Buses from Bangkok to Ranong

Hi. I feel like a total moron, but I can't seem to book a bus that I need to get from Bangkok to Ranong, in order to get to Ko Phayam for New Year's eve. I know it's a long way off, but I'm wary of booking in advance as it's a popular time and I want to be sure I get where I'm going, and I don't want to book my accommodation until I've booked my bus and know when I'll be arriving in Ranong.

I've tried the transport website, but when I convert it to English, it doesn't offer any options for getting timetables and fares.

Is there anyone in the know who can tell me if it's possible to book a bus ticket in advance, or if I will be OK leaving it until I arrive in Bangkok and just booking it at the bus station instead?

Many thanks!

Anna Reply to this

Thank you! I will wait until I get to Bangkok then. I actually want to be on Ko Phayam for New Year, but I've read that I need to get a ferry there from Ranong. Reply to this

We went to Ko Phayam last year. We got a bus to Ranong from Bangkok, there are a lot and they weren't full. You can also change buses at Chumpon. We've never prebooked a bus in Thailand, we always just turn up at the bus station and get the next available bus. As said above, there are always helpful Thai people around. We took a day bus down (although you can do it overnight) and stayed the night in a guesthouse in Ranong. There are always touts at the bus station to take you to a guesthouse.

There are a lot of travel agents in Ranong who can arrange the ferry to Ko Phayam and also accommodation on the island. We used Pon's Place. They were good. They picked us up at the guesthouse the next morning and took us to the ferry. Motorbikes picked us up at the ferry port on Ko Phayam and took us to the resort there.

We stayed at the Hornbill huts. They have a website here
If you contact them they might be able to advise about whether transport will be a problem at that time of year.

Hope this helps.

Kate
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