Lowest fare here374 reviews
1 hDirect Speedboat to Krabi, Railay or Aonang
★ 4.6 · 374 reviews
- One hour, between Phuket and Aonang or Krabi
- Direct speedboat service
- Cheapest here
- Free cancellation
Phuket to Krabi Speedboat
Phuket to Krabi speedboat lets you pick a fast bay crossing or a full day of island stops. We compared 18 tours, from $32, free cancellation, top tour rated 4.7 from 377 reviews. Limestone cliffs, caves and lagoons reward every stop.
Price from
Direct crossing$32
Today's lowest speedboat crossing across all 18 tours
Average rating
All 18 tours46
5,434 verified reviews across 18 tours
Your day
Shortest to longest60min–11h
Shortest: Direct Speedboat to Krabi
Longest: Island Transfer & Private
Free cancellation 24 h
Phuket and Krabi starts
Mobile voucher
Guided on board
Instant confirmation
Phang Nga Bay stops
Everything you can book here
Eighteen boats across the same stretch of water
They head the same way — east out of Phuket, across Phang Nga Bay, towards Krabi, Ao Nang and Railay. What separates them is whether the boat stops. A direct speedboat from Phuket to Krabi is transport: roughly an hour on the water and you are at your hotel by lunch. The seven- to nine-hour days cover the same bay with the engine off for most of it — James Bond Island, the lagoon at Koh Hong, the caves at Koh Yao, the four islands off Krabi. Prices from $32.
Our top pickRated 4.7
8 hJames Bond, Phang Nga Bay and Hong Island Tour from Phuket
★ 4.7 · 377 reviews
- Eight hours, through Panak and Hong Island caves
- Hotel pickup included
- Hotel transfers included
- Free cancellation
Most reviewed2,129 reviews
7 hJames Bond Island Day Trip by Speed Boat with Lunch
★ 4.4 · 2 129 reviews
- Seven hours, into hidden lagoons and caves
- Lunch included
- Most booked
- Free cancellation
The whole bay982 reviews
7 hJames Bond and Phang Nga Bay Tour by Speedboat
★ 4.7 · 982 reviews
- Seven hours, on a guided speedboat trip
- James Bond Island visit
- Buffet lunch
- Free cancellation
Two meals950 reviews
8 hJames Bond Island Sea Canoeing by Speedboat + 2 Meals
★ 4.8 · 950 reviews
- Eight hours, on a speedboat tour from Phuket
- Breakfast included
- Breakfast and lunch
- Free cancellation
Canoeing timeRated 4.8
9 hJames Bond Island Speedboat Tour with Canoeing
★ 4.8 · 286 reviews
- Nine hours, through islands of Phang Nga Bay
- James Bond Island visit
- Floating village of Koh Panyee
- Free cancellation
Krabi 4 IslandsSnorkelling
8 h4 Islands Krabi Adventure & Snorkeling Day Tour
★ 4.4 · 52 reviews
- Eight hours, on a day trip from Phuket
- Snorkeling in clear water
- Water activities at Naka Island
- Free cancellation
$104
Check availability→ 
Early startRated 4.5
8 hEarly Bird Krabi 4 Islands from Phuket/Khaolak
★ 4.5 · 35 reviews
- Eight hours, from Phuket and Khaolak
- Beaches and limestone cliffs
- Departs from Phuket
- Free cancellation
$122
Check availability→ 
Hong lagoonLao Lading
8 hHong Island Lagoon and Lao Lading Island Speed Boat
★ 3.8 · 21 reviews
- Eight hours, to Lao Lading and Koh Hong
- Swimming in clear waters
- Departs from Phuket
- Free cancellation
$104
Check availability→ 
Via Ko YaoThree hours
3 hSpeedboat Transfer to Ao Nang or Railay via Ko Yao
★ 4.1 · 14 reviews
- Three hours, to Ao Nang or Railay
- Speedboat transfer service
- Departs from Phuket
- Free cancellation
Three islandsNew listing
9 hKoh Hong, Koh Yao & Lao Lading Tour
- Nine hours, to Koh Hong, Koh Yao Noi
- Snorkeling in clear waters
- Local culture immersion
- Free cancellation
$140
Check availability→ 
Lunch includedFrom Krabi
8 hKrabi Hong Island, Koh Yao Yai & Lunch by Speedboat
★ 3.0 · 1 reviews
- Eight hours, at Laem Haad sandbank
- Thai lunch
- Farming and rubber tapping
- Free cancellation
Two stopsRated 4.6
8 hJames Bond and Khai Day Trip by Speedboat/Catamaran
★ 4.6 · 32 reviews
- Eight hours, at Koh Hong and Khai Island
- Hotel pickup included
- Buffet lunch on Panyee Island
- Free cancellation
Sea canoe95 reviews
9 hJames Bond Island Sea Canoe by Speedboat
★ 4.6 · 95 reviews
- Nine hours, through caverns and mangrove ecosystems
- Limestone formations
- Koh Panyee’s floating market
- Free cancellation
Park fee includedRated 4.8
10 hJames Bond Island by Speedboat + Park Fee
★ 4.8 · 24 reviews
