Bangkok Journals

Roaming Bangkok

Best of IgoUgo

A travel journal to Bangkok by SeenThat

Hualampong: Bangkok Railway Station Photo - Bangkok, Thailand

Quote: On traveling options in Bangkok

46 Photos

Bangkok's New Suvarnabhumi International Airport

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Bangkok's Suvarnabhumi International Airport Photo - Bangkok, Thailand

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By the end of September 2006 the old Don Muang airport in Bangkok was closed and the Suvarnabhumi International Airport was inaugurated. In this trip to Thailand I had arrived at the first and departed from the second, and had thus the opportunity to check out the new airport and the way leading to it.The days of cheap rides to the airport with bus number three are definitely gone since Suvarnabhumi is located in the southeastern suburbs of Bangkok, an area which was u...Read More

By the end of September 2006 the old Don Muang airport in Bangkok was closed and the Suvarnabhumi International Airport was inaugurated. In this trip to Thailand I had arrived at the first and departed from the second, and had thus the opportunity to check out the new airport and the way leading to it.

The days of cheap rides to the airport with bus number three are definitely gone since Suvarnabhumi is located in the southeastern suburbs of Bangkok, an area which was undeveloped until now and was not served by the regular lines. The old Airport Bus service is still available at the same cost (beginning at B100 - around $3) from the same stops around town to the new airport, but this has always been an expensive option.

Several regular air-conditioned buses lines were added to serve the new terminal, the most convenient one is bus 556. It leaves from the main entrance of the lottery building on Ratchadamnoen Avenue, just next to Khaosan Road. Being a new and unknown line, the buses travel almost empty; and the day of my trip I shared it with just one couple. It has very few stops in town and then it travels most of the way through an impressive network of highways. The trip costs just B35 (about one dollar) and after leaving the Khaosan Road area travels through the Din Daeng Rama IX Highway.

In the early afternoon the access to the highway was rather slow and the trip took a full hour. However, it was an attractive ride offering unusual views of Bangkok. The new airport is located in an area of swamps and the highway support columns rising out of the water are quite a view.

The new complex is huge and much work has been done to ensure a smooth access to it. All the buses arriving from Bangkok stop at a special bus terminal, from where free shuttles leave to the airport terminus. The arrangement is simple: the shuttles leave from bays placed across the arrival bays and are painted in a bright yellow color. The shuttles have a circular path along the complex and passengers board and leave at all the stops; they get very crowded thus it is wise to sit next to the doors, a location that allows a clear sight of the signs marking the terminus.

Finding the shuttle was the easy part. Inside it I discovered what seemed to be a code of number for the different stops (domestic, international; arrivals, departures) and I happily waited for the right number to appear. Surprisingly, the clearly numbered areas of the huge terminal building had no relation to the numbers appearing in the bus. After a fifteen minutes ride, I left the bus, entered the terminal at a random place and completed a mini-marathon to my check-in window. In that aspect, very little changed since the old days; the departure is an orderly affair, the departure tax is still B500 and leftover local money can be exchanged just next to the departure tax window and after that in the duty free shopping area.

After having seen the Singapore and Hong Kong new airports I thought that Suvarnabhumi would have a hard time to impress me, but I was proven wrong. I quickly forgot the unclear signs and was overwhelmed not only by the size of the building, but mainly by its elegance. It was built to resemble huge connecting oval tunnels and it imparts mainly a feeling of being a lightweight, floating, well-lighted structure. Wooden pagodas adorn its interior and in the day of my visit traditional Thai puppet shows were performed at one of the main junctions. Suddenly, the awaiting flight became a secondary issue.
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Boats

Chao Phraya Express Boat

Attraction | "The Chao Phraya Express Boat Company"

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Few methods of mass transport are as attractive as a speed boat roaming the main river splitting a town. In Bangkok, the Chao Phraya Express Boat Company provides five routes of public transport along the Chao Phraya River. Some of the lines offered are rather crowded and getting good views in them is a bit difficult, but if choosing the more expensive lines near the beginning or ending of their operation times, finding seats is easy.The LinesThe five different lines can be differentiated by the small triangular flags placed at th...Read More

