How to get to Malaysia when you are on a budget

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Do you need to go to Malaysia from Koh Phangan but you are on a budget?

No problem! There is always a way to do it cheaper.

I would recommend this way only if you are not in a rush, and if you don't care about not doing it the most comfortable way (as sometimes you will be travelling in the back of a really packed minibus or need to wait for hours for the next transport). But if you are ok with this and you are a real backpacker then you can make your way to the Malaysian border for under 650 baht from Koh Phangan!
First of all, you will need to wake up early in the morning in order to get the first ferry leaving from Thong Sala Pier at 5 am (you can book tickets for this).

Once you get to Donsak pier, you will board the bus that takes you all the way to Surat Thani City.

Ferry + bus will cost you 350 baht. And you will get to the city around 9 am.

Once in Surat Thani you will make your way to the bus station (a few blocks away from the office where they drop you off, just ask around and they will guide you, also you can always hitchhike to the bus station if you feel lazy, that's what I did and waiting time was only a few seconds until someone stopped). At the bus station you will take the minibus service going to Hat Yai. This will cost you 235 baht. Minibuses leave every hour, and the trip will take from 5 to 6 hours. They make one stop for bathroom and food.

When you reach Hat Yai, at the same bus station where they drop you off, you can take the next minibus all the way to Padang Besar (border city). This will take only 1 hour and cost as cheap as 50 baht. Minibuses are quite frequent so don't worry about it, but the last one is at 6pm so bear that in mind.

That's it! You are at the border already. Just cross by walking from the Thai to Malaysian immigration (an easy 5/10 minute walk, or you can also hire a motorbike but it is not worth it at all), get your stamps, and decide where are you going next in this beautiful country.
Important, remember that Malaysia is one hour ahead of Thailand. That means you will need to reach immigration BEFORE 9pm Thailand time (if not you will get stuck at the border until the next morning).

The border is open daily from 06:00 until 22:00 (Malaysian time) - 05:00 until 21:00 (Thai time).

Cost Breakdown to the Malaysian Border:

Ferry + bus to Surat Thani: 350 baht

Bus to Hat Yai: 235 baht

Bus to Padang Besar: 50 baht

Total: 635 baht

Once you made your way through Malaysian immigration, KTM (Komuter train) is by far the easiest and fastest transport and will get you to some of the most common destinations in Malaysia such as Penang and Kuala Lumpur.

If you want to take this option just take the stairs going up next to Malaysian immigration.

It is unfortunately also the most expensive way of travelling in Malaysia and the trip to Kuala Lumpur can get fully booked really fast if it is high season, so in that case you will always have the bus option, but just get ready to spend a lot of hours travelling because of traffic (A 4 hour train journey from Penang to KL took me 9 hours by bus...)

Malaysia transport cost:

Going to Penang?

11.40 MYR / Padang Besar to Butterworth

1.20 MYR / Ferry Butterworth to Georgetown (Tourist area in Penang)

Total: 12.60 MYR (around 104 baht)

Going to Kuala Lumpur?

76 MYR (624 baht) / Padang Besar to Kuala Lumpur

40 MYR (328 baht) by bus

Good luck and enjoy Malaysia!