Taxis and private transfers on Koh Lanta

There is no metered taxi rank on Koh Lanta and no ride-hailing app that works reliably here. Getting a car means arranging one, which sounds like a hassle and mostly is not — it just means asking ahead rather than walking outside and waving.

This covers the journeys people actually need and how to make asking for one quick.

The journeys people book

Broadly four kinds, and they have different considerations.

• Airport runs — Krabi most often, sometimes Phuket or Trang. Long, involve a ferry, and worth booking ahead.
• Pier transfers — Saladan for the passenger ferries and speedboats to Phi Phi, Krabi and the Trang islands.
• Hotel to hotel — people moving up or down the island mid-stay, or switching beaches.
• Point to point on the island — dinner in Old Town, a viewpoint, the national park, an evening out when nobody wants to ride a scooter home.

Car or van?

Both of ours seat up to four people, so the choice is about space rather than headcount.

A private car is the usual pick for couples, families and solo travellers, and it comfortably takes two large cases.

A luxury van is air-conditioned with a high roof and room for four large cases. Take it when you have serious luggage, when there are four of you on a long run like Phuket, or when you simply want to arrive without your knees against a seat back.

Why a private car beats the shared option here

The specific problem on Lanta is the ferry. On a shared minibus you wait for the vehicle to fill before you leave, and then you sit in the ferry queue anyway, and then you may be the last drop on the circuit.

With a private vehicle you leave when you are ready and get out at your own door. On a short island hop the difference is minor. On an airport run with luggage and a flight to catch, it is the whole journey.

What to have ready when you ask

A quote takes about a minute if you send these together. WhatsApp is much faster than email for this.

• Where you are being collected from and where you are going
• Date and rough time
• How many people and how many large bags
• Flight number if an airport is involved
• Anything that changes the vehicle — child seat, oversized luggage, surfboard, an extra stop on the way

What you should expect

A fixed price for the whole vehicle, quoted before you commit, with any ferry crossing included rather than sprung on you at the pier. Driver details in advance. No card details taken to hold a booking.

If an operator will not give you a firm number before the day, that is worth noting.