Southeast Asia / Island hopping · 15 min read
Three routes, three seasons, and each one travelled in a line.
Thailand’s Andaman coast, Palawan north to south, and Bali out to Lombok — with the boat, the fare and the month for every leg.
In this guide
Southeast Asia Island Hopping: Choose the Season First
There is no single dry season, and the months that flatter one coast ruin another.
Which islands can you string together in two weeks without giving half of them to piers, minivans and a boat that stopped running in May? That is the whole problem with Southeast Asia island hopping, and the map hides it. Koh Lanta and Koh Lipe sit three hours apart by speedboat, but Bundhaya's own route list runs that boat from mid-October to May at the widest. Miss the window and the same hop becomes a van to a mainland pier and whatever sails that morning.
So this page covers three routes and no more: Thailand's Andaman coast down to Langkawi, Palawan from Coron to Puerto Princesa, and Bali across to Lombok. Each runs in one direction, each has a ferry or a flight on every leg in 2026 and 2027, and each has months when I'd leave it alone. Our ranking of the best islands in Southeast Asia is the shortlist. This is how to join them up.
Southeast Asia has no single dry season. The months that flatten the Andaman Sea put rain over Bali, and the reverse. The FCDO gives Thailand's rainy season as May to October and Indonesia's main one as October to March, and says most of the Philippines' typhoons, around 20 a year, arrive between June and November. Ferry companies read the same calendar. Bundhaya's Lanta to Lipe speedboat stops in May, the Lipe to Langkawi ferry runs from 15 October 2026 to 31 May 2027, and on the Bali side Nusapenida.org warns of rough crossings from December to March. So choose the month and the route follows. Our month-by-month guide to Southeast Asia has the detail for each country.
The second rule is to travel in a line. All three routes below start at one airport and finish at another, because doubling back by sea costs a day each time, and a day is a lot on a ten-day trip. Book an open-jaw ticket: into Phuket and out of Langkawi, into Busuanga and out of Puerto Princesa, into Bali and out of Lombok. The third rule is to spend the last night on an island with a runway. Telaga Terminal prints on its own timetable that every departure is subject to weather and sea conditions, and I would not put a speedboat and a long-haul flight on the same day.
Every route, sortable
| Route | Time needed | Go | Leave it alone | Fly in, fly out |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Andaman: Phuket, Koh Lanta, Koh Lipe, Langkawi | 10 to 14 days | November to April | May to October: boats south of Lanta stop | Phuket in, Langkawi out |
| Palawan: Coron, El Nido, Port Barton | 9 to 12 days | December to May | June to November: typhoon months | Busuanga in, Puerto Princesa out |
| Bali to Lombok: Nusa Lembongan, Gili Air | 7 to 10 days | May to September | December to March: rough crossings | Bali in, Lombok out |
Every route is a line, and every line is a boat
Thailand Starts in Phuket Town, and Koh Lanta Is the First Island
The Andaman route runs south down the west coast.
The Andaman route runs south down Thailand's west coast and finishes in another country. You fly into Phuket, cross to Koh Lanta, ride a seasonal speedboat to Koh Lipe, and leave by ferry for Langkawi in Malaysia. Bundhaya lists the first leg, Rassada Pier in Phuket to Saladan Pier on Lanta, as a 90-minute speedboat that runs all year, from ฿1,500 (about $45).
Lanta is the long, slow one. Wikivoyage's page on the island describes more than 30km of it, a rural population that is mostly Muslim, and beaches that rarely fill, popular with families, divers and an older crowd. Lonely Planet adds that many of the regulars are Scandinavian and that the northern coast is badly eroded. The sand runs down the west side in order: Klong Dao, Long Beach, Klong Khong, Klong Nin and little Kantiang Bay, about 18km from the pier. On the east coast, Lanta Old Town keeps its Chinese-style houses from its trading days.
Give Phuket Town one night first, for dinner; the food section below says where. Take a morning boat, and on Lanta stay at Klong Nin or Kantiang, well south of Saladan. The pier village is where the banks and dive shops are, and nobody crosses the Andaman Sea for a bank. Three nights is my minimum. Arriving through Krabi airport instead, allow two and a half hours by van and car ferry.
This is the only leg of the route that sails through the wet months, which the FCDO puts at May to October. Lanta is then up to half the price, and also the end of the line: nothing runs south.
Thailand's entry rules changed on 15 September 2026. The FCDO says British tourists now get 30 days visa-free, normally limited to two such entries in a calendar year, and every arrival by air, land or sea needs the free digital arrival card filled in online beforehand.