- Ten hours, Phang Nga Bay
- Park fee included
- Limestone karsts
- Free cancellation
Private transferRated 4.9
1 dayPhuket Transfer to Krabi or Ao Nang
★ 4.9 · 31 reviews
- A full day, to Krabi or Ao Nang
- Pickup at Phuket Airport
- Pickup at nearby areas
- Free cancellation
$141
Check availability→ 
Private dayRated 4.6
11h 30mIsland Transfer & Private Phi Phi Tour
★ 4.6 · 26 reviews
- 11 and a half hours, to Krabi via Phi Phi
- Hotel pickup included
- Longest tour here
- Free cancellation
$423
Check availability→ 
The whole boatRated 5.0
8 hPrivate Luxury Speed Boat to James Bond Island
★ 5.0 · 5 reviews
- Eight hours, to James Bond Island
- Private speed boat charter
- No other guests on the boat
- Free cancellation
$933
Check availability→ Two questions
Crossing or day out?
Seen the eighteen above and still torn? Out here there are really only four answers. Cross the bay in about an hour and start your holiday on the Krabi side. Spend the whole day crossing it instead, with the limestone islands in the middle. Take the day more people have booked than any other. Or keep the hull for your own group. Pick what matters and we will point at one.
See it before you pay for it
What sits between the two coasts
The Phuket to Krabi speedboat distance is short enough that the boat can be at the far pier in about an hour — which is exactly why so many people cross it without ever looking at what they crossed. Phang Nga Bay is in the middle: limestone towers standing straight out of shallow green water, with James Bond Island among them. Koh Hong is further east, already on the Krabi side, and its lagoon is closed in by a ring of rock you enter through a gap. Watch all three before you decide which day you are buying.
Side by side
A transfer, or the bay with the stops in it
People book these interchangeably and then find out they bought different days. The transfer is one hour, no stops, and it exists to move you and your luggage: $32 on a shared bench, more if the boat is yours alone. A Phuket and Krabi tour takes the same heading and turns it into seven to nine hours — canoes into the caves at Panak and Koh Hong, lunch on the water, swimming stops off the islands, then back to the pier you left from. The second one starts at $46, which is why the comparison is worth making before you book the cheap seat.
Swipe the table sideways →
| Direct Speedboat to Krabi, Railay or Aonang | TOP PICKJames Bond, Phang Nga Bay and Hong Island Tour from Phuket | Private Luxury Speed Boat to James Bond Island | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Price per person | $32 | $46 | $933 |
| What it is | A direct speedboat across the bay to Krabi, Railay or Ao Nang | A shared day that crosses the same water with the islands in it | A private speedboat, your group and nobody else |
| Time it takes | 1 hour | 8 hours | 8 hours |
| Who is on board | A shared boat with other travellers | A shared boat with other travellers | Your own group, start to finish |
| Phang Nga Bay | You cross it, without stopping in it | A day inside it, stop by stop | A day inside it, in the order you choose |
| James Bond Island | Off the route of a straight crossing | Yes — the limestone stack in the middle of the bay | Yes — the whole day is built around it |
| Hong Island | Off the route of a straight crossing | Yes — the lagoon ringed by cliffs on the Krabi side | The Phang Nga side instead on this route |
| Sea canoeing | On the day trips instead | On the sea canoe listings instead | Arranged with the operator when you book |
| Where it leaves you | On the Krabi side, at Krabi, Railay or Ao Nang | Back at the pier the day started from | Back at the pier the day started from |
| Cancellation | Free cancellation up to 24 hours | Free cancellation up to 24 hours | Free cancellation up to 24 hours |
Verdict
Take the day that crosses the bay and stops in it
It is the one day here that takes in both halves of this stretch of water: eight hours out through Phang Nga Bay to James Bond Island and on to the lagoon at Hong Island, already on the Krabi side — rated 4.7 across 377 reviews, from $46. Keep the straight one-hour crossing for the day you are actually moving hotels, and the private boats for a party that fills one.
