How to travel around Thailand easily

Each province in Thailand provides a unique atmosphere and experience. It is worthwhile to try and visit at least a few of them during your visit. From the bustling feel of Bangkok to the slower more relaxed Chiang Mai in the northern part of the country, Thailand truly has something for everyone. For that reason it’s important that you know what transportation options exist.

Thailand is surprisingly easy to travel around with several solid modes of transportation available. They have a reliable bus system, budget airlines, island ferries, and a national train system. While all of them are very affordable the bus and train are typically the cheapest. The airlines are a little higher in price but if you have time constraints, don’t like sleeper trains, or just prefer to fly it’s a great option.

Below we’ll cover some of the following travel routes:

• Bangkok to Chiang Mai -AND – Chiang Mai to Bangkok
• Bangkok to Krabi -AND – Krabi to Bangkok
• Bangkok to Phuket -AND – Phuket to Bangkok
• Krabi to Koh Phi Phi Ferry and Phuket to Koh Phi Phi Ferry

Thailand Travel Tools

The two sites below are useful if you like to book things ahead of time. They were both reliable for us and helped us get around Thailand easily.

Baolau – Travel Booking Site

Baolau is a travel booking company, like Expedia, but for Asia. We found that it was really easy to use for booking trains ahead of time. Once you are actually in Thailand, you can book tickets at the train station to save yourself the service fee that Baolau charges. But if you’re like me and prefer to know you have everything booked and ready to go, Baolau worked for us. This also applies to bus travel as it can be booked on their site. Note: We only used it for trains and would probably book directly with an airline if you use it to find flights.

Expedia

Expedia was useful for booking ferries when we were in southern Thailand. This is another one where you can save yourself service fees if you book in person, but I’m a planner and like to know that my arrangements are in place. If you go to expedia.com/Activities and enter the name of the island you want to go to it should populate ferry options, if they exist. Shortly after booking we heard from the ferry company through email to coordinate pickup from our hotel.

A few common Thailand travel route options

The 4 routes described below are very common for travelers. They are mostly routes between different provinces. While these suggestions worked for us, everyone travels differently, so choose what works best for your preferences.

1. Bangkok to Chiang Mai -OR- Chiang Mai to Bangkok

Fastest Route – Taking a flight is the fastest option to get from Bangkok to Chiang Mai or vice versa. Flights to Chiang Mai take approximately 1 hour and 10 minutes, so you won’t lose much vacation time on travel. Factor in the low fares on domestic flights and it’s a pretty great option.

Cheaper Route – The Bangkok to Chiang Mai train and bus are both cheaper options, but take much longer. The train takes approximately 12-15 hours, and the bus is slightly faster. If you enjoy the experience of taking a train it’s a valid option. We took the train from Bangkok to Chiang Mai and didn’t regret the experience. That said, we flew back and will probably just fly when we go again to save time. Note: Taking the sleeper train can save you money on lodging for a night and travel when you would be sleeping anyway.

2. Bangkok to Krabi -OR- Krabi to Bangkok

Fastest Route – A flight time from Bangkok to Krabi is only 1 hour and 20 minutes making it a really convenient way to travel. As the cost wasn’t too much more we gladly chose this option, so we could spend more time exploring Krabi and Ao Nang.

Cheaper Route – You can take the overnight train from Bangkok to Surat Thani which takes approximately 8-9 hours. From there you will need to take a 2 hour bus ride to Krabi or Ao Nang, depending on where you are staying.

3. Bangkok to Phuket -OR- Phuket to Bangkok

Fastest Route – The flight time is approximately 1 hour and 30 minutes. If time is limited, this is the option I would select.

Cheaper Route – Similar to the route from Bangkok to Krabi, you can take an overnight train from Bangkok to Surat Thani. Then catch a bus from there to Phuket which will take approximately 4 hours and 30 minutes.

4. Ferries to and from Koh Phi Phi

We used Expedia activities to book a ferry from Krabi to Koh Phi Phi and then from Koh Phi Phi to Phuket. It was simple to book and we didn’t encounter any issues. It’s likely we paid a little more than we would have if we booked in person, but ultimately the ease of use was worth it. The ferry ride took approximately 2 hours.

This same method of booking ferries should work for most of the islands that have ferries.

While these methods of travel worked well for us in Thailand, everyone has their own preferences. Using the tools above, and the easy transportation options, you should be able to get around Thailand easily!