Planning a vacation on Pangkor Island? Fantastic! This is a great part of the world.
This former pirate hangout is surrounded by beautiful beaches and is the perfect place to hang out for a few days… or weeks… taking it easy as you watch the world go by.
However, before you can enjoy Pangkor Island, you need to know how to get to Pangkor Island. Thankfully, it is not hard at all to work out how to go to Pangkor Island although you have a variety of choices.
Below, I describe the exact answer to how to reach Pangkor Island. I start with a summary and then give you detailed instructions based on whether you want flights to Pangkor Island, want to take a ferry to Pangkor Island, want to know how to drive to Pangkor Island by car or are trying to sort out the bus to Pangkor Island.
Finally, I also give you instructions for some of the most popular journeys to Pangkor Island including how to get to Pangkor Island from Penang, how to go to Pangkor Island from Singapore and more.
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Contents
How To Get To Pangkor Island
Note that Pangkor Island isn’t connected to Peninsula Malaysia by land or bridge so no matter how you chose to get to Pangkor Island, you will need to get a ferry from one of the two ferry terminals.
In the rest of this article, I break down how to do this by first describing the first part of the journey to a ferry terminal then describing the ferry to Pangkor Island.
Part 1: How To Get To Lumut/Marina Island Ferry Terminals For Pangkor
You have multiple options for how to get to the ferry terminals. The option you pick, determines which ferry terminal is best. I describe them below.
Option 1: Flight To Pangkor Island, Malaysia
If you are wondering if you can fly to Pangkor Island, you can stop wondering.
While it used to be possible, it no longer is.
However, depending on where you are starting your journey from, it can make sense to fly nearby.
The closest airport and best option is to fly to Ipoh.
If you are flying internationally, other than from Singapore, you may not find it easy to fly to Ipoh. In which case, fly to Kuala Lumpur. It is also easy to get to Pangkor from here (exact details below).
Click here for all the latest flight prices.
This is what I did when I travelled to Pangkor Island from Singapore.
Once you get to Ipoh, you can take a bus or taxi to the ferry terminals or hire a car and drive yourself. There is more information below.
Option 2: Bus To Pangkor Island
Travelling by bus to Pangkor is a good option if you are not too far away. There are many buses to Lumut from all over peninsula Malaysia, particularly the west coast, Kuala Lumpur and Singapore. If you are travelling Melaka to Pangkor Island, this is the way to go as well.
Lumut Bus Station is a two-minute walk from the ferry terminal which makes it a great place to catch a bus for Pangkor. Simply go the left when you are exiting the terminal and turn right after one block and take the covered walkway to the terminal. There is more information on the path here.
There are some luxury and comfortable buses which travel here.
To find out if you can bus directly from your place of origin in Malaysia, click here for the latest bus timetables and ticket prices.
Option 3: Getting to Pangkor Island By Car/Taxi
Whether you have your own car or a hire car, you can easily drive to the ferry terminals for Lumut. It’s only just over 200 kilometres from Kuala Lumpur or two and a half hours from George Town on Penang.
There is parking available near both terminals. From the parking lot in Lumut, there is a nice, undercover walkway between the car park and the terminal with shops and eating outlets for last minute supplies.
Click here to hire a car in Malaysia.
You can also take a private taxi to either of the ferry terminals. It will depend on where you are coming from how much this will cost.
This is the easiest and most comfortable way. We can book a taxi for you with a safe and trustworthy local operator.
Click here for more details and prices.
Click here to read more about driving in Malaysia.
Part 2: How To Travel To Pangkor Island By Ferry (Lumut To Pangkor Island)
There are two ferry terminals where you can travel to Pangkor Island. Both ferries will drop you in Pangkor Town on Pangkor Island.
Both options cost about RM10 each way, but you’ll need to buy a return ticket.
Option 1: Lumut Pangkor Ferry Jetty
This ferry is the best one to pick if you are taking the bus, want a less crazy experience or if you want more ferry options during the week. This boat to Pangkor Island runs regularly throughout the day.
It takes about 35-40 minutes to take the ferry from Lumut to Pangkor Island and you arrive in Pangkor Town. The ferry operator is Konsortium Mesra Duta.
It’s a quick two-minute walk from the bus terminal to the Lumut jetty to Pangkor Island.
You can buy tickets from the ticket counter to the right of the building but it is super easy to be online. I bought mine through easybook here and only had to show my ticket on my phone. There was no need to get paper tickets on arrival.
Click here to check the latest timetables and book your ferry ticket to Pangkor Island.
There is a seating area to wait for your boat.
Once called up, you simply walk along the walkway to your boat.
The boat had eight seats per row with a walkway in the middle. You can see it pictured above.
Luggage is stored at the start of the seating area. It’s all very easy but note that you’ll need to be able to carry your own luggage up and down a few stairs in both Pangkor and Lumut.
There’s no assigned seating in either ferry so if you want a window seat, get on towards the front of the queue.
Option 2: Marina Island Jetty Complex
The Pangkor Ferry departs from this jetty to Pangkor Island.
Marina Island is south of Lumut and connects to Peninsula Malaysia by bridge, so you can drive straight here. It’s closer to Pangkor Island so the ferry trip is closer to 10 minutes long.
