Travelling Between Pattaya and Hua Hin

THERE ARE SEVERAL OPTIONS FOR TRAVELLING BETWEEN HUA HIN AND PATTAYA WRITES FLOYD COWAN, WHO GIVES YOU SOME INSIGHT ON THE FERRY AND BUS THAT PLY THIS ROUTE.

If you are in southern Thailand and planning to go north, or in Pattaya and want to go south the Royal Passenger Liner is a relatively new option for making the trip. Launched in 2017 the ferry runs between the Bali Hai Pier in Pattaya and the Khao Takiab pier in Hua Hin. It cuts the travel time by more than half. Taking bus, car or taxi it will take roughly five hours, depending on starting point and traffic.

The ferry takes two hours and ten minutes, but it will be cancelled if the weather is bad. In Pattaya the Ferry Terminal is at the end of Walking Street. If you are starting in the centre of Pattaya you may want to take transportation, the baht bus or taxi, as it is a long uphill walk. In Hua Hin, the ferry terminal is on the south side of the city so you will definitely need transport to get there.

Not knowing the drill, we went to the Ferry Terminal two days before we planned to travel. The clerk strongly discouraged us from buying a ticket that day, saying we should wait until the day of departure. “The ferry leaves at 1:00pm, make sure you are here at least one hour before departure.”

“It won’t be sold out?”

“No.”

It was far from sold out. The ferry is spacious and comfortable. You go through security as you would boarding an airplane, but they don’t take your water from you. There are drinks and snacks on board.

The most interesting part of the trip is the departure from Pattaya as you glide out of the bay and through the islands. When you get to the open sea connectivity is lost, so make sure you have a good book or travel magazine to read. Or do as most Thais do – sleep.

A Standard seat is 1,250 baht (approx. S$53.00) Business class 1,550 baht (approx. S$67.00). I wasn’t able to check out business class, so have nothing to offer on that.

We returned to Pattaya by bus. It departs from the station near the

Hua Hin airport at 11:00am daily and costs B389. It goes to Suvarnabhumi airport on its way to Pattaya. With three large seats per row it is spacious and comfortable. Traffic might be terrible so the trip may take more than five hours.v