Check dates and availability→Before you book
The boat decides what kind of day you get
Several different things get sold as “a Phuket to Krabi speedboat”, and the fare tells you which one you are buying. A direct boat is transport: about an hour on the water, no stops, and it puts you down at Krabi, Ao Nang or Railay with your luggage — this is where the fares sit lowest, and it is a one-way trip, not a day out. A shared day trip covers the same bay in seven to nine hours with the engine off for most of it: James Bond Island and the limestone of Phang Nga Bay, the lagoon at Koh Hong, the four islands off Krabi, the sea caves you paddle into at Koh Yao. And a private boat is a third thing again: the hull and the crew are yours, nobody else is aboard, the departure time is yours, and the fare covers the boat rather than a seat. Decide which of the three you actually want before you compare numbers, because otherwise you are comparing trips that are not the same trip.
Two-minute check
Which boat fits your day?
Three things decide it: whether you are moving hotels or coming back the same evening, how many hours you are willing to spend on the water, and whether you want a bench on a shared hull or the boat to yourselves. A Krabi day tour from Phuket returns you to the same pier at dusk; a transfer does not bring you back at all. Answer the three and find out before you pay rather than at the pier.
How many of you are going?Most of these boats are shared benches; a private hull is yours for the day
How early do you want to be on the water?Some listings leave at first light, some at a civilised hour, and it shows at the stops
How much of the day do you have?An hour puts you on the Krabi side; a whole day puts the limestone islands in between
Answer the three questions above
You’ll get the one that fits your answers, and the thing about it that catches people out.
Six ways to cross the bay
5,434 reviews across eighteen boats
Ratings are the operators’ own numbers on GetYourGuide, shown as published. We do not write reviews and we do not average other people’s into a score of our own.
4.6
★★★★★
Based on 5,434
verified reviews
5 ★80%
4 ★14%
3 ★4%
2 ★1%
1 ★1%
All eighteen boats on this page, rated on GetYourGuide.
Read all 5,434→🚤
James Bond, Phang Nga Bay and Hong Island Tour from Phuket
From $46 · 377 reviews
★★★★★
The bay and the Krabi islands in the same eight hours
Eight hours that take the long way across: the limestone stacks of Phang Nga Bay, James Bond Island standing in the middle of them, and Koh Hong with its lagoon closed in by cliffs on the Krabi side. Rated 4.7 across 377 reviews, which is why it is the one we point at first.
🏝
James Bond Island Day Trip by Speed Boat with Lunch
From $57 · 2,129 reviews
★★★★★
The day more people here have booked than any other
Seven hours around Khao Phing Kan, the leaning stack everyone calls James Bond Island, with lunch in the ticket and the sea caves and limestone walls of Phang Nga Bay on the way to it. It carries 2,129 reviews at 4.4, more than any other listing on this page, which makes it the default answer rather than the interesting one.
⛵
Direct Speedboat to Krabi, Railay or Aonang
From $32 · 374 reviews
★★★★★
The lowest fare on this page, and the fastest way over
The straight run: a speedboat between Phuket and Krabi, Railay or Ao Nang, about an hour on the water with the bay going past on both sides, and the operator quotes the whole door-to-door leg at under two hours. Rated 4.6 across 374 reviews. Take this one when the boat is transport rather than the day out.
🏖
Speedboat Transfer to Ao Nang or Railay via Ko Yao
From $46 · 14 reviews
★★★★★
Three hours, with the quiet islands on the way
The middle option between a transfer and a day trip: a speedboat to Ao Nang or Railay that routes by way of Ko Yao, the pair of islands sitting in the middle of the bay, so the crossing has something in it besides water. Rated 4.1 across 14 reviews.
