Shared Pig Island trips are sold by the seat. Private longtails are sold by the
boat. That one difference is why a private charter, which sounds like the
expensive option, often is not.
The listed price on a private longtail covers a group of up to two people. Two
seats on a well-reviewed shared speedboat land in roughly the same territory once
you have paid for both. At that point you are choosing between sharing a boat with
twenty strangers on a fixed schedule, and having a captain who takes you where you
want and waits while you stay in the water. For a couple, that is not really a
close call.
The maths turns the other way as the group grows, because the boat price climbs
with capacity while shared tickets stay flat per head. Somewhere around four to
six people, depending on the operator, shared seats become the cheaper option
again. Larger private boats and speedboats are quoted per boat too, so it is worth
pricing both before assuming.
What a charter does not include
Two things, and both catch people out.
The first is the hotel transfer. Almost every shared tour collects you from your
hotel; most private charters do not. You make your own way to Thong Krut on the
south coast, which from Chaweng or Bophut is a 40 to 50 minute taxi each way. Add
that to the boat price before you compare.
The second is the guide. A private longtail captain is a boatman. His English is
usually basic, and there is no commentary, no safety briefing beyond the obvious,
and nobody explaining the reef. What you are buying is the boat and the freedom,
not an interpretation of the islands. If you want a guide, book a shared trip or
pay for a private speedboat with crew.
The stops are the same
Koh Tan for the snorkelling, Koh Madsum for the pigs and the beach. Every boat on
this site does those two, and the reef stop is dropped in the same conditions
regardless of what you paid: when the sea is against it, it is against everyone.
On a private charter a cancelled reef stop usually means more time at Pig Island
rather than a partial refund, which is worth knowing before you ask.
The 50-baht landing fee at Koh Madsum applies exactly as it does on a shared boat,
and private tickets almost never include it. Bring cash. And outside food and
drink still cannot go ashore, including whatever your captain has in the ice box.
If you are still weighing formats, the
which Pig Island tour guide
puts private charters next to the shared options with the real prices, and the
boat comparison covers what a
longtail is actually like for four hours.