Koh Lanta to Koh Lipe, Then Out Through Langkawi
A speedboat down the coast, and an old-fashioned arrival on the beach.
From Saladan a speedboat runs down the coast to Koh Lipe in about three hours, calling at Koh Ngai, Koh Mook and Koh Kradan. Bundhaya sells the through ticket from ฿1,700 ($51) and gives its season as 1 November to 4 May. Destination Thailand's costed guide, published on 9 October 2026, puts the leg at ฿1,350 to ฿1,900 across three operators.
Lipe is small enough to walk across, and you arrive the old way. The same guide has boats tying up at a pontoon off Pattaya Beach, where a longtail carries you the last stretch for ฿50 after a ฿200 national park fee, both in cash. About 500 Chao Ley, the sea people who were here before the resorts, live mostly near Sunrise Beach, according to Wikivoyage, which is blunt about what tourism has cost the island: water shortages, rubbish that is often burned, no sewer system and a Walking Street built up to its edges.
Stay three nights and keep your footprint small: refill a bottle, skip the daily laundry. Then leave Thailand by sea. Telaga Terminal runs its ferry to Langkawi from 15 October 2026 to 31 May 2027, taking about 90 minutes, with 10.30am and 4pm departures from Lipe between November and mid-April. Its terminal is roughly 15 minutes from Langkawi's airport, which is the point of ending here.
Telaga's site shows two fares, RM128 and RM148 one way (about $31 to $36), so check before paying. And the corridor closes for the monsoon. From May to October Lipe is reached only from Pak Bara on the mainland, twice a day, weather permitting.
Malaysia runs an hour ahead of Thailand, so the 10.30am boat from Lipe lands at about 1pm Langkawi time. Destination Thailand says Malaysia's digital arrival card has to be completed within three days of sailing. Do it on the hotel wifi the night before.
Crossing out of Thailand
The Philippines Should Start in Coron
Route two is Palawan, taken north to south.
Route two is Palawan, taken north to south. Coron town sits on Busuanga Island; Coron Island is the smaller one just offshore, all black limestone, and the reason to come. Flights from Manila to Busuanga's airport take about an hour on Philippine Airlines or Cebu Pacific, says Guide to the Philippines, and the van into town adds 30 to 45 minutes.
Coron Island is the ancestral home of the Tagbanua people, who manage it and, as Wikivoyage records, open only two of its 13 lakes to visitors. Kayangan Lake is the famous one, reached past a cave and a viewpoint that must be among the most photographed in Palawan. Under the water it is a different trip. American aircraft sank a retreating Japanese fleet here on 24 September 1944, and around a dozen wrecks now lie in 10 to 40 metres. Going inside them takes wreck certification; diving around the outside is far more forgiving.
Give Coron three nights and two boat days: one for the lakes and Twin Lagoon, one for the wrecks or the outer beaches. Entry is charged site by site, and the only published figures, ₱100 to ₱280 a stop (about $2 to $4.50), are years old, so carry small notes and expect to pay more. Climb the 700-odd steps of Mount Tapyas at about 4pm for sunset. In peak season, buy the onward ferry ticket before you arrive.
The dry season is short. Guide to the Philippines gives November to May for calm seas, and the FCDO says most of the country's typhoons arrive between June and November. I wouldn't plan this route before December.
Coron to El Nido, Then South to Port Barton
A morning fast ferry joins Palawan’s two headline stops.
A morning fast ferry joins Palawan's two headline stops. Pamasahe's September 2026 listing has Montenegro Lines leaving Coron at 6am and 8am, taking about three and a half hours, at ₱2,816 (about $45) for a regular seat. The Palawan Guide adds Atienza at 7am and Jomalia at 7.30am, and an average fare of ₱3,000.
El Nido is the base for the Bacuit Archipelago, which Lonely Planet calls the region's 'star attraction': limestone islands and lagoons, seen on boat tours sold by letter, A to D. At the Big Lagoon the boats stay outside and you paddle in by kayak, says Guide to the Philippines. The town is named 'the nest' after the swiftlets whose edible nests come off the surrounding cliffs, and its own beach is ordinary. Port Barton, five hours south by road, is the opposite proposition. The Palawan Guide describes fewer resorts, fewer restaurants and a charm that rests on there being little to do.
Take three nights in El Nido and do Tour A or C first, the two that Wikivoyage's contributors rate. Then catch the 8am or 1pm minivan to Port Barton, from ₱650 ($10), and stay three more. From there a van reaches Puerto Princesa in about four hours for roughly ₱500, and Puerto Princesa is the cheaper airport to fly out of. Short of time, skip the road: AirSwift flies El Nido to Manila in an hour and twenty minutes.