🛶
James Bond Island Sea Canoeing by Speedboat + 2 Meals
From $64 · 950 reviews
★★★★★
The day you spend inside the limestone, not beside it
Eight hours with two meals and a sea canoe in the middle of them: the speedboat takes you out to James Bond Island and the caves, and a paddler takes you in under the rock where the hulls cannot follow. Rated 4.8 across 950 reviews, one of the highest scores on this page.
🛳
Phuket Transfer to Krabi or Ao Nang
From $141 · 31 reviews
★★★★★
Your own boat, and your own departure time
A private speedboat transfer from Patong across to Krabi or Ao Nang: nobody aboard but your own party, and a departure arranged with the operator rather than waiting for a shared bench to fill. Rated 4.9 across 31 reviews.
What it really costs
What the crossing costs, line by line
Prices are per person and cover the boat, the crew and the transfers the listing names. Three things move the number: how long you are out, whether you share the hull or take it, and how many stops are written into the route. The national park fee is charged separately on the Krabi-side islands, and some listings put it in the ticket rather than leaving it at the pier — the table below says which.
Swipe sideways →
| What you do | Price | What that buys | Cancellation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Direct crossing to Krabi, Railay or Ao Nang | $32 | 1 hour on the water, no stops, rated 4.6 across 374 reviews | Free cancellation |
| James Bond Island, Phang Nga Bay and Hong Island | $46 | 8 hours, canoeing at Panak and Koh Hong, lunch on board, rated 4.7 across 377 reviews | Free cancellation |
| James Bond Island day trip with lunch | $57 | 7 hours, kayaks into the caves of Panak, lunch at the stilt village of Koh Panyi, 2,129 reviews | Free cancellation |
| Private transfer to Krabi or Ao Nang | $141 | Your own boat and your own departure time from Patong, rated 4.9 across 31 reviews | Free cancellation |
| Private luxury speedboat to James Bond Island | $933 | 8 hours in Phang Nga Bay, the deck and the order of stops yours alone | Free cancellation |
Costs the listing doesn't show you
- The day is longer than the time on the water. Seven to nine hours are counted from the pier meeting point or the hotel pickup, and even the direct crossing is listed within an hour and three quarters once the transfer at each end is counted.
- The National Park fee is inside some fares and outside others. One James Bond day states that it is already included; where a listing says nothing, expect to settle it at the park.
- A crossing is one way. The direct boats and the private transfers carry you to Krabi, Ao Nang or Railay and leave you there — they are transport, not a day out, and coming back is a second booking.
- Private is the whole boat. The private transfers and charters cover the hull and the crew rather than a seat, so read them against the size of your party, not per person.
- Drinks and the beach are your own. Lunch is inside most day fares, but what you buy on the islands afterwards is not, and small notes go further there than a card.
What is genuinely included
- The boat and the crew from the pier you meet at, and the drop on the Krabi side or the return to the same pier
- A guide on the day tours here, on the listings that name one
- Snorkelling equipment at the stops where the listing says the operator hands it out, as the Krabi four islands day does
- Lunch on most of the full-day trips, inside the fare — the sea canoe day names two meals
- The sea canoes and the paddler who takes you into the caves, on the Koh Yao canoeing days
- The National Park fee where the listing states it, as the James Bond day with the park fee does
- Free cancellation up to 24 hours before, with a full refund
The honest answer
Is the speedboat worth it?
Thirty-two dollars buys the hour of open water and nothing else, and that is a fair deal if you are simply changing hotels. The question is what the next fourteen dollars do. A Phuket to Krabi day tour at $46 covers the same bay but stops in it: James Bond Island, the caves at Panak, the lagoon at Koh Hong, lunch on board, and the pier you started from at the end of it. That one is rated 4.7 across 377 reviews. If the plan was to see Phang Nga Bay anyway, the cheap seat is the expensive choice.
