Ang Thong is a marine park of forty-two limestone islands about an hour and a half west of Koh Samui, and there are two honest ways to see it in a day: a speedboat that covers ground, or a slower boat built around kayaks.
The two are closer in price than they look and much further apart in tempo. One is eight hours and four stops; the other is eleven hours and two paddling sessions.
Below they stand side by side — the fee where it belongs, the timings, what you get done in each, and the six weeks of the year when neither runs.
Which is cheaper — the speedboat or the kayak day?
The speedboat, but only just, and only for one or two people. The speedboat day is ฿2,300 (≈ $64) per person plus a ฿300 (≈ $8) national-park fee paid on the day — ฿2,600 (≈ $72) all-in. The kayak day is ฿2,800 (≈ $78) per person with the marine park fee already inside it.
From three people the kayak price drops to ฿2,700 (≈ $75) each, and from five to ฿2,600 (≈ $72) — exactly the speedboat's all-in figure. For a group of five, the two days cost the same.
The speedboat day: eight hours, four stops
My Samui Island Tour picks you up at 08:30, leaves its own pier at Bangrak at 09:45 and has you back at 16:30. Bangrak is about 10 minutes from Chaweng, 11 from Bophut and the airport, and 33 from Lamai, so guests on the southern beaches get the earliest start.
The stops: snorkelling at the Koh Wao reef at 11:00, the climb on Koh Mae Koh to the Emerald Lake viewpoint at 12:30, kayaking along the cliffs and Koh Hin Lak at 14:00, and the beach at Song Pee Nong at 15:00.
Transfer, a light breakfast, a Thai buffet, fruit, water, snorkelling gear, kayaks and passenger insurance are in the ฿2,300 (≈ $64). The ฿300 (≈ $8) park fee is not — bring it in cash. Guides work in English and German, the boat takes up to 38 guests, and there is no minimum: it runs from one person.
Tip
the Emerald Lake viewpoint is about 200 metres of steps and rock. It is optional — you can stay on the beach instead — but if you are going up, bring shoes with grip rather than flip-flops.
The kayak day: eleven hours, two paddles
Bluestars Kayaking has run this trip since 1997 and builds the day around the boats you sit in, not the one you arrive on. Pickup is at 07:00, a 23-metre tour boat leaves Nathon pier at 08:00, you are back on Samui at 17:00 and at your hotel by around 18:00.
The first paddle is at 10:00 at Koh Tai Plao, in the remote far north of the park — rock overhangs, tunnels, small caves and a hidden lagoon. The operator states that it is normally the only boat there. Snorkelling and swimming follow at the same spot at 11:00.
Lunch is a Thai buffet at 12:00 while the boat cruises to Koh Mae Ko for the short but quite steep climb to the Emerald Lake platform at 12:30. The last stop, Koh Wua Talap at 13:30, is a choice of one: kayak around the adjacent islet, climb to the park viewpoint, walk to Bua Bok Cave, or stay on the beach.
The fleet is Ocean Kayak Malibu II sit-on-top doubles, each taking two adults or two adults and one small child, each with a dry bag so a camera can come. Children of three and under are not permitted to kayak. Guides work in English, German and Thai.
Price side by side, with the fee where it belongs
The park fee is the line that makes the two look different from what they are. One operator collects it on the day; the other has already paid it.
| Day | Ticket | Park fee | All-in per person | Hours |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Speedboat, My Samui Island Tour | ฿2,300 (≈ $64) | ฿300 (≈ $8) on the day | ฿2,600 (≈ $72) | 08:30–16:30 |
| Kayak boat, Bluestars — 1–2 people | ฿2,800 (≈ $78) | Included | ฿2,800 (≈ $78) | 07:00–about 18:00 |
| Kayak boat, Bluestars — from 3 | ฿2,700 (≈ $75) | Included | ฿2,700 (≈ $75) | 07:00–about 18:00 |
| Kayak boat, Bluestars — from 5 | ฿2,600 (≈ $72) | Included | ฿2,600 (≈ $72) | 07:00–about 18:00 |
Child rates
Children: Bluestars publishes ฿1,850 (≈ $51) for ages 5 to 11, free below 5 and the adult rate from 12 — though its cancellation page words the child bracket as 6 to 11, so confirm your child's age when booking. My Samui Island Tour gives a reduced rate to children aged 3 to 9 under 130 cm and free travel below 3, maximum two per booking, but does not publish the reduced figure; we confirm it with the operator.
What do you actually get done in a day?
The speedboat buys distance. Four stops in eight hours, kayaks included as one activity among several, and you are home in time for an early dinner.
The kayak boat buys water time. Two paddling sessions instead of one, the first of them in a corner of the park the speedboats do not work, and a slow hull that needs two hours to get where the speedboat needs an hour and a half. The price of that is three extra hours of your day.
Both climb to the same viewpoint over the Emerald Lake, both include a Thai lunch, both include snorkelling gear. The difference is not the sights — it is how long you spend in the water and how many hours the day eats.
Ang Thong National Park closing: what both days share, and the six weeks nobody sails
Important
Ang Thong National Marine Park is closed every year from 1 November to 15 December, and no trips run in that window. If your dates fall inside it, the choice is not speedboat or kayak — it is a different destination altogether.
Bluestars states its cancellation terms in full: more than 48 hours ahead, a full refund; under 48 hours, 25% of the total, which is your deposit; under 24 hours, the full charge. If the operator cancels for weather or a technical problem and cannot move the trip inside your stay, you get everything back.
Coming from Koh Phangan? Bluestars does not include the ferry — you cross to Samui yourself, and the operator recommends the Lomprayah catamaran that leaves at 07:15 and reaches Nathon at 07:45, right next to the boat.
Which one to book
- Take the speedboat if the day has to be short, if you are one or two people, or if you want the archipelago seen rather than paddled.
- Take the kayak boat if you came for the kayaking itself, if you are three or more and the price gap closes, or if a quiet corner of the park matters more than covering ground.
- Take neither between 1 November and 15 December — the park is shut.
Both are on the Samui boat tours page, with the paddling options on the Samui sea kayak page. Write to us in WhatsApp with your dates — we book direct with the operator, at the operator's price.
What to settle before you pay
Two things are agreed with the operator rather than read off a price list. On the kayak day the child bracket reads 5 to 11 on the price page and 6 to 11 on the cancellation page, so name your child's age and have the bracket confirmed in writing. On the speedboat day the reduced child rate is quoted per booking — ask for the figure before you pay. Bluestars also gives no passenger count for its 23-metre boat, so ask about group size if a small boat matters to you.