Member Rating 5 out of 5 on February 18, 2009

Chao Phraya Express Boat
78/24-29 Maharaj Rd.
Bangkok 10200
+66(0) 2222-5330

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Chao Phraya River

Attraction | "Roaming the Chao Praya River"

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The leaded fuel used in Bangkok is the responsible for the sweet-smell of the metropolis smog. Over time I’d learned to cherish it since it is a sign of my being in a loved place.However, breathing fresh air is imperative from time to time. Then, the Chao Praya River is the only place in Bangkok offering breeze; despite being it a weak one, it combines with the gorgeous city sights offered there to create a refreshing break while roaming Bangkok....Read More

Member Rating 5 out of 5 on January 8, 2008

Chao Phraya River

Bangkok, Thailand

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Buses

Bangkok Buses: from Yellow to Purple

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At first the idea was frightening. I couldn’t speak the language; reading it took me ages and thus I wouldn’t be able to read the signs on time. Without even considering the option, I began exploring the metropolis using other methods.After a while I changed my initial reluctance. Buses ceased being threatening; in the worst case I would find myself in a random, unknown quarter. I could always catch a taxi and return to known areas.Reinforcing the change was the fact that Bangkok is a safe city and thus buses posed no threats. The other eternal concern of a traveler - loos...Read More

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Bypassing the New Southern Bus Terminal

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Roaming Bangkok Photo - Bangkok, Thailand

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Bangkok is a big metropolis located roughly at the center of a very populated country. Thus it features an extensive network of buses connecting it with every corner of the kingdom. To avoid congesting its avenues even more, the buses use three terminals: Mo Chit serves northern and northeastern destinations, Ekamai serves the east and some northeastern destinations and Sai Tai serves the south and west. This last category includes popular destinations for travelers in the kingdom, including ...Read More

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Mo Chit Market

Attraction | "Mo Chit Bus Terminal"

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Mo Chit is Bangkok's northern bus terminal and the largest terminus in town; it serves destinations in the north, northeast and parts of Thailand's eastern coast. It is located away from the Skytrain and Metro stations of the same name, but can be approached with bus number three from near Khaosan Road and taxis. The terminal is divided into three zones. One serves buses travelling within ...Read More

Member Rating 5 out of 5 on February 18, 2009

Mo Chit Market
Mo Chit BTS Station
Bangkok, Thailand

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Trains

The BTS Skytrain

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Certain aspects of modern cities create effects and links that in the past were not possible. The Skytrain in Bangkok was built on an elevated rail crossing Bangkok high above the street level and created a virtual street connecting the main attractions in the city. Thus, a virtual street serving the denizens of a pseudo-virtual era had been mindlessly created.In any other city, the Skytrain would have been regarded as a monstrosity. However, Bangkok has its own rules. Its climate has two basic modes: sunny or cloudy and rainy. If it is sunny, the Skytrain structure successfully block...Read More

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Bangkok’s Mass Rapid Transit (MRT Subway)

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Wat Ratchanaddaram Photo - Bangkok, Thailand

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Bangkok’s Metro resembles in shape and design its older brother in Singapore. As there, the passengers are protected from the railway gap by glass walls spiced up with doors opening whenever a train arrives. The cars and stations are very similar and comparably comfortable and efficient.HistoryDue to Bangkok’s muddy underground and the 1997 economical crisis, the subway construction suffered many delays and was inaugurated only in 2004, eight years after the construction began. SpeedRoaming Bangkok at eighty kilometers per hour, the me...Read More

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Trains: Out of Bangkok through Hualampong, Bangkok Railway Station

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Four lines of trains lead out of Bangkok; they are called according to the direction they travel to: Northern, Northeastern, Eastern and Southern, the last is connected to the Malaysian railways.Hualampong: Bangkok Railway StationLocated on Rama IV Road, Rongmuang, the Bangkok Railway Station is easy to find; nowadays there is a Metro station right at its door, Bangkok's Chinatown is across the highway. The Hualampong Station was built between 1910 and 1916, and modernized in 1998; its huge hangar features short towers at its corners and is one of the best known landmarks in Bangkok.The station provides 24-hour service, including a post office, money exchange...Read More