Last updated: April 2026. Written by the Tour In Koh Samui (TIK) local booking team. We book — we do not operate the boats. Everything below comes from handling thousands of island-hopping bookings with the longtail captains, speedboat companies, and snorkel guides who actually run these trips.
If you typed "Koh Samui island hopping" into Google, you have probably already seen the same five paragraphs copy-pasted across twenty travel blogs: "crystal clear water", "swimming pigs", "hidden paradise". Most of it is either wrong, stale, or written by someone who has never actually been on the boat.
This guide is the version we wish existed when guests first ask us about Pig Island, Koh Tan and Koh Matsum. It tells you the honest truth about what you are booking, what you will actually see, who should skip it, and how to pick the right tour for your group. No fluff, no fake "secret beaches", no pretending Pig Island is the Bahamas one.
Quick answer: is Koh Samui island hopping worth it?
Yes — if you book the right trip for your group, manage expectations about Pig Island itself, and pick the right month. The real magic is not the pigs. It is the three-island combo: Koh Tan (quiet, clear-water snorkel), Koh Matsum (long white-sand beach with a rope swing and turquoise shallows), and the short boat-hop between them with Samui's south coast as the backdrop.
Skip it only if you get badly seasick in choppy water, if you are travelling in the deepest monsoon weeks (late October to mid-December on this coast), or if you are the kind of traveller who needs a developed beach with bars, loungers, and a dive platform — Koh Tan and Matsum are deliberately low-development.
The Pig Island reality check (this is not the Bahamas one)
Let's kill the confusion up front. The internet-famous "swimming pigs" island is Big Major Cay in the Exumas, Bahamas. That is on the other side of the planet. Thailand has its own Pig Island, officially called Koh Madsum / Koh Matsum, and — here is what every travel blog forgets to mention — the pigs are a small part of the island. They live in a fenced area behind the beach. You can meet them, feed them pineapple slices, take a photo, and move on. They do not swim out to your boat. They are not covering the beach. They are a cute 15-minute side quest, not the main event.
The main event on Koh Matsum is the beach itself: a very long stretch of soft white sand on the north side of the island, shallow turquoise water, a couple of rustic beach shacks, the famous rope swing that every Instagram account photographs, and almost zero development behind the treeline. It is one of the prettiest beaches within one hour of Koh Samui. That is why the trip is worth it — just not for the reason the marketing photos suggest.
Once you reset expectations ("I am going to a beautiful quiet Thai island that happens to have a small pig sanctuary" instead of "I am going to swim with pigs in crystal water like in the Bahamas"), almost everyone walks away happy.
Koh Tan: the actual snorkel star of the trip
Koh Tan sits about 20 minutes south of Koh Samui by speedboat, 35 to 45 minutes by longtail. It is a small forested island with two or three tiny fishing villages, a handful of simple homestays, and — the reason every island-hop tour stops here — the best coastal snorkel within easy reach of Samui.
The snorkel reef is on the west and north-west side of the island. In good months you get 5 to 10 metres of underwater visibility, healthy hard and soft coral patches, clouds of sergeant-major fish, butterflyfish, parrotfish, occasional reef squid and, if you are lucky, a small reef shark (harmless, bottom-dwelling blacktip). It is not Komodo. It is not Sipadan. But for a tour based out of Koh Samui it is genuinely good — and light-years ahead of snorkelling from Chaweng or Lamai beach, which is mostly sand and very little coral.
Most island-hop itineraries spend 30 to 45 minutes snorkelling off Koh Tan. That is enough for one good loop of the reef. If you are a serious snorkeller and want two longer sessions, book a private longtail and ask the captain to do Koh Tan twice (once in the morning when visibility is best, once on the return).
Koh Matsum: the beach day inside the island-hop
After snorkelling at Koh Tan, most tours move about 10 minutes east to Koh Matsum. You land on the north beach, which on most days is a photographable strip of soft sand, palm shade, shallow water you can walk out into forever, and a very famous rope-swing tree at the east end of the beach. Lunch is usually served at one of the simple beach huts — grilled fish, rice, Thai salad, fresh fruit. If you booked a private longtail you can bring your own lunch instead.
The pigs are kept in a marked enclosure a short walk inland. A small voluntary donation covers their upkeep. You can feed them fruit through the fence or, during certain hours, walk into the pen with a staff member. They are friendly, greedy, and very photogenic. Ten to twenty minutes is plenty.
What most travellers get wrong about this trip
- They expect Bahamas-blue water 12 months a year. Samui's south coast has two very different seasons. January to September it is usually clear, calm, and stunning. Late October through mid-December it can be churned up and green. Book around the weather, not around the Instagram posts.