What makes it worth it
- The direct boat is about an hour on the water, and the operator quotes the whole leg inside 1 hour 45 minutes
- James Bond Island and the limestone of Phang Nga Bay lie between the two provinces, so a day trip is on the way rather than a detour
- A full day with island stops starts at $46, which is $14 above the cheapest straight crossing
- Hong Island, the Krabi 4 Islands and the sea caves of Koh Yao all sit on the same run east
- Free cancellation up to 24 hours, so a date held early is not money spent
Keep in mind
- The quoted time is the whole outing from pickup, not the minutes the hull is at speed
- A speedboat crosses open sea: sun, salt and the swell of the day come with it
- Shared days run $46 to $140; a private boat starts at $141
- National park entry is charged separately, and only some listings have it inside the price
- Full days take 7 to 10 hours, a good part of that on the water, so read the option before you pick a date
The day, hour by hour
Out of Phuket, across the bay, onto the Krabi side
Hold the date before the week fills up
Free cancellation runs to 24 hours on every boat here, so a booked date costs you nothing until the day before. In the dry season the early departures go first.
At the pier
Check-in is at the pier in Phuket, Patong, Ao Nang or Krabi, depending on the ticket. You sign in, hand over the luggage and hear the briefing before anyone casts off.
Out into Phang Nga Bay
The boat idles past the moored hulls and the throttle goes down once the harbour is behind you. Within a few minutes the limestone towers start coming up out of the water ahead.
James Bond Island
Khao Phing Kan, the leaning stack in the middle of the bay, is the stop the day trips are built around. The direct boats pass the same water without stopping in it.
The caves, the canoes and lunch
This is where the day trips separate: some listings put a sea canoe under the rock at Koh Yao, some include two meals, some carry the national park fee inside the booking.
Hong Island, on the Krabi side
Koh Hong keeps a lagoon inside a ring of cliffs, and the boats that come this far east are already most of the way to Krabi.
Krabi, Railay or Ao Nang — or back to Phuket
The transfers leave you on the Krabi side for the rest of your holiday. The day trips turn round and run home to the pier they started from.
Best time of day
Start early, and the bay gives you the calmer water
Two things pull against each other on this stretch of water, and an early departure settles both. Phang Nga Bay is at its flattest in the first hours after sunrise, which is the difference between a comfortable hour on an open speedboat and a lively one, and it is also when the lagoon at Koh Hong and the beaches off Krabi are at their quietest — the Early Bird day to the four islands is built around exactly that and says so in its own listing. The other reason is arithmetic: the day trips here run seven to nine hours from the pickup, so a late start is a late return. If you are only crossing, the direct boat takes about an hour on the water and the morning departures put you at your Krabi, Ao Nang or Railay hotel in time for lunch.
On the water
What the day actually looks like
The crossing
Open water between the Phuket piers and the Krabi side, and the fastest way over it.
James Bond Island
Khao Phing Kan, standing in the bay between the two provinces.
Hong Island
Koh Hong on the Krabi side, with a lagoon closed in by a ring of rock.
The Krabi 4 Islands
Chicken Island, Tup, Poda and Phra Nang, the day at the far end of the run.
What it's like
One stretch of water, two completely different days on it
Almost everyone types the same words into the search box — Phuket to Krabi speedboat — with the same picture in their head: a fast hull, an hour of open water, and Railay or Ao Nang at the other end. What nobody tells you before you book is that two quite different days are sold under that one heading, they cost very different amounts, and they are not interchangeable.
The first is the crossing itself. A direct speedboat leaves Phuket and runs across the bay to Krabi, Railay or Ao Nang in about an hour on the water, with the rest of the listed time going on the transfer at either end. It is transport, it does not stop anywhere, and it starts at $32. If your hotel for the next few nights is on the Krabi side, this is the boat you want.
The second is the day out along the same line. The same water, the same direction, but with the bay opened up on the way: Phang Nga Bay and James Bond Island, the closed lagoon at Hong Island, the four islands off Krabi, and the sea caves you paddle into by canoe at Koh Yao. These run seven to nine hours from pickup to drop-off and sit between $46 and $140.
That is the thing most people find out too late. For roughly the price of the crossing plus a few more hours, you see the bay instead of only getting over it. James Bond Island — Khao Phing Kan on the chart — sits in Phang Nga Bay between the two provinces, so it is genuinely on the way rather than a detour, and Hong Island is already on the Krabi side.
