Hi there -

My friend and I are looking to travel north from Thailand's Krabi Province to Chiang Mai on the 28 Feb of this year. With flights that need to stop in Bangkok, is it worth trying a bus trip to Bangkok and then flying from Bangkok to Chiang Mai or a bus from Bangkok to Chiang Mai, having flown to Bangkok? Is a train possible?

Does anyone have a better suggestion then simply another plane trip? We are trying to stick to a humble budget if possible.

Thanks so much!

I would fly from Krabi to Bangkok and then take either the train or bus to Chiang Mai. The driving time, in a car and much slower for a bus, will take about 10 hours from Krabi to Bangkok. The roads are not as flat nor straight as the Bangkok to Chiang Mai route which will only take about 7 - 8 hours.

As an alternative have you check out the many low cost air lines? Air Asia, Nok Air and One Two Go have very low air fares.

fly,fly fly

Here are your options to consider

Krabi to Bangkok - Bus will take around 12hrs and cost 710 baht for VIP bus. Flying with Air Asia when booked well in advance can be about 1283 net.

Bangkok to Chiang Mai - Bus 10hrs and 625 baht. Train 2nd class a/c lower berth 791 baht. Air Asia 1176 net

I would fly to BK and then take the overnight night train to CM.

Hi - thanks you for your responses. We have some choices, and exciting ones. And Scotters, an overnight train trip sounds pretty good! Thanks again!

Hi Scotters -

What is the best way to book an overnight train - on the ground when we arrive? Do you book directly at the train station or through an intermediary?

Best Regards.

Firstly the fare of 791 I quoted was for a upper berth. Lower is 881 sorry about that. There are 3 ways to get your train ticket.

If you are going to be in Bangkok a few days before your train date then go to the main train station Hualamphong (the subway goes right there) and go to the advanced booking office to get your tickets. This should be fine as long as you are not traveling on weekends or holidays. If so you need to make it earlier.

Have one of the following agents do it for you at a fee and payment in advance http://www.asia-discovery.com/train.htm or
http://www.traveller2000.com/train/
Do it yourself by either e-mail [email protected] or by faxing the State Railway of Thailand's Advance Booking Office at 66 2 225 6068 (24 hours), their phone no is 66 2 220 4202 (open 0830 to 1630 Bangkok time Mon to Fri). Provide them with all the information possible, destination, train no, departure time, type of train (special express/express/rapid), class of accommodation (1st/2nd class), seat or sleeper (upper/lower berth), number of tickets ( you can get this information at their web site http://www.railway.co.th/English/Time_HTML.asp) and your e-mail address. The e-mail that you should receive back will only confirm your seat/sleep reservation for your specified train and will provides details on how to purchase the tickets upon your arrival in Thailand. The usual procedure is to go to the advanced booking office at the main train station, present the email confirmation and then pay for the ticket. There is a deadline for picking them up, approximately an hour before your train departure, or else the reservation will be cancelled. You must book 15 days before departure or up to 60 days in advance. There is a charge of 200 baht per booking. Note that ssing the e-mail can take some time for a reply. Faxing usuall gets quicker results

Thanks Scotters.

I could get lost reading all of these wonderful and helpful posts.