The timetable varies depending on the day. The schedule is available a week in advance – but note, it’s not necessarily correct. When I caught it, far more ferries were running than what the schedule said. It runs very regularly on the weekend, less often during the week.
I found this terminal initially overwhelming but this is probably because I accidentally arrived here on a Saturday round lunchtime on a long weekend. It’s really not the best time to come here!
But actually once I took a deep breath, it was fine. This is Malaysia so it was relatively straightforward and people are always respectful.
What was annoying is that if you buy a ticket here, you have to use one of their computer terminals to book it yourself then go to a ticket counter to print it.
It was an annoying process when you have luggage and it’s busy. I definitely recommend you buy your ticket ahead of time to avoid this. Then you can show your ticket on your phone or print it out to board.
I didn’t buy my ticket in advance, and what was even more annoying is that it was 1.5 hours wait to the next available one even though they were running every 15 minutes. Book ahead!
Click here to check the latest timetables and book your ticket.
There are many eating places and shops located right here and a whole lot of logs to sit on. It had quite a festive vibe when I was there.
About 15 minutes before my ferry time, we were called up (not in English, but you can’t really miss it). Our tickets were scanned and then we waited on the jetty until our boat was ready for us.
We then hopped on the boat. There was a few steps up and then down again so make sure you can carry your luggage. There was a luggage area at the front and then plenty of seats. I was surprised that the seats were maybe only 2/3 full on the boat despite it being such a busy day. It’s great that they don’t overload.
The comfort level and the insides of the ferries seemed the same to me between this and Lumut ferry.
Either Option: Arrival In Pangkor Town
It was very straightforward to get to my hotel once we arrived in Pangkor Town. Simply get off the boat, follow the walkway and you’ll soon be at the taxi counter.
There is a set list of prices (in Malay but it’s easy to decode, see photo below). However, they don’t necessarily keep to this especially when busy. I had to pay a few ringgit more but at least I was out of there quick!
The taxis are known as pink taxis and they are big pink vans so perfect for families and groups.
Want the Easiest (and BEST) Way to travel to Pangkor Island?
We can book a taxi for you from anywhere in Malaysia or Singapore directly to the ferry to Pangkor for a great price.
You can pick your own departure time, relax and know everything will go to plan.
Pangkor Island How To Get There…
Finally in this how to go Pangkor Island guide, I cover some of the most popular journeys to reach here below.
How To Reach Pangkor Island From KL
It’s very straightforward to reach Pangkor Island from Kuala Lumpur.
You basically follow the instructions above.
You can take a bus to Lumut very easily from Kuala Lumpur. Check out ticket options here.
You can also easily drive or take a taxi. You can then take the ferry across.
There are no flights between KL and Ipoh so you will want to travel overland.
Click here for our full guide to how to go from Kuala Lumpur to Pangkor Island.
How To Get To Pangkor Island From Singapore
It’s also straightforward to work out how to go Pangkor Island from Singapore. I took this journey myself recently.
You basically have the choice between taking an overnight bus to Lumut for the ferry or a flight to Ipoh and then travelling overland to the ferry terminal.
Click here for bus options and prices.
I chose to fly to Ipoh to save some time. See latest flight prices here.
I then took a taxi from the airport using one of their coupon taxis. You can find more options below to get from Ipoh to Pangkor Island.
Once you make it to a ferry terminal, you can easily take a ferry using the instructions above.
Travel From Penang To Pangkor Island
The answer to how to get to Pangkor Island from Penang is also straightforward.
You can take a bus which takes about 3.25 hours and costs around RM20. Find timetables and options here.
The buses leave from Butterworth. This is easy to reach from George Town on a frequent ferry.
These arrive in Lumut where you can take the ferry as per the instructions above.
To make it easier, driving is your best bet or taking a taking a taxi to the ferry terminal.
If you want to travel from Pangkor Island to Penang, it’s the same in reverse.
How To Get From Ipoh To Pangkor Island
As with everywhere else, you basically have two options for getting from Ipoh to Pangkor Island.
You can take a bus to Lumut – find options and prices here.
The bus takes about two hours, costs around RM12 and there are options throughout the day.
Or you can hire a car and drive or take a taxi to get you to the ferry terminals.
You can book a taxi here. You can also get a coupon taxi at Ipoh Airport to take you there, and it takes about an hour and a half.
Once you make it to Lumut or Marina Island, you can easily take a ferry using the instructions above.
Final Words
While Pangkor Island can feel a little trickier to get to, it is quite straightforward. Just remember you need to either bus, taxi or drive to Lumut or Marina Island and then catch a quick ferry across to the island.
I highly recommend you book your ferry in advance especially on weekends. You don’t want to waste time at a ferry terminal when you can be on Pangkor instead.
You’ll be enjoying paradise in no time!
I hope you found this guide to how to get to Pangkor useful. You can find our list of the best hotels in Pangkor here, all the top things to do in Pangkor Island here and our full travel guide to Pangkor Island here.
Planning a trip to Malaysia? Have any questions? Join our Malaysia Travel Planning Facebook group here now! It’s the perfect place to ask any questions and to be inspired!
