Islands Within Reach of Bangkok
A visual guide from the Bangkok travel guide — see all posters in Visual Guides.
Bangkok has no beach of its own, but it has coastline within a morning's travel in two directions. From Ekkamai bus terminal a coach reaches Ban Phe pier in about three hours, and forty minutes of ferry later the sand on Ko Samet squeaks underfoot. The nearest Gulf islands range from a river island reached by a two-minute ferry to proper multi-day escapes down in Trat, and the practical difference between them is mostly how early the journey has to start.
Closest first
Ko Kret, in the river north of the city, is a ninety-minute circuit of pottery workshops and food stalls reached from Pak Kret — an afternoon rather than a beach day. Ko Larn off Pattaya is the fastest real sand: roughly two hours by road, then a forty-five-minute ferry from Bali Hai pier. Ko Si Chang, off Si Racha, is quieter and stranger, with a hillside of ruined royal summer buildings and rocky swimming coves. Ko Samet in Rayong is the standard weekend island, small enough to walk across in under an hour.
Worth an overnight
Ko Chang, near the Cambodian border, is five to six hours by bus and ferry — mountainous, forested and noticeably less developed along its east coast. Ko Mak and Ko Kood lie beyond it and reward a longer stay with clearer water and almost no traffic. For the famous Gulf trio of Samui, Phangan and Tao, a one-hour flight or an overnight bus-and-ferry combination is the honest answer. Seasons run opposite to the Andaman coast: the Gulf is often at its driest around mid-year when Phuket is wet.