How to get from Bangkok to Ayutthaya by train

Ayutthaya is one of the most fascinating cities in Thailand, with a historic centre recognised as a Unesco World Heritage site. Attracting thousands of visitors each year to its temples and heritage sights, it’s easily accessible by numerous trains from Bangkok, making for an ideal day trip from the capital.

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Route map and details

There are two possible departure points from Bangkok, either Hua Lamphong (often listed on timetables as ‘Bangkok’) and Krung Thep Aphiwat Central.

On the map below, both Bangkok stations are marked by a blue circle. Regardless of where you begin your journey, all trains to Ayutthaya use the same route north once they’ve left the city centre.

Timetables

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Bangkok to Ayutthaya is served by two different types of trains, each with their own pros and cons.

Ordinary/commuter trains runs from Bangkok’s Hualamphong station to various points along the Northern and Northeast Lines, stopping off at Ayutthaya. Cheap and full of character, these trains are used more by Thais than international visitors.

Express or Special trains are travelling long-distance, further into Northern Thailand (e.g. towards Chiang Mai) but also include Ayutthaya on their schedule. They start from the newer station in Bangkok, Krung Thep Aphiwat and lack some of the romance of the other trains, but are a significantly faster.

Hualamphong Station is more central and easy to reach than Krung Thep Aphiwat Central, which is now Bangkok’s main railway station.

Ordinary trains

There are eleven trains per day from Bangkok’s Hualamphong station to Ayutthaya (third-class seats only).

Express and Special trains

There are nineteen trains per day from Bangkok’s Krung Thep Aphiwat station to Ayutthaya with a mixture of berths and seats, although as the journey is so short, most people opt for a cheap second-class seat.

How to buy tickets

The ticket buying process for the Bangkok to Ayutthaya journey varies depending on which route you plan to take.

The Ordinary/Commuter trains cannot be booked in advance and must be purchased from Hua Lamphong station on the day of travel. These trains can’t sell out and you won’t be assigned a seat, so it’s just a case of finding an available one and enjoying the ride. As long as you’re not heading out of Bangkok during the evening rush hour, the trains should be fairly quiet.

For the long distance trains departing from Bangkok’s Krung Thep Aphiwat station, the process depends on which class you are buying:

• Some of the trains from Krung Thep Aphiwat have third class carriages. Tickets for these can only be bought on the day of travel at the station.
• Other trains have first and second class carriages, and these tickets must be pre-booked and you’ll be assigned a seat.
• However, most of the trains departing from Krung Thep Aphiwat station are long-distance services travelling hundreds of kilometres into north and north-eastern Thailand. As the leg from Bangkok to Ayutthaya is a short one (around 10% of the total route), first and second class tickets are only made available one day before departure.
• In practice, this often means that tickets are sold out before they even become available. so many travellers end up buying third-class tickets for the route.

If you do decide to book online, Baolau is the best site to use as they have access to the live Thai Railways booking engine, so you can easily see availability, timetables and prices.

Payment can be made using international credit card and PDF confirmation tickets are sent to your email address within a few minutes. This is the actual ticket you need to board the train, so there’s no need to exchange it at the station before travel. You may prefer to print the pdf out, but it’s also fine to show it on your mobile phone to the conductors and station staff.

Bangkok to Ayutthaya train tickets

How much does it cost?

As it’s such a short journey, many travellers choose either a third-class seat or a non-AC second class seat, then open the windows and enjoy the Thai countryside. If you prefer the AC carriages, second-class AC seats are available on some trains and make for a comfortable journey,

Note that if you book a sleeper berth, it’ll be in the day configuration for most services on the route. It’s best to give the sleeper berths a miss on this route and take a seat.

Suggested one day itinerary from Bangkok to Ayutthaya

If you only have one day to spare and want to visit the temples of Ayutthaya from Bangkok, it’s easy enough to do it as a day trip.

Many tourists take the early morning trains from Bangkok and try to fit in as many temples as possible. We prefer a more leisurely start from Bangkok, lunch in Ayutthaya, visit the best temples and then back in Bangkok in time for sunset and dinner.

