In April we had a holiday and decided to go down to the beach. To save money we took the night train to Bangkok. From there the third class train to Cha Am. Going by train slows the journey down a lot. Time to read, play games and just relax. The trains are pretty old and noisy. You can order meals on the trains and the staff is very friendly.
If you really have to go on the toilet you can be sure to have quite an adventure. The trains remind me of the very old trains we used to ride back when I was a child in Switzerland. Those trains are not in use anymore back in my home country.
The journey from Chiang Mai to Bangkok takes about 12 hours for the 900km. Sometimes more because of delays. To go to Cha Am we took a 3rd. class train. We paid 160 Baht for five people and it took us nearly five hours to get there. The train stopped everywhere. There are station which are not even on the train table. People who hop on the train for several stations would come by to sell their foods and drinks. The windows are open, it’s hot, noisy and very exhausting. Still it was worth for the adventure and the experience.
I hope Thailand will be able to improve their train system and upgrade the long distance lines with new trains and tracks. It is a nice and comfortable way to travel.
Sounds like a great adventure and you really did get your money’s worth, didn’t you?