Upvote:0
As far as ferry companies go, there are actually three that go from Phuket to Koh Lipe. They are:
Tigerline
Bandhaya
Satun Pakbara Speedboat Club
The best reviewed seems to be Bundhaya, though all three have horror stories and entreaties to avoid at all costs. Both Bundhaya and SPBSC use speed boats, and Tigerline is either a speedboat or a ferry? All take about 5 hours total from Phuket to Lipe, with plenty of stops along the way - these are unavoidable.
Bundhaya and SPBSC go from Phuket to Phi Phi, to Lanta. With Bundhaya there was a boat change in Lanta, then both companies have stops in Ngai, Mook, Bulon and finally Lipe. I'm unsure of Tigerline's route but it is probably similar.
I can only speak to Bundhaya, but overall it was fairly professional and the boat well maintained. At this less busy time the boat was not at all packed. Though there were life jackets for everyone for the first stop only - some legs people outnumbered life jackets and not everyone got one.
Upvote:1
I have been stranded all over South-East Asia on different magnificent islands due to bad weather or broken down ferries. Thus if it is an important flight, e.g international flight then I would never advise anyone to travel with a ferry and fly on the same day.
The time you are going for koh lipe the island will be fairly quiet, making the ferries even more unreliable.
I would suggest to fly to Langkawi and take a ferry from the pier in Langkawi to Koh Lipe which takes about 30 minutes. Flights to Lankawi are cheap and immigration is a breeze.
pre-booking a ferry online in South-East Asia is expensive and not necessary for most routes, a couple of days in person in advance is enough.