Thailand has one of the best metre-gauge rail systems in the world, and train travel is easily the best way to get around & see the country. Train travel in Thailand is comfortable, safe, cheap, environmentally friendly. And unlike flying, it's a genuine Thai experience making the journey as much a part of your trip as the destination. Taking the train is easily the best way to travel between Bangkok & Chiang Mai, a train+ferry combo is the best way from Bangkok to Ko Samui, and a train+bus combo is the best way from Bangkok to Krabi or Phuket. Heading for Laos? Take the new Bangkok-Vientiane train. Taking the train is also a wonderful way to travel between Bangkok, Penang, Kuala Lumpur & Singapore, the 1,249-mile journey to Singapore takes 48 hours & costs a mere $60/£40 or so one-way including a sleeper berth for both nights. This page has schedules & fares for key train routes in Thailand, and explains how to buy tickets both within & from outside Thailand. On this page you'll find:
(1) Train times & fares for the most popular routes...
Bangkok - Nong Khai (for Vientiane, see the Laos page)
Bangkok - Aranyaprathet (for Phnom Penh & Siem Reap in Cambodia)
Bangkok - Samut Songkhram the Mahachai Mae Khlong Market train
(2) Bus & ferry links...
(3) General information for train travel in Thailand...
(4) International trains & buses from Thailand...
Bangkok to Cambodia (Siem Reap, Angkor Wat, Phnom Penh) by train & bus
Bangkok to Laos (Vientiane) by train New direct train service!
State railways of Thailand website, www.railway.co.th.
You can check train times in Thailand at the Thai Railways website, www.railway.co.th. They completely revamped their website in March 2011, and it's now easy to check train times and fares online. It can help to know that 'Northern Line' means the line to Chiang Mai, 'Southern Line' means the line south to Surat Thani and Hat Yai, also the line to Kanchanaburi & the River Kwai. The Thai Railways main website doesn't sell tickets, so to buy tickets, see the advice here.
Download English-language PDF train timetable & train guide for Thailand...
Thai rail expert Dave Bernstein has produced a superb PDF format timetable for the State Railway of Thailand which you can download, print out and take with you to help you travel around Thailand. It features timetables for all the main routes in English, fares, refund & ticket purchase arrangements, details of bus/ferry connections and much more. Highly recommended! There is now also a summary version showing just the principal trains between major stations, without the local trains or bus & ferry links, download here.
New Bangkok Airport rail link: http://airportraillink.railway.co.th or www.bangkokairporttrain.com
A modern rail link between Suvarnabhumi airport and central Bangkok opened on 23 August 2010, see http://airportraillink.railway.co.th or www.bangkokairporttrain.com. Trains now run between the airport and the City Air terminal at Makkasan ('Makkasan Express') every 30 minutes, journey time 15 minutes, fare 90 baht (£2 or $3) and between the airport and the city centre at Phaya Thai Skytrain station ('Phaya Thai express') every 30 minutes, journey time 17 minutes, fare 90 baht (£2 or $3). There is interchange stations with the MRT (metro) at Phetchaburi station and with the Skytrain at Phaya Thai station. It does not directly serve Bangkok's main Hualamphong station. State Railways of Thailand trains between Bangkok and Ayutthaya, Chiang Mai & Nong Khai (for Vientiane in Laos) call at Don Muang station, right next to the old Bangkok Airport, about 50 minutes (22 km) from central Bangkok. However, most commercial flights were transferred from the original Dong Muang Bangkok Airport to the new Bangkok Suvarnabhumi Airport in September 2006.
