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A
COMPREHENSIVE GUIDE TO TRAVELLING - TRANSPORT
IN GAY THAILAND
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Bangkok is notorious for the huge volume of traffic and traffic jams, but this has eased slightly over the years with the introduction of the elevated monorail, the Skytrain, which currently has two lines running above Bangkok's central areas and provides a much quicker and easier alternative to the bus. The Bangkok Metro, established in 2004, has one route and covers areas not connected by the Skytrain. The Metro intersects with the Skytrain at three points and has 18 stations, with frequent services running until midnight. The extensive bus system has always been the main form of public transport, and they are the cheapest, most frequent mode of travel around the city
, but they should be used with care due to pickpockets and bag slashers taking advantage of the squash. The easiest, fastest and most interesting way to get around is on the waterways of the Chao Phraya River where numerous river taxis, long-tail boats and large waterbuses make most tourist sites easily reachable for about Bt10. Tuk tuks (colourful three-wheelers) are the standard way of making short journeys and are cheaper and quicker than regular taxis, but fares should be negotiated before boarding. Metered and un-metered taxis are air-conditioned, but be aware that drivers don't carry much change. Any taxi or tuk tuk can be hired for a day's tour of the sights (Bt500-800). If in a desperate rush during gridlock, motorcycle taxis can be hired, which are cheaper and faster, but passengers will need nerves of steel, and they should only be used for short distances. They can be recognised by the colourful, numbered vests worn by drivers
Getting to gay
Bangkok City usually starts at the airport. If you arrive
alone, your best way of going into town is using the airport
bus. It leaves to
different destinations like Sukhumvit Road, Silom Road. Buses
to a particular destinations leave about every 30 minutes, so
you may have to wait a little bit. The buses are very
comfortable and safe. Tickets are priced at 100 baht into
town, a little less when taking the bus in town to the
airport.
When not alone, taking a metered taxi will cost you around
250-300 baht (that would include highway tolls). It is
difficult to use a metered taxi if you have a lot of luggage.
Limousine cars are more spacious, but costs around 500-650
baht for the trip.
When booking a
hotel in Bangkok, it is beneficial to be located close to a skytrain
station (Sukhumvit Road, Silom),
or the recently completed subway
line. When getting to
destinations, the best way then is taking the skytrain or
subway to the station closest to your destination, and take a
bus or taxi from there. For young people, who like the action,
and are interested in visiting the Rattanakosin area (with the
Grand Palace, Wat Phrakaew, Wat Pho and much more), we would
suggest a hotel or guesthouse location at Khao San road. The
environment there is noisy and vibrant, be aware of illegal
substances though, and it will safe you a lot of time getting
to the above destinations, it is mostly within walking
distance, and you can take a brake midday at the place where
you stay.
Taxis are
plentiful, sometimes it looks like half of all the cars on the
streets in Bangkok are taxis.
Even in the middle of the night,
and in remote sidestreets, you will easily flag down a taxi.
Prices are unbelievably cheap, starting at 40 baht for a trip
up to 3 km. Drivers though trend to race down the streets if
there is no traffic jam. Telling them to slow down will
usually not work very well.
Buses are
also plentiful but less comfortable, except for the yellow
EURO-buses. Of
course, they are much safer in case of an accident. Prices are
cheap, but vary a lot, depending on the type of bus (airconditioned
or not), from 3.5 baht up to more than 20 baht per trip. Bus
maps can easily be found at virtually all bookshops.
It is not a
good idea to drive your own car
in Bangkok. The number of car
accidents is astounding, with unofficial numbers putting the
death toll at close to 30,000 per year. Most accidents occur
outside the capital, because the highways and the secondary
roads upcountry allow even more for dangerous driving
practices. Bangkok itself is dangerous enough though. There
are an incredible number of motorcycles moving in between cars
in the streets. If you are not used to this, beware. Thai car
drivers have no concept of defensive driving and quite
obviously value their own life as low. The main problem is
excessive risk taking, as a result of unrestrained male
hormones since birth. In case of an accident, you will find
(if still conscious), that a lot or car drivers are not or
insufficiently insured, and that it is very difficult indeed
to get to a hospital in due time. So we advise strongly
against using a car for the above reasons. If you have the
money available, using a car to get to destinations outside
Bangkok, and to the countryside, is quite comfortable, and
will get you to places difficult to access by public transport
without significant time delays. However, be very careful on
the roads!
For well done schedules of different busroutes, visit
www.bmta.co.th
The skytrain
and the new subway
are major improvements for
getting around in Bangkok, though they do not cover all
destinations. Only a few lines have been built, with
extensions planned but slow to be constructed. Compared to
road traffic, getting to a destination on the skyway of subway
lines, will be much, much faster, than by car or public
transport.
The main train
line in Thailand is
between Bangkok and up north to Chiangmai. There is also a
line to Kanchanaburi, and to Khorat and up to Udon Thani, Nong
Khai, and to the south. The lines are there, but the trains
are very slow (average speed around 60 km per hour) There are
overnight trains to Chiang Mai and the Northeast with sleeping
facilities. Except for third class trains, the trains are not
fancy but comfortable enough. Of course, train travel is safe
and also cheap in Thailand. Using the nighttrains, you will of
course miss the scenery.
