About Koh Lipe

Koh Lipe is a small island about 2km long in the Andaman sea, which is on the west coast of Thailand. The only inhabited island in the Tarutao National marine park, Koh Lipe is part of Satun province near Thailand's southern border. Before you come to Koh Lipe you need to work out how to get here, what to bring and what to expect when you get here.

Koh Lipe is best reached by boat from the pier in Pak Bara in Satun province, although in season there are also boats from Koh Lanta and from Langkawi in Malasyia. You need to plan your trip so as to have enough time to get to the pier before the last ferry for the day leaves.

From Bangkok to Pak Bara

We recommend you fly to Hat Yal on the early flights from Air Asia out of Bangkok Suvarnbhumi International Airport so that you can catch the 12 o'clock Tigerline ferry to Koh Lipe. You can also fly to Trang. Once at Hat Yai you then need to travel to Pak Bara which is about a 90 minute journey by taxi. If you want to fly from Bangkok's other airport Don Muang you can fly with Thai Airways, Orient Thai Air, Nok Air, or Tiger Airways.

Flight Prices
Bangkok to Hat Yai	Approx 2,000 Baht
Bangkok to Trang	Approx 2,000 Baht
Private Taxi to Pak Bara, max 4 people	1,500 Baht
Private mini bus, max 9 people	2,500 Baht
Public mini bus per person	250 Baht

We can arrange a pick up and transfer to the island from Hat Yai including boat tickets. Please contact us in advance to arrange a pick up.

Once you arrive in Pak Bara go towards the pier and look for Jo's Elephant Bar. Jo the owner of the bar is very friendly and will sell you ferry tickets and point you in the right direction to catch your boat. Jo's is also a great place to have a coffee whilst you wait.

Ferry to Koh Lipe

During the main season from November to May there are several ferry operators with boats going from Pak Bara to Koh Lipe. We recommend Tiger Line because they have newer and more stable boats which makes for a more comfortable ride.

Tiger Line Ferry Pak Bara to Koh Lipe
Regular Ferry, 3 - 4 hours	550 Baht / person
Speed Boat, 1.5 - 2 hours	650 Baht / person

For up to date information on the ferry service and out of season time tables please check out the web site Koh Lipe Thailand

There is no pier on Koh Lipe so the ferry is met by local boats which carry you from the ferry to the beach. Different ferries stop at different places. When getting off the ferry and on to a long tail boat ask for Castaway on Sun Rise Beach. The long tail boats charge 50 baht per person for taking you to the beach.

There are also ferries from Telaga Harbour in Langkawi and from Koh Lanta to Koh Lipe.

If you miss the last ferry of the day and still want to travel directly to Koh Lipe you can try chartering a boat. Speed boats cost about 8,000 - 10,000 baht depending on season and boat. You can also charter a local long tail boat which is cheaper, but only do it when the weather is very calm and if you are not afraid of long sea journeys in small uncomfortable boats.

If you miss the last ferry for the day the best thing to do is stay overnight in Pak Bara and catch the first ferry the next morning. We recommend Best House Resort which is run by Kuhn Ken, who is very friendly and always has patience to answer questions and help. Best House Resort is situated about 100m before the pier on the right hand side and is marked with a big sign. Bungalows are simple and clean and cost 590 baht a night. Please tell Kuhn Ken that you are coming to Castaway so he can phone and let us know that you missed the ferry. Kuhn Ken's phone number is 081 189 6906.

If you are in Pak Bara and want to book transport to other destinations be warned that some of the travel agents operating around the pier are not very honest. We can strongly recommend Kuhn Ken from Best Guest Resort (tel: 081 189 6906) and Jo from Jo's Elephant Bar to book tickets with. Both are honest and helpful.

You need to bring enough thai money with you. You can't exchange or get money out before you get on the ferry or on the island. There are no banks, ATMs or money exchanges in Pak Bara or on Koh Lipe! There are 3 ATMs in Lom Noo, about 4km before Pak Bara; often these machinese do not have much money in them. If you want to stop there you need to tell your taxi driver in advance. Most resorts and some bigger restaurants will change foreign money. Some will even give you cash back on your credit card but will charge you a hefty 10% fee for the service. This actually isn't unreasonable - 3% bank charges and 7% VAT which the Thai government automatically assumes should be paid.

The medical facilities on the island are very basic. There is a clinic staffed by a qualified nurse. It is being upgraded at the moment and we hope that it will get a full time doctor. In the resort Tony and Mariska who run Castaway Divers and Steve who runs the resort are all qualified to give first aid. Any doctors coming to the island are asked to register with the clinic in case of emergencies.

There are no fixed line telecommunications on Koh Lipe. Both DTAC and AIS, two of the big thai mobile phone networks have base stations on Koh Lipe. Frequently one of the networks will break and then it is a long wait for an engineer to come from the mainland. For most people this isn't a problem - they just switch to the other network.

A few places on the island like us and Pooh's have satellite internet connections. You won't be able to download the latest TV shows, but for general use of the internet its fine.

Although there are lots of new shops on the island this year it is still worthwhile bringing basic necessities such as sun tan cream, mosquito repellant and batteries yourself. Everything that is brought to the island and sold is going to cost more than on the mainland.

All the electrity on the island is produced using small generators. Often the voltage is not very stable. For most applications this isn't a problem, but you want to be careful with your electrical equipment. You don't want to be plugging your nice new digital camera into the first plug you see - your camera just might end up as toast. In the Castaway Centre we have a 'Charge Bar' where you can charge phones, cameras and laptops safely using a voltage regulated supply of electricity.

This year (2007/2008) we are running our generators from early in the morning until the bar closes.

Other places we recommend on Koh Lipe and Pak Bara

Pooh's Bungalows - With a hill side site and only a handful of rooms, Pooh's has become an island institution with a large restaurant and bar and nightly live entertainment. Pooh has a great sense of humor and pays attention to all his guests.

Elephant Joe's Bar by the pier in Pak Bara is a great place to go whilst waiting for a boat. If you tell Joe you are coming to stay at Castaway Resort he'll help you get your tickets and get on to the ferry.