transport as well, and avoid paying again for a crossing already included in your confirmed vehicle or through-ticket.
What should the whole journey cost?
Compare quotes for the same people, bags and hotel. For a shared road trip, include travel to the Bangkok pickup, the through-ticket and any island taxi. For an independent bus, add the Trat-to-pier transfer, ferry and hotel ride. For a flight, add Bangkok airport access, airfare with the bags you need, and the complete Trat Airport-to-hotel transfer.
For a concrete private-transfer reference, Thailand Transfers’ table, read on 3 November 2026, lists the White Sand Beach/Klong Prao-to-Bangkok City direction at 5,450 baht for a sedan with up to three passengers, or 7,050 baht for a minivan with up to six. The page includes passenger ferries, tolls, fuel and taxes. Those are advertised one-way vehicle rates, not per-person prices or confirmation of your outward date: request the Bangkok pickup and exact hotel in the quote.
Its Kai Bae row is higher, and child seats and night pickups can add charges. The same page gives conflicting waiting-time terms, so have those written into the confirmation rather than assigning a universal airport-delay allowance. A published vehicle maximum also does not establish that your particular suitcases and pushchair will fit.
For three adults using the listed 5,450-baht sedan reference, the vehicle portion is about 1,817 baht each. That comparison is only useful against a shared fare with the same hotel endpoint and inclusions; it is not a claim that the private vehicle is always cheaper.
Check Koh Chang private-transfer rates and request your routeArrival beaches and the return to Bangkok
White Sand Beach is the first of the main west-coast bases reached from the north. Klong Prao and Kai Bae are farther along the road; Lonely Beach, Bailan and Bang Bao extend the transfer south. Choose the base for the stay you want, then price its transport. Ao Sapparot is an arrival pier, not a beach-resort address.
If the room is on the east coast, send the full address before buying a west-coast shuttle. Do not assume an island-wide label includes every hotel. The same applies to a return pickup: its time must include the island drive, ferry queue, crossing and mainland onward journey.
For a separately ticketed international flight, our recommendation is to return to Bangkok the previous day. That uses a hotel night but avoids making a boat crossing and long road trip the only way to reach long-haul check-in. A promised flight-tracking service does not turn separate tickets into a protected connection.
If continuing to Koh Kood instead, use the direction-specific island-transfer guide. Do not take a Bangkok-bound ferry-and-road product simply because it also mentions Trat.