Air travel is
unusually cheap in Thailand (but you lose a lot of time
getting to the airport of course). Prices from Bangkok
to Gay Phuket or Chiang Mai, are around 100 dollars two
way. At the time there are many new startup airlines in
Thailand, besides Thai Airways. So there is a lot of
competition, and even with the recent high oil prices, prices
seem to go down, rather than up.
Buses are
available from Bangkok to
all major cities in Thailand. There are different bus stations
covering the North and Northeast (Moo Chit bus station), the
South, and the East (Pattaya, at Ekamai Bus Station).
Ekamai bus station is located at the skytrain station with the
same name. You can reach Moo Chit bus station for destinations
up north, by taking the skytrain to Moo Chit, and take a taxi
from there (the bus station is still quite a few kilometers
away). You will be required to store your main luggage into
the luggage compartment. While in general it is safe enough,
be careful not to keep valuables in your main luggage. Bus
fares, are again, very low. If you have the time, take a look
at the buses first before buying a ticket. Many bus companies
serve the same major destinations. Prices may vary little, but
some airconditioned buses are much more spacious and newer
than others.
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BAHT BUSES
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The Infamous Baht Buses of Pattaya. The Philippines have
the Jeepnee, we have the Baht Bus. The Fare is 10 or 20
Baht for "In Route" and 50 to 100 Baht after
bargaining for a "Hired" ride. But many
Tourists have complained of over charging by more than a
few drivers of these modified pick-up trucks. Please Set
the Price in Advance and have correct change. We
STRONGLY suggest you smile and be overly friendly when
bargaining with the drivers. A Good Attitude will Return
the Same. If you yell and get angry expect the same or
worse in return. You will learn how to use them in a few
days and they really are a bargain for the money. For
"In Route" just jump on without saying
anything and hit the Bell Switch on the Roof to Stop.
Get off and give the CORRECT Change.
Note: If you experience a problem with a Baht Bus
driver, remember its number and complain to: Pattaya
City Manager # 429-216, Banglamung District Baht Bus
Cooperative # 221-271 or # 423-554.
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There are many types of buses in Thailand, and in
Bangkok in particular! On the left hand side you see a
"normal" bus in Bangkok. It doesn't have
air-conditioning and is extremely cheap. Nevertheless it
is comfortable enough, if you take them outside the rush
hours, as you can see on the right hand side picture.
"Normal" buses come in several colors, but red
ones are the most common ones.
Bus routes are shown by area of the city that you want
to go to/from. Obviously, buses run their routes in both
directions, so it's worth checking that the bus is going
where you think it is when you get on. Don't worry if
you don't recognise where to get off, the conductor will
invariably tell you (if you've told them where you're
going). If not, ask other passengers, who are normally
very helpful.
There has been a recent change in the numbering of
the buses - This is the sensible decision to put a
number 5 in front of all the aircon buses, to avoid them
having the same number as the non-aircon buses which may
run a completely different route. Therefore, aircon bus
number 11 is now bus 511 and so on.
http://www.into-asia.com/bangkok/buses/
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STREET BUSES
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THE SKYTRAIN - BTS
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an extremely useful way of getting about. There's a
central station located at Siam square, and two lines:
the 17km Sukhumvit line, which stretches from Sukhumvit
Soi 81, all the way up to Mo Chit. The 6.5km Silom line
from the National Stadium down south to Saphan Taksin
along Silom and Sathorn roads. While the Siam
station is undoubtedly the hub of the skytrain, the
stations at Asoke and Sala Daeng are also main
stations due to being interchange stations with the
subway
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The State Railways of Thailand are easily the best way
to get around and see the country - train travel in
Thailand is comfortable, safe, cheap, environmentally
friendly, and unlike flying, it's a genuine Thai
experience that makes the journeys as much part of your
trip as the destinations... In fact, Thailand has
one of the best metre-gauge rail systems in the world
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THAI
RAILWAYS
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TUK TUKS
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So named because of the sound of their engine, these are
motorized rickshaws and are popular amongst tourists for
their novelty value. They are occasionally faster than
taxis in heavy traffic as weaving in and out is easier,
but generally about the same or slower. Without any
luggage, 3 people can fit into one fairly comfortably -
it's possible to fit more in but it gets a bit cramped.
Fares always have to be bargained for
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Perhaps the easiest and most comfortable way to get
around, if not always the quickest, is by the aircon taxi.
These come in quite a few different colours though the
green-yellow and red-blue ones are the most common.
Bangkok has thousands of taxis, and finding one at any
time is never a problem. The occasional exception to
this is during a monsoon season downpour. By
international standards they're very cheap too,
meaning at night when there's not much traffic they're
definitely the best way of getting around.
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TAXI METERS
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THAILANDS AIRPORTS
SUVARNABHUMI ( SU WAN NA POOM)
-A ND DON MUANG BANGKOK
Thailand has 2 international airports and many
smaller regional airports such as ubon Ratchathani &
Udon Thani - you can also fly direct to some islands -
Koh Samui & Phuket.
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