- They assume the pigs are wild. They are not. They are a small sanctuary-style herd. Treat it like a petting-zoo moment, not a David Attenborough scene.
- They book the cheapest group speedboat and then complain it is crowded. If you want space, privacy, your own schedule, and zero strangers — book a private longtail. If you want cheap, fast, and social — book a join-in speedboat. Both are valid, they are just different products.
- They bring nothing and expect everything. Bring reef-safe sunscreen (strong Thai sun), a dry bag for your phone, a rash vest if you burn, and cash for the pig sanctuary and drinks at the beach hut.
- They pick the wrong departure time. The best snorkel visibility on Koh Tan is usually 9:30 to 11:30. By early afternoon wind picks up and visibility drops. Morning departures (08:30 pickup) consistently outperform afternoon ones.
Private longtail vs shared speedboat: how to pick
This is the single biggest decision and the one most guests get backwards. Here is how we actually recommend it at the booking desk:
Pick a shared speedboat if…
- You are travelling as a couple or solo, on a budget, and want to meet other travellers.
- You hate spending more than a couple of hours on open water — speedboats cut the crossing time roughly in half.
- You want a fixed, "just-turn-up" itinerary with snorkel gear, lunch, guide, and insurance all bundled.
Pick a private longtail if…
- You are 3 or more adults — the per-person cost often gets competitive fast.
- You have small kids, grandparents, pregnant travellers, or anyone who hates loud engines and bumpy rides (longtails are slower and ride the swell, not slam through it).
- You want to stay longer at one island, skip the lunch stop, or swap the itinerary around.
- You want photos without strangers in them.
- You are seasick-prone — longtails bob, speedboats slam. Different motion, different stomach reactions.
Pricing is transparent: TIK lists join-in speedboat from 1,350 THB per adult, join-in longtail from 1,650 THB, private longtail from 5,640 THB for the whole boat, and private speedboat from 11,840 THB for the whole boat. Those numbers move with season and fuel but they are a realistic baseline.
Hotel pickup: what's actually included (Chaweng, Lamai, Bophut, Maenam, Fisherman's Village, Choeng Mon)
Almost every island-hop tour leaving from Koh Samui includes hotel pickup on the north and east coasts. In practice:
- Chaweng / Chaweng Noi: included, pickup typically 08:00–08:30.
- Lamai: included, pickup 07:45–08:15.
- Bophut / Fisherman's Village: included, pickup 08:15–08:45.
- Maenam: included, pickup 08:30–09:00.
- Choeng Mon / Plai Laem: included, pickup 08:00–08:30.
- Taling Ngam / west coast: often a small supplement because it's closer to the pier, or sometimes free because the drive is short. Check per tour.
- Remote villa or far south (Laem Set area): meet-at-pier is usually the cleanest option.
Give the operator your exact hotel name — not just "Chaweng" — so the driver finds you first time. Meeting times are slightly earlier than you think: traffic on the 4169 ring road in high season is real.
Underwater visibility month by month (the part nobody tells you)
We are about to break our own rule — we normally do not mention seasons in ads — but this is a planning guide, not a sales page, so here is the honest operational picture for the Samui south coast:
- January — March: excellent. Calm sea, clear water, high season pricing.
- April — May: very good. Hotter air, often glassy mornings.
- June — September: good to very good. Some short afternoon squalls, mornings usually clean.
- Early October: mixed. Check the day before.
- Late October — early December: this is the weak window on the east side of the gulf. Wind, swell, reduced visibility. If your trip is flexible, push island-hopping to later in your stay or swap it for an Ang Thong day further west.
- Mid-December: bouncing back. By Christmas it's usually clear again.
Tours do still run in monsoon shoulder weeks — captains know which side of each island is sheltered — but underwater visibility is the honest variable.
Is it worth it with kids? Family feasibility
Yes, for most families with kids 4 and up. Our honest recommendations:
- Under 4: go private longtail. Shorter, calmer, you control the stops. Bring a life vest you trust — boat vests are adult-sized.
- Ages 5–10: either product works. Most kids love the pigs more than the snorkel, so do not over-promise the snorkel and you'll have a great day.
- Teenagers: shared speedboat is usually the winner — faster, more social, feels like an adventure.
- Pregnant travellers: private longtail only. Speedboats pound through swell and can be jarring.
- Grandparents / reduced mobility: private longtail, no question. Boarding is from the beach and the staff will help.
Pricing transparency: what's included, what's extra
A typical island-hop package from TIK includes: round-trip hotel transfer on the main coasts, boat fare, national-park / island entry fees where applicable, snorkel mask + fins, life jacket, lunch (on join-in tours), drinking water, insurance, and the English-speaking captain or guide. Extras you pay in cash on the day: pig-sanctuary donation (small, voluntary), soft drinks or beer at the beach huts, rope-swing photos if you want a local photographer, tips (not required but appreciated), and optional GoPro rental.
