Which transport to use on which leg, what it costs, and what to do when the crossing is cancelled.
The backbone of hopping in Greece and Thailand. Conventional ferries are slow, cheap, stable and carry vehicles; high-speed catamarans halve the time and are the first to be cancelled in wind. In Greece, book named seats four to six weeks ahead for July and August.
Bangkas in the Philippines, longtails in Thailand, fast boats in Indonesia. These reach places ferries cannot and are booked locally, usually the day before. Take the earliest departure of the day: afternoon seas are consistently rougher.
Necessary where open ocean separates islands — Barbados to Saint Lucia, Busuanga to Cebu, Lombok to Bali. Regional Caribbean schedules are thin, so allow three hours for connections and never book the last flight of the day before an international departure.
The overlooked legs. Puerto Princesa to El Nido is five to six hours by van; Saint Lucia's airport to Soufrière is 75 minutes of mountain road. Price these into your day plan — they are frequently longer than the boat crossing that follows.
Rebook immediately for the first departure the following morning, contact your next accommodation before the cancellation becomes a no-show, and check whether a flight routing exists. This is exactly what the buffer day is for.