Our top pick is one of those days: James Bond, Phang Nga Bay and Hong Island, eight hours, rated 4.7 across 377 reviews, at $46. The most booked boat on the page is the seven-hour James Bond day with lunch at $57, which 2,129 travellers have rated. Between the eighteen tours here there are 5,434 reviews to read.
The fares stretch a long way at the top end, and it is worth knowing why. A shared bench on a day boat is $46 to $65; a private transfer with nobody else aboard is $141; and a private luxury speedboat out to James Bond Island, hull and crew for your own party alone, reaches $933. Private prices cover the boat, not a seat.
Where the boat starts changes your day more than the route does. Eleven of the eighteen leave from the Phuket side — Phuket town, Patong and the piers around them — and four start on the Krabi side, at Krabi town or Ao Nang. A Krabi-side departure means the crossing is not part of your day; a Phuket departure means it is.
Boats run all year on this route, so the plan that works is the plain one. Decide first whether you are moving hotels or coming back the same evening, because that alone rules out half the page. Check whether the national park fee is inside the fare or paid at the gate. Then hold your date as soon as it is firm: every tour here has free cancellation.
If you are staying in Phuket
The three full days that open the bay on the way across
Some of the boats on this page simply put you down in Krabi. These three leave from Phuket, take in Phang Nga Bay and James Bond Island, the caves you paddle into by canoe and a lunch stop on the water, then bring you back the same evening. They run seven to nine hours from pickup to drop-off, and between them they carry more than two thousand reviews.
Most booked from Phuket
James Bond and Phang Nga Bay Tour by Speedboat
7 hours · ★ 4.7 (982)
$59See dates Canoes and two meals
James Bond Island Sea Canoeing by Speedboat + 2 Meals
8 hours · ★ 4.8 (950)
$64See dates Nine hours out
James Bond Island Speedboat Tour with Canoeing
9 hours · ★ 4.8 (286)
$56See datesPractical
Plan the day
Five things decide how it goes: which of the eighteen you take, which pier you leave from and which one you land at, what hour the boat clears the dock, what you bring for a day of sun and salt water, and which month you come. Phuket to Krabi speedboat booking is done by date on GetYourGuide, so the calendar on each listing is the real answer to what is running when — and free cancellation lets you hold a date while the rest of the trip settles.
The straight crossing
A direct speedboat from Phuket to Krabi, Railay or Ao Nang: about an hour on the water, no stops, from $32. Rated 4.6 across 374 reviews.
Our top pick
James Bond, Phang Nga Bay and Hong Island in eight hours at $46, with canoeing through the caves and lunch aboard. Rated 4.7 across 377 reviews.
The most booked
The seven-hour James Bond Island day with lunch at the stilt village of Koh Panyee, kayaking into the caves of Koh Panak — 2,129 travellers have rated it.
Canoes in the caves
Eight or nine hours built around the sea canoes rather than the beaches, with two meals on the longer version. Both are rated 4.8, across 950 and 286 reviews.
Krabi 4 Islands
Chicken Island, Tup, Poda and Phra Nang in one day, from $104, with an early-bird departure out of Phuket at $122.
Your own boat
A private transfer across to Krabi or Ao Nang at $141, or a private luxury speedboat to James Bond Island where the fare covers the whole hull.
Sun cover you can swim in
A rash vest or a light long-sleeved top beats reapplying cream all day, because these hulls are open and the snorkel and canoe stops put you face down in the sun.
A dry bag for the phone
Speedboats throw spray across the bay, and the landings at Hong Island and the four islands put your feet and your bag in the water.
Sandals you can lose
Every landing on these days is a wet one onto sand or a shallow shelf, and shoes spend the rest of the day in a bag either way.
A towel and a change of shirt
Lunch comes after a swim stop on most of these tours, and the run back to Phuket is an hour of moving air.
Cash for the park gate
The national park fee sits inside some fares and outside others, drinks on the beach are your own, and small notes are easier at the piers.
Something for a long day
The day trips run seven to ten hours, counted from hotel pickup to drop-off rather than from the time the hull leaves the pier.
Decide one-way or return first
The direct boat is a one-way crossing that leaves you in Krabi; the day trips bring you back to Phuket the same evening. That single question rules out half this page.
Free cancellation on every tour
Holding a date early costs you nothing on any of the eighteen, so book as soon as your dates in Phuket are firm.