Fares and timetables here move. Pamasahe warns of fuel surcharges linked to the Middle East, and the FCDO says Philippine ferries have a poor safety record, with more accidents between June and December. If the sea looks wrong, wait a day.
Bali Begins at Sanur, and Lembongan Is the First Island
Route three is the short one, and the one for May to September.
Route three is the short one, and the one for May to September. Fast boats leave the Sanur terminal for Nusa Lembongan through the day: Nusapenida.org's June 2026 timetable lists seven operators, a crossing of about 30 minutes and one-way fares of Rp 150,000 to Rp 250,000 (roughly $8 to $14).
Lembongan covers about eight square kilometres and has almost no cars; Wikivoyage says bringing one needs the village elders' permission. Seaweed is still farmed here, most of it for cosmetics. Jungut Batu is the surf-and-budget end, Mushroom Bay the sheltered one with the white beach, and a creaking yellow suspension bridge crosses to Nusa Ceningan for anyone on foot or two wheels. The sea decides the rest. Dream Beach and Sunset Beach have rips the page reserves for the strongest swimmers, while Mushroom Bay and the northern mangroves are largely safe.
Sleep near Sanur the night before (our guide to where to stay in Bali will help you choose) and take a morning boat, when the water is calmer. Base yourself at Mushroom Bay for two or three nights. Boatmen will run you across to Crystal Bay on Nusa Penida to snorkel for Rp 200,000 to Rp 300,000 with gear, though the current there is strong. Pay Bali's Rp 150,000 tourist levy online before you land.
Nusa Penida has the famous photographs, but it charges an arrival fee that Lembongan does not, and I'd treat it as a day trip. Boats stop altogether for Nyepi, and from December to March the crossing can be rough.
The short route, and what it is made of
Lembongan to Gili Air and Lombok
The crossing to take seriously, and the island with no engines on it.
Fast boats link Lembongan with the Gili Islands and Lombok in two and a half to three and a half hours, usually in the morning. Eka Jaya, which runs vessels of 180 to 260 seats, prices Bali to the Gilis at Rp 685,000 one way, or Rp 635,000 online (about $35 to $38), and also serves Lembongan, Gili Air, Bangsal and Senggigi from Padang Bai.
There is no motorised transport on the three Gilis, only horse carts and bicycles. Trawangan is the party island and Meno the empty one. Gili Air, closest to Lombok, has the largest permanent population, about 1,800, and Wikivoyage notes that its village leaders have banished tourists for drug use. You can walk round it in 90 minutes. Tap water is salty, so drinking water comes by boat. Warungs inland from the harbour sell nasi campur and bakso, and on the beach you choose a fish from the display and agree the price before it reaches the grill.
Spend three nights on Gili Air, then take the public boat to Bangsal on Lombok: 15 minutes, and Rp 18,000 (about a dollar) at the island cooperative's ticket office in 2024. Buy only there, and go in the morning, when the sea is calmest. On Lombok, have one proper dinner in Mataram, then fly from the airport near Praya, whose current route list includes Jakarta, Bali, Kuala Lumpur and Singapore.
Operators on this crossing vary widely in vessel and crew, and the FCDO describes Indonesian boats as often overloaded and poorly maintained. Wikivoyage's advice is the right one: if the boat, the load or the weather worries you, don't board. Ask for a refund and go tomorrow.
The FCDO reports drink spiking in Bali, Lombok and the Gili Islands, and deaths from methanol in drinks sold at licensed bars and hotels. Order sealed beer, watch anything mixed being poured, and treat a stranger's free shot as the most expensive drink on the island.
What to Eat on Each Route
The towns cook better than the islands, and Phuket cooks best of all.
Food on these routes comes in two kinds. Some stops have a town and a cuisine of their own; at the others, dinner is whatever came off the boat, grilled. The first kind sits at the ends of the routes, in Phuket Town, Mataram and Coron, which is one more reason to give the gateway a night before running for the pier.
Phuket has been a UNESCO Creative City of Gastronomy since 2015, on the strength of recipes handed down through its families. Michelin's inspectors pick out One Chun, in a 19th-century building on Thep Krasatti Road, for crab meat in yellow coconut curry and for mu hong, soft braised pork belly. Lombok's dish is ayam taliwang: chicken half-grilled, pounded, coated in chilli, garlic and shrimp paste, then grilled again and eaten with pelecing, water spinach under sambal. In Coron, Guide to the Philippines points to danggit lamayo, marinated dried rabbitfish, and to tamilok, woodworm served raw in vinegar.
