Pattaya - Hua Hin Ferry

[alvaro32]

If you are visiting Pattaya, I’d recommend Dusit hotel. Excellent location on the beach road. Lovely pools and landscaping. Within walking distance to many resturants, supermarkets and shopping places on the 2nd road.

[sfs]

I am living (only because I work here) in Pattaya and would use the service to get away from this S...hole on the weekends to Hua Hin. Would never see me use it the other way if I were living in Hua Hin.

[buksida]

City officials and tourism-industry executives slammed a Marine Department proposal to launch a new public ferry service between Pattaya and Hua Hin, saying the project lacks a profitable business plan and would not boost tourism significantly.

Summarizing an initial feasibility study on the plan, Marine Department Deputy Director Nat Jabjai and Chulalongkorn University Assistant Professor Jakrarit Duangpasstra told the Pattaya Business & Tourism Association that a ferry would cut two hours from the drive time to Hua Hin and ferry both passengers and cargo between the two cities.

Pattaya City Councilman Sanit Boonmachai, representing the Pattaya Tour Boats Club, blasted the project’s financials, however, saying “It lacks a clear break-even point because the capital required for boats, gas and other expenses would be high and the group of tourists opting for this mode of transportation is still limited.”

Sanit also criticized the project’s safety plans, saying the ferries lacked safety standards and no contingencies for on-water emergencies were made.

Bundarik Kusolvitya, president of eastern chapter of the Thai Hotels Association, said the project would not meet the government’s goals of boosting tourism revenue to 2 trillion baht by 2015.

“Only a certain group would benefit from this project,” she said. “If the Marine Department and its researchers insist on continuing with this project, there must be improvements, such as a standard pier, standardized boats and convenient and safe travel.”

Marine Department officials quickly backpedaled, saying the project was only in the “information gathering” stage and they would continue to study the project before moving forward.

Pattaya has seen ferry services to Hua Hin in the past, all of which went bankrupt. Most recently, a privately owned catamaran ferry service called Thailiving closed in December after failing to attract enough customers to fill three weekly crossings during its 13 months of operation.

Source: Pattaya Mail

[Shane]

It's a shame, I like to go to Hua Hin from Patts to wind down for after the living it large and a Ferry would be much more preferable to the journey by road but it past projects seem to indicate it's not viable.

[lilianthornstrom]

Hi can anyone tell me if any Hua-Hin/Pattaya ferry service has started up again or if we can hire a boat that will take us across. The thought of doing the journey by road is just too much. Will take a whole day

[dtaai-maai]

No boat service.
The road trip should take around 5 hours max.

[lilianthornstrom]

Not even private hire or would that be too expensive?

[jingjoe]

if you are trying to avoid the roads as i do,the best way is train to hualumphong then train to airport and the last 1.5hours by bus at least you are off the roads for most of it

[PeteC]

if you are trying to avoid the roads as i do,the best way is train to hualumphong then train to airport and the last 1.5hours by bus at least you are off the roads for most of it

Believe it or not there is a passenger train from Bangkok to Pattaya. I don't know from what Bangkok station or the frequency but it does run a few times per day. Pattaya train station is about 1km east of Sukhumvit between central and north Pattaya. Pete

[Bamboo Grove]

You used to be able to catch the train to Aran and to Pattaya from several stations in Bangkok. They all started from Hua Lamphong and then stopped at Makkasan and (can't remember the real name for the station) at Phra Khanong (near Ekkamai and Thong Lor) and all the other small stations on the way.

I've taken the train to Aran a few times (maybe about 6 hours) but never the one to Pattaya as it was always quicker and easier by bus or even on some occasions by taxi.

[Ropes]

Strangely there is only one train a day from Bangkok to Pattaya leaving Hua Lamphong at 7.00am.
On the face of it it seems a waste of a resource as it would keep some traffic off the roads.

[Noz]

Hi can anyone tell me if any Hua-Hin/Pattaya ferry service has started up again or if we can hire a boat that will take us across. The thought of doing the journey by road is just too much. Will take a whole day

It's still by road but you could use the new airport bus service from Hua Hin to Suvarnabhumi (3 hours, 305 baht), then use the Pattaya airport bus service (2 hours, 134 baht). Pretty comfortable by all accounts and cheap at 439 baht all up. 5 hours travel time doesn't seem that bad but no idea how quickly you'd get there by driving direct and missing BKK completely.

http://airporthuahinbus.com/

http://www.airportpattayabus.com/2012/suvarnahbumi.html

[pharvey]

Hi can anyone tell me if any Hua-Hin/Pattaya ferry service has started up again or if we can hire a boat that will take us across. The thought of doing the journey by road is just too much. Will take a whole day

It's still by road but you could use the new airport bus service from Hua Hin to Suvarnabhumi (3 hours, 305 baht), then use the Pattaya airport bus service (2 hours, 134 baht). Pretty comfortable by all accounts and cheap at 439 baht all up. 5 hours travel time doesn't seem that bad but no idea how quickly you'd get there by driving direct and missing BKK completely.

http://airporthuahinbus.com/

http://www.airportpattayabus.com/2012/suvarnahbumi.html

Fair shout Noz on the link to Pattaya - a couple of friends will be trying to head down from BKK in the near future.

A mate also did the HH to BKK route over Christmas and thought it was superb....

However.... time-wise, how do they tie in? 3 hrs + 2 hrs travel.... fair enough, waiting time?

[Noz]

Pharvey, buses to Pattaya are hourly so you wouldn't have more than an hour to wait in that direction. If you were really lucky and got to the airport from Hua Hin in less than 3 hours, you could almost walk straight onto a Pattaya bus. But with only 4 buses a day to Hua Hin, you'd have to time your departure from Pattaya correctly.