Read the park fee line
Entry to the national park is charged separately, and only some listings state that it is already inside the fare. The one built around it says so in its title.
Private means the whole boat
On the private listings the fare covers the hull and the crew rather than a seat, so it divides across everyone you bring instead of multiplying by them.
One price everywhere
Operator desk, hotel lobby or this page — the fare is the same. Booking ahead buys the slot, not a discount.
Check the pickup area
Some listings include hotel pickup from selected parts of Phuket and others name a pier meeting point, which can add an hour to the front of your day.
From Phuket
Eleven of the eighteen start on the Phuket side, from Phuket town, Patong and the piers around them, with either a meeting point or shared hotel pickup from selected areas.
From the Krabi side
Four leave from Krabi town or Ao Nang, which is the arrangement to look for if you are already across the bay and want the islands without the crossing.
Where the boat drops you
The direct speedboat lands at Krabi, Ao Nang or Railay, and the listing lets you pick which. Match it to the hotel you have booked rather than to the map.
Through the middle of the bay
The Ko Yao route is the quiet way over: three hours to Ao Nang or Railay at $46, past the two Yao islands in the middle of the bay.
Landing in Phuket
Arriving by air and crossing the same day is possible, but the boat timetable and the drive from the airport to the pier decide whether it works.
James Bond Island
Khao Phing Kan sits in Phang Nga Bay between the two provinces, which is why so many of these days can take it in without going out of their way.
Best time
When to come
The Andaman coast runs on two seasons, and here the calendar matters more than the forecast, because an hour of open water feels very different on a flat sea and a rough one. What changes month to month is how much swell is out in the bay, how many of the eighteen are sailing on a given morning, and how many other boats are tied up at Koh Hong when you get there.
Nov – Apr
Dry season, flat water, the whole list sailing
The stretch the bay is built around: dry weather, calm water on the crossing and the longest list of boats on sale, from the one-hour transfer to the private hulls. It is also the busy half of the year, so the eight-hour days and the private boats go a week or two ahead of the date.
May & Oct
Shoulder months, and the sea has a say
The two turning months keep most of the sunshine and lose a good part of the crowd: quieter lagoons, easier tables at lunch and lower fares on the same boats. The trade is a swell that comes and goes, and an operator may reorder the stops around the weather. Book with free cancellation and look at the forecast the day before.
Jun – Sep
Monsoon months, a shorter list
The southwest monsoon brings rain and a bigger sea, and some departures are called off in the morning when conditions do not suit — which is the plain reason to hold your date with free cancellation rather than pay for it outright. Between the squalls these are good days: green limestone, warm water, low fares and lagoons with almost nobody in them.
Any month
Check the listing, not the season
Some boats here sail year-round and some do not, and the honest answer is that the listing says which. Each tour on this page shows its own calendar on GetYourGuide, so the dates you can actually pick are the ones the operator has published.
Worth knowing
Six things that aren't in the listing
01
There are two products here, not one. A direct crossing of about an hour that leaves you in Krabi, and a seven to nine-hour day that takes in the bay on the way and brings you back to Phuket. They are sold under the same words and they end in different provinces, which decides more than the price does.
02
The stops are on the way, not out of the way. James Bond Island sits in Phang Nga Bay between Phuket and Krabi, and Hong Island is already on the Krabi side, so the day trips are following the same line as the transfer boat with the bay opened up.
03
Where the boat starts changes the length of your day. Eleven of the eighteen leave from the Phuket side and four from Krabi town or Ao Nang, so a Krabi-side departure takes the crossing out of your hours on the water entirely.
04
The national park fee is a separate line. Entry is charged at the gate, and only some listings state that it is already inside the fare — one of them is named after exactly that. Read the line before you compare two prices.
05
Private is the whole boat, not a seat. The private transfer at $141 and the private luxury speedboat at $933 both cover the hull and the crew, so the fare splits across your party instead of multiplying by it.
06
Book the date, not the discount. The fare is the same wherever you buy it, and every tour on this page carries free cancellation, so holding a slot as soon as your dates are firm costs you nothing.
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More on the Phuket to Krabi speedboat
Common questions
The Phuket to Krabi speedboat, answered
How long does the Phuket to Krabi speedboat take?