Have the crab curry at One Chun on your first night; it takes cash only and bookings by phone. On Lanta, look for the southern Muslim dishes that Wikivoyage lists, massaman curry and khao mok kai, chicken with yellow rice. In Langkawi, breakfast is nasi lemak from a stall for a couple of ringgit and dinner is ikan bakar, grilled fish. Buy cashews at Coron's market. Our guide to Indonesian food beyond Bali goes deeper on the regional dishes.
The small islands are weaker. The restaurants the guides name in El Nido sell pizza and craft beer, and its one local delicacy, bird's nest soup, is expensive. I'd eat simply there and save the appetite for the towns.
Choosing a Boat, and When to Stay Ashore
The advisories for all three countries say the same thing.
The government advisories for all three countries say the same thing in different words. The FCDO's Thailand page records boats sinking and colliding, with deaths, usually through overloading, poor maintenance and rough monsoon seas. Its Indonesia page tells travellers to check the safety equipment before boarding, warns that children's lifejackets are not always provided, and advises against night crossings. The US State Department adds that some Indonesian vessels lack enough life vests.
So choose the bigger boat where there is a choice, the enclosed ferry over the open speedboat, and the morning sailing over the afternoon one. Make sure the ticket names the vessel: Wikivoyage reports tour desks claiming a sailing is full in order to sell a cheaper operator, a trick our guide to tourist traps in Southeast Asia covers in other forms. Count the lifejackets when you sit down. And leave a spare day before any long-haul flight, because a cancelled boat is the system working.
Southeast Asia island hopping: the ten stops on these three routes
With a Month: Join the Andaman Route to Lombok
Two of the three routes connect, through Kuala Lumpur.
Two of these routes connect. Langkawi's tourism board counts 64 AirAsia flights a week to Kuala Lumpur and another 24 on Malaysia Airlines, and Lombok's airport has direct Kuala Lumpur services too. The seasons meet in late April: the Andaman boats are still running, with Bundhaya's Lanta to Lipe service listed to 4 May, and Indonesia's main rains are usually over by the end of March.
So do the Thai route in the second half of April, fly Langkawi to Kuala Lumpur to Lombok, and run route three backwards through Gili Air and Lembongan to Bali in May. Palawan does not bolt on so neatly, and I'd keep it as its own trip. For the overland parts of a longer journey, see our guide to backpacking Southeast Asia.
Every Stop, Side by Side
Route, nights, what it is for and how you get in.
Every stop, sortable
| Stop | Route | Best for | Nights | Way in |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Phuket Town (eat at One Chun) | Andaman | Crab curry and mu hong before the boat | 1 | Fly to Phuket |
| Koh Lanta | Andaman | Long beaches without a crowd | 3 to 4 | Speedboat from Phuket, 90 minutes, from ฿1,500 |
| Koh Lipe | Andaman | The last Thai stop before Malaysia | 3 | Speedboat from Lanta, 3 hours, from ฿1,700 |
| Langkawi | Andaman | The exit: flights to Kuala Lumpur, Penang and Singapore | 1 to 2 | Ferry from Lipe, 90 minutes, RM128 to RM148 |
| Coron | Palawan | Lakes and Second World War wrecks | 3 | Fly Manila to Busuanga, about an hour |
| El Nido | Palawan | Lagoon tours in the Bacuit Archipelago | 3 | Fast ferry from Coron, ₱2,816 to ₱3,000 |
| Port Barton | Palawan | Doing very little | 3 | Van from El Nido, about 5 hours, ₱650 |
| Nusa Lembongan | Bali to Lombok | Calm swimming and snorkel trips | 2 to 3 | Boat from Sanur, 30 minutes, Rp 150,000 to 250,000 |
| Gili Air | Bali to Lombok | Car-free days on foot | 3 | Fast boat from Bali or Lembongan, from Rp 635,000 |
| Lombok | Bali to Lombok | Ayam taliwang, then the flight home | 1 to 2 | Public boat from Gili Air, 15 minutes, Rp 18,000 |
Fares are one way, per adult, as listed by operators or dated guides between June and October 2026, except the Gili Air public boat (2024). Park fees, tours and Bali's levy are extra. The price line on each island card is the fare for the leg that gets you there; ฿฿ is Michelin's own band for One Chun. Nights are my suggestion.
Paperwork, Money, Booking and Time
What decides whether the line holds together.