Ask before booking — not after — if the tour visits the pig sanctuary directly or just passes Koh Matsum beach. The good ones do both.
Hidden costs to watch for when booking elsewhere
- "From 990 THB" hook prices that add pickup, fuel surcharge, and entry fee on the pier.
- Packages that skip Koh Tan and only visit Koh Matsum — you miss the real snorkel.
- Operators who charge a separate "insurance fee" at boarding.
- "VIP" speedboat upgrades that mean a slightly newer boat, nothing else.
TIK lists a fixed price with everything included except the tiny voluntary pig-sanctuary donation. If anything extra appears after booking, tell us and we fix it before boarding.
Best time of day to go
Morning. Every time. Mornings are the calmest water, the best underwater light, the best photo light on Koh Matsum beach, and the fewest boats at each island. Afternoon departures exist and can be fine in perfect weather but they are statistically the weaker choice. Sunset Pig Island trips are a completely different product and deserve their own booking — beautiful, much shorter, but usually without proper snorkel time.
Can I do Koh Tan, Koh Matsum and Coral Island on one trip?
Technically yes, on a long-day speedboat combo — some operators run a "4-island" tour that crosses over toward Coral Island (Koh Mat Sum's neighbour to the west) and loops back. Honest answer from us: it ends up rushed. You do 20 minutes at each stop, you lunch in a hurry, and you never really settle into any one beach. If you only have one day, do Pig Island + Koh Tan + Koh Matsum and do it well. If you have two days, add Ang Thong Marine Park on the other day — completely different landscape and worth a separate trip.
What to pack
- Reef-safe sunscreen (the sun on the gulf is brutal at 11 am).
- Dry bag for phone, cash, room key.
- Rash vest or UV shirt if you burn.
- A cap or hat with a chin strap (speedboats).
- Flip-flops, towel, change of clothes.
- Cash in small Thai notes for the pigs and the beach huts.
- Optional: your own snorkel mask. Rented masks are fine but your own always fits better.
Seasickness: which boat rides are rough?
Honest answer: on a calm day, neither is rough. On a choppy day, the speedboat slams and the longtail rolls. If you get seasick in cars, go longtail — the slower, rolling motion is easier on most stomachs than the speedboat's pound-and-slam. Take a motion-sickness tablet one hour before pickup. Eat a normal breakfast — empty stomachs are worse, not better. Sit mid-boat, look at the horizon, keep hydrated. If conditions are truly bad, reputable operators cancel and rebook — we do, and so do the captains we partner with.
How we actually build the right trip for each guest
When a guest chats in on tourinkohsamui.com, we ask five questions before recommending anything: how many travellers, ages of kids if any, seasickness history, main priority (pigs vs snorkel vs beach vs photos), and budget. The answer almost always points cleanly to one of these four:
- Couple, mid-budget, loves snorkelling ? Join-in speedboat.
- Family with small kids or grandparents ? Private longtail.
- Group of 4–6 friends ? Private longtail — per-person price gets very close to the join-in option with zero strangers.
- Instagram couple with sunset priority ? Sunset Pig Island longtail, then Koh Tan snorkel on a separate half-day.
Booking timing: how far in advance?
High season (December—February and Songkran week): book 5–10 days out. Private longtails for 6+ pax book up first. Shoulder months (March, June, September): 48 hours is usually fine. Same-day bookings work in quiet periods but the pickup window narrows.
A word on honesty
We could write this page to sound like every island in Samui is a hidden paradise with swimming pigs and invisible water. That is how most of our competitors write. We think it backfires. When a guest arrives expecting the Bahamas Pig Island and finds a Thai sanctuary with a fence, they leave disappointed — even though the actual day on Koh Tan and Koh Matsum was beautiful. So we lead with the honest version, set the right expectations, and then the reality outperforms them. That is the TIK approach. It is why we get the repeat bookings.
Next step
If you already know which boat you want, browse the island-hop tours on tourinkohsamui.com. If you want us to pick for you, Chat live ? tourinkohsamui.com with your dates, group size and hotel name. We answer in minutes, usually in under two, and we will never sell you the wrong boat just to close the booking.
Related honest guides
- Pig Island Koh Samui: The Honest Truth (It's Not What Instagram Shows You)
- Pig Island, Koh Tan & Near Islands: Best Day Trips from Koh Samui (2026)
- Speedboat, VIP Longtail or Private Charter? Every Way to Get to Pig Island Compared (Real Prices)
Frequently asked questions
See the FAQ block below — 27 real questions we get every week at the booking desk, answered the honest way.