The direct boat is about an hour on the water. The listing puts the whole door-to-door time at under an hour and forty-five minutes, because the rest of it is the transfer at either end. The day trips along the same line are a different matter: seven to nine hours from hotel pickup to drop-off, since they stop in Phang Nga Bay and at the islands on the way.
How much does the crossing cost?
A seat on the direct speedboat to Krabi, Railay or Ao Nang starts at $32. The route through the middle of the bay via Ko Yao is $46 for three hours, a private transfer with nobody else aboard is $141, and the full days with island stops run from $46 to $140.
Is it a transfer or a day trip?
Both are sold here, and it is the first thing to settle. The transfer is one-way: it lands you at Krabi, Ao Nang or Railay and your luggage goes with you. The day trips leave Phuket and return to Phuket the same evening, so they suit you if you are staying put and want the bay rather than a change of hotel.
What do the day trips stop at on the way?
Phang Nga Bay and James Bond Island — Khao Phing Kan — which lies between the two provinces; the lagoon at Hong Island, closed in by a ring of rock on the Krabi side; the sea caves at Koh Panak and Koh Yao that you enter by canoe; and on the Krabi-side days the four islands: Chicken Island, Tup, Poda and Phra Nang.
Are the national park fees included?
It depends on the listing, which is why it is worth reading that line before you compare two fares. Entry to the national park is charged separately, and one of the James Bond Island days states in its own title that the park fee is already inside the booking. Where a listing says nothing about it, expect to settle it at the gate, and keep small notes for that.
Where do the boats leave from, and where do they land?
Eleven of the eighteen start on the Phuket side — Phuket town, Patong and the piers around them — with either a meeting point or shared hotel pickup from selected areas. Four leave from the Krabi side, at Krabi town or Ao Nang. On the crossings you choose your landing point when you book: Krabi, Ao Nang or Railay.
What is Hong Island like?
Koh Hong sits on the Krabi side of the bay, and the thing people come for is the lagoon: a pool of water closed in by a ring of limestone. Four of the boats on this page reach it, including our top pick, which pairs it with James Bond Island and Phang Nga Bay in eight hours at $46.
Shared boat or private charter — which should you book?
They buy different days on the same water. A shared bench is the reason the fares start at $32, and it follows a set timetable with everyone else aboard. A private booking covers the hull and the crew rather than a seat, so it carries only your own party and the departure time is yours — $141 for the transfer across, and a private luxury speedboat to James Bond Island at the top of the page.
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Phuket to Krabi by water — the plan we'd follow
Which of the eighteen boats matches the hours you actually have: the straight hour across the bay, or the day that stops at Phang Nga Bay, Hong Island, the four islands off Krabi and the sea caves at Koh Yao. Built from the operators’ own listings and the same live prices as this page.
- All eighteen boats, with times and what each fare covers, from the listings
- Which days carry lunch and the National Park fee, and which are the boat alone
- The private transfers and charters, and what the whole-boat fare works out at for a group
- What to take on an open speedboat, and which departure to pick in each month
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Why trust this page
How we put this together
Checked, not guessed
Durations, inclusions and operator names come from the live GetYourGuide listings for each boat. Prices and ratings are read off the same listings and updated with the page.
How we pick
Every speedboat crossing and day trip bookable between Phuket and Krabi, Ao Nang and Railay is on this page. Nobody pays to be featured.
We say where the boat starts
Eleven of the eighteen leave from the Phuket side and four from Krabi or Ao Nang; the rest are listed from the bay itself. That decides which end of the day you spend travelling, so we mark it on the card.
Two kinds of trip, stated plainly
A crossing is transport: about an hour on the water, no stops, and you are at your hotel. A day trip covers the same bay in seven to nine hours with the engine off for most of it. They are different purchases at different prices, and we lead with that, because it decides more of your day than the fare does.
The answer
Cross the bay once, and see it on the way.
The boats on this page work the same stretch of water between Phuket and Krabi. What you are choosing is how much of it you look at: an hour straight across to Krabi, Ao Nang or Railay, a day of seven to nine hours that stops at Phang Nga Bay, Hong Island or the four islands, or a boat with nobody else aboard. Trips start at $32. Pick a morning departure and book ahead.
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