When to go: November to April for the Andaman route, December to May for Palawan, May to September for Bali to Lombok. For trips starting in late 2026, that means Thailand first. Check any connection through Bangkok: the FCDO's 28 September update has all 50 of the city's districts declared disaster-affected after severe flooding.
Paperwork: Thailand's visa-free stay for British visitors has been 30 days since 15 September 2026, with a digital arrival card due in the three days before entry. The Philippines gives UK citizens 30 days and wants an eTravel QR code and proof of onward travel. Indonesia's visa on arrival costs Rp 500,000 ($28) for 30 days, plus Bali's levy. All three want six months left on the passport. Other nationalities should check their own government's advice.
Money: At rates on 10 October 2026 a US dollar bought about 33.6 baht, 62.9 pesos, 17,900 rupiah or 4.09 ringgit. Carry small notes: the Lipe park fee, the longtail, Coron's site fees and the Gili cooperative boat are all cash.
Booking: Buy from the operator's own site where you can: Bundhaya, Telaga Terminal and Eka Jaya all sell online. Philippine ferry lines want you at the terminal an hour before departure, The Palawan Guide says, and Sanur asks for 30 minutes.
How long: Ten days per route is comfortable. With a week, do Bali to Lombok.
Safety: None of these routes crosses an area the FCDO advises against. Its Thailand warnings cover the Cambodian border and the far southern provinces; in the Philippines, Mindanao and the Sulu archipelago. The US advisory also puts the Sulu Sea at its highest level, and this route keeps to northern and western Palawan until the airport. Vapes are illegal in Thailand, with fines of 5,000 to 30,000 baht.
The Bottom Line
Pick the month first, then the route, then the boat.
Three routes, three seasons, and in each case a line with an airport at both ends. Travelling between now and April, take the Andaman one and finish in Malaysia; from December, Palawan is the alternative for anyone who would rather look at limestone than lie on sand. From May, it is Bali to Lombok. My own order of preference puts the Andaman route first, for the pleasure of leaving a country by boat, then Lombok for the chicken. Whichever you choose, the gateway town deserves a night and a dinner.
Pick the month first, then the route, then the boat.
Before you go
What is the best month for island hopping in Southeast Asia?
February and March are the safest months for two of the three routes, Thailand's Andaman coast and Palawan, with dry weather and every boat running. Neither month suits Bali and Lombok, where the main rains usually last until March; go there between May and September. July and August are the Gili Islands' peak season, with higher prices.
How many days do you need for island hopping in Thailand?
Ten days is the minimum I'd give the Andaman route from Phuket to Langkawi: a night in Phuket Town, three or four on Koh Lanta, three on Koh Lipe and one or two in Langkawi, plus the travel days. With 14 you can break the Lanta to Lipe boat at one of the Trang islands it calls at.
Can you island hop in Thailand in the rainy season?
Only in part. The Phuket to Koh Lanta speedboat runs all year, but boats from Lanta to Koh Lipe stop in May and the Lipe to Langkawi ferry ends on 31 May. Lipe is still reachable from Pak Bara twice a day, weather permitting. The Gulf side keeps a different calendar: the FCDO puts Koh Samui's rains at November to March.
Is the Coron to El Nido ferry safe?
Mostly, between December and May, when it is a scheduled crossing of three and a half to five hours run by three or four lines. The risk rises in the wet months: the FCDO says ferry accidents in the Philippines are more frequent between June and December. Take a morning sailing, avoid an overcrowded boat, and accept a cancellation without argument.
How does immigration work on the Koh Lipe to Langkawi ferry?
You are stamped out of Thailand at the small immigration office at the top of Pattaya Beach on Koh Lipe, and into Malaysia at Telaga Harbour, where the terminal has its own border clearance. Destination Thailand says Malaysia's digital arrival card must be completed within three days of sailing. The Lipe office is seasonal and opens with the ferry in mid-October.
How much does island hopping in Southeast Asia cost?
The boats are the cheap part. At October 2026 fares, the legs between islands come to about $135 on the Andaman route including Lipe's park fee, about $65 in Palawan with both vans, and $45 to $53 from Bali to Lombok. Flights at each end, rooms, tours and Bali's levy are all extra.
Keep going
Sources
Checked against official and institutional sources · Tourism Authority of Thailand · UK FCDO Thailand travel advice · UK FCDO Philippines travel advice · UK FCDO Indonesia travel advice · Philippine Maritime Industry Authority · PAGASA: Philippine weather · Philippine environment department · Wonderful Indonesia · Tourism Malaysia · MICHELIN Guide Phuket
We will tell you whether we can help and send a written quote before any paid work begins.