How Far Is Phang Nga Bay from Phuket?

From Phuket the bay is close: Ao Por Pier, where many Phang Nga Bay boats leave, is 28.7 km by road from Phuket Old Town and 36.9 km from Patong. What makes the day long is the pickup round. On The Thai Tourism Company’s James Bond, Phang Nga Bay and Hong Island Tour from Phuket, from US$47 on promotion, usually US$49 a person (checked November 2026; the big boat cost US$49.37 and the speedboat US$58.35 on the dates we read), the van takes about 1.5 hours each way, and the whole day 8 to 9 hours.

Pickup is included from Rawai, Nai Harn, Chalong, Kata, Karon, Patong, Kamala, Surin, Bang Tao, Laguna and Phuket Town. Free cancellation until 24 hours before.

The distances, by road

Routed by road between the named places, checked November 2026. Times are a router’s free-flow estimate; a tour van collecting several hotels takes longer.

Two kinds of pier serve the bay. Ao Por Pier sits on Phuket’s north-east coast, so a boat from there crosses the water to the islands. Tha Dan Pier is at the top of the bay, on the mainland beside the national park’s headquarters, and Laem Sak Pier is on the Krabi side; both sit closer to the islands, but from Phuket the drive to reach them is longer.

How long each tour spends on the road

Times from each tour’s itinerary, checked November 2026. “Not given”: the tour states no road time.

The 1.5 hours on The Thai Tourism Company’s van is more than twice the router’s time from Phuket Old Town, because the van goes round the hotels first. The exact pickup time comes the day before. Go Adventures’ day is the same pattern with a shorter van ride: its return to the pier is around 5:00 to 5:30 PM and the drop-off can take up to 1.5 hours more with traffic.

Check the pickup and dates

From Khao Lak

Khao Lak is 59 km by road from Tha Dan Pier, and the tours from there use longtail boats. Bigcountry Andaman's full day collects you in Khao Lak from 7:00 AM (not in Phuket) and includes lunch at a restaurant on Ko Panyi and the cave temple of Wat Suwannakhuha. Its five-hour half day covers Ko Tapu, the caves and lagoons when the tide is low, and Ko Panyi village, with the marine park fee included and no lunch.

From Krabi

From Ao Nang the road to Laem Sak Pier is 66 km. Anda Krabi Seatour's speedboat day collects from Krabi Town, Ao Nang and Klong Muang between 7:00 and 8:20 AM and canoes at Panak and Hong Islands in Phang Nga Bay; the park fee, 300 baht an adult, is extra. Thalassa Tour's small group starts from Ao Nang by speedboat, sees the needle rock from the boat, and spends the day round Krabi’s Hong Islands and Koh Yao Noi, with two park fees included. Krabi has its own Hong Islands, in a different national park; hong-island.com covers those.

Can you get there on your own?

Yes, if you get yourself to Phang Nga. Discover Thailand's private longtail starts at a restaurant in Phang Nga for a four-hour trip to the needle rock and Ko Panyi, with no hotel transfer; it warns that there is no Grab or taxi at the pier, so book your ride back in advance. The park fee is paid on top. Tha Dan Pier, at the top of the bay, is about 90 minutes by road from Phuket Old Town with no traffic, so for most people staying in Phuket a tour with hotel pickup is the simpler day.