The shop-window price of a Phuket boat trip is almost never what you actually spend on the day. The gap is not huge — from nothing to roughly ฿1,000 ≈ $28 per person — but it is there nearly everywhere, and it is always built from the same four lines.
Those lines are: the national park fee, the transfer, equipment rental, and fuel on a private hull. None of them is hidden — operators publish them all — it is simply that different tours put them inside the price or outside it.
In short
below we take each line through actual rate cards, show where it is already included, and total three days all-in so the comparison is honest.
The national park fee: the big line on top
This is the largest and the most frequent add-on. It is not optional, it is collected on site and usually in cash, and it depends not on the operator but on where the boat goes.
| Direction | Fee | How it is paid |
|---|---|---|
| Phi Phi (sightseeing day) | ฿400 ≈ $11 adult, ฿200 ≈ $6 child | on the day |
| Phi Phi (dive day) | ฿600 ≈ $17 per diver | cash on board |
| The Similans | ฿700 ≈ $19 per person | cash |
| Racha and Coral Island | none | — |
| Kai Islands half day | none | — |
Source: the rate cards and inclusion lists of the operators we work with, as of September 2026. Park rates are set by Thailand's national parks department and can change.
Where the fee is already inside the price
It is not always outside. The small-group sunrise tour at ฿5,310 ≈ $147 has the park fees in the price. Similan snorkelling at ฿3,490 ≈ $97 does too — only the transfer, about ฿400 ≈ $11 a head, stays outside. The same goes for both kayaking days in Phang Nga Bay.
Hence the rule for comparing: add the price and the fee before you compare anything. The ฿3,900 ≈ $108 speedboat comes to ฿4,300 ≈ $119 all-in, and the gap to the sunrise tour shrinks to ฿1,010 ≈ $28 rather than the ฿1,410 ≈ $39 the window shows.
The transfer: included, but not everywhere
The road to the pier is the second most common line. The Racha Yai dive day transfers free from seven areas — Chalong, Kamala, Kata, Karon, Nai Harn, Patong and Rawai — and charges a surcharge from anywhere else, quoted on request. Andaman Sea Kayak transfers free from anywhere on Phuket.
THINN's mangrove kayaks, by contrast, have no transfer at all: guests make their own way to Tha Maphrao in Thalang, where parking is free. Boat and Beyond's longtail charges ฿1,500 ≈ $42 per car, round trip, for any area of the island.
Equipment: where you pay for the hardware
On sightseeing trips a mask and snorkel are usually included. On diving they almost never are. At Racha a full set is ฿500 ≈ $14 per trip, or ฿650 ≈ $18 with a computer; a 12-litre nitrox tank is ฿250 ≈ $7, a 15-litre air tank ฿300 ≈ $8 a day, an action camera ฿1,500 ≈ $42 per trip.
On the Phi Phi dive day a set is ฿800 ≈ $22, or ฿500 ≈ $14 booked online, nitrox for three dives ฿900 ≈ $25, a computer ฿300 ≈ $8 a day and a private divemaster ฿2,500 ≈ $69. At the Similans rental is priced per item, from ฿150 ≈ $4 to ฿500 ≈ $14, and a private guide is ฿2,000 ≈ $55 a day.
A private hull: fuel and guests over the base
When you take the whole boat, its own lines get added to the charter rate. Tiger Marine's power catamaran publishes a fuel surcharge by destination, on top of ฿59,000 for a half day: ฿10,000 ≈ $277 for Phang Nga, Khai, Maiton and Rang Yai; ฿23,000 ≈ $637 for Phang Nga with Hong Krabi; ฿35,000 ≈ $969 for Phi Phi, Krabi Poda or Racha Yai; ฿38,000 ≈ $1,053 for Racha Noi.
The second line is guests over the base capacity. On that catamaran ten people are in the price and guests eleven to fifteen are ฿2,000 ≈ $55 each. The longtail's base covers four guests with a maximum of eight, and guests five to eight are charged separately. On Nikorn's fishing boat ฿29,000 ≈ $803 covers up to ten anglers, and a group of eleven to fifteen pays ฿35,000 ≈ $969.
What to bring so you do not pay on site
- Cash baht for the park fee. There are no card terminals on the pontoon and the fee is collected there.
- Your own mask and snorkel if you are diving: a set on the day costs ฿500–800 ≈ $14–22.
- Reef-safe sunscreen. At Maya Bay ordinary sunscreen is banned, and that is a park rule rather than an operator's preference.
- A hat and a rash guard. On a fishing day sunscreen is gone within the hour and there is barely any shade on deck.
- Money for alcohol separately. It is not included almost anywhere, and on the sunrise tour it is not allowed on board at all.
Three days all-in: how the sum works
| Day | Window price | On top | All-in |
|---|---|---|---|
| Phi Phi on a group speedboat | ฿3,900 ≈ $108 | fee ฿400 ≈ $11 | ฿4,300 ≈ $119 |
| Phi Phi sunrise, small group | ฿5,310 ≈ $147 | nothing | ฿5,310 ≈ $147 |
| Racha and Coral Island | ฿2,500 ≈ $69 | nothing | ฿2,500 ≈ $69 |
Tip
apply the same arithmetic to any offer you are comparing. A cheap window price with the fee, the transfer and the gear on top often catches up with the one that looked dearer.
How do you get the exact figure before booking?
Send the route and your group on WhatsApp or Telegram — we will total the day with every line in it and confirm it with the operator before you pay.