• Ordinary Train 201 from Hua Lamphong to Ayutthaya. Departs 10.15am and arrives 12.14pm.
• If you fancy trying out second-class seats on the journey back to Bangkok, you can book your tickets at Ayutthaya when you arrive. Otherwise, buy third-class tickets later when you return to the station.
• Arrange a private songthaew from outside the station (around THB300 per hour), plan your schedule and then ask to be taken to a riverside restaurant for lunch.
• After lunch, visit the magnificent temples.
• Return to station in time for train back to Bangkok. You can either take the Ordinary train number 210 at 6.21pm, arriving back to Hua Lamphong at 8.05pm, or one of the long-distance trains back to Krung Thep Aphiwat (KTW).
• It’s pot-luck whether there are any 2nd class tickets available for the trains back to KTW so you should try and book as soon as you arrive in Ayutthaya. Suggested trains back are RP136 (4.41pm – 6.00pm) or SP8 (4.50pm
  – 5.40pm). If these are full, you always have the fall-back plan of taking the Ordinary 210 back to Hua Lamphong at 6.21pm.

What to expect onboard the Ordinary trains from Hua Lamphong

We’d strongly recommend taking the Ordinary train from Hua Lamphong to Ayutthaya. Built in 1916, Hua Lamphong was the main station in Bangkok for over a hundred years before the vast majority services were transferred to Krung Thep Aphiwat. While the newer station is undoubtedly more efficient and practical, it’ll never match the romance and majesty of Hua Lamphong, so it’s definitely worthwhile travelling from here while you still have the chance.

Unless you fancy a 5.00am start, the best train to take is Ordinary train 201 departing at 10.15am. Third-class only tickets are available and can be bought (THB15) from the ticket windows immediately on your left as you enter the station. You should ignore the offers of ‘assistance’ from the people outside the main doors who might offer to help you buy tickets: they’re on commission and will try to steer you towards more expensive options to Ayutthaya.

If you have a few minutes before boarding, check out the steam engines gracefully resting near the main platforms, a reminder of a bygone age of travel.

Train 201 is usually waiting on the platform twenty minutes before departure so you have plenty of time to find a quieter carriage. Third-class carriages in Thailand can be a mixture of seat types, ranging from a wooden bench through to padded individual seats. All carriages are fan-only with unreserved seats.

As long as you’re not taking one of the trains departing Bangkok in the evening rush hour, the carriages are usually quiet at Hua Lamphong so you’ll have choice of seats. If possible, get one that lines up with the ceiling fans and is on the left-hand side (facing direction of travel) as you’ll get some protection from the sun (assuming you’re on the 10.15am train).

Before the train starts moving, the fans struggle to make much impact on the stifling temperatures but once the whistle sounds and the train shuffles out of Hua Lamphong, the breeze enters via the open windows and cools everything down (to a degree).

What are the toilets like?

They’re actually ok, a mixture of Asian and Western style, both of which dispose waste directly onto the tracks.

Catering options

Although there isn’t a catering car attached to the train, you won’t be short of food or drink options, with a never-ending set of vendors walking up and down the aisle. Food options include crisps, biscuits, pad kra pao, chicken and rice, doughnuts and other sweet items. Cold drinks are available too, stored in ice buckets to keep them cool.

As with everywhere else on the Thai railway network, alcohol is prohibited.

Expect to pay around THB55 for a rice dish, and THB10-20 for soft drinks.

Journey description

The first few kilometres are stop-start but mesmerising, especially if it’s your first time on a local train in Bangkok. Passing by ramshackle buildings, rubbish tips, skyscrapers, level-crossings, rivers and luxury shopping malls, it’s a chance to see every side of Bangkok from a unique vantage point. Part of the appeal is the slow progress, taking a long time to break free from the immediate surroundings of Hua Lamphong. After several minutes, you might spot Krung Thep Aphiwat station out of the right-hand window, all twenty-first century function and design, ready for the planned expansion of Thailand’s network.

But for now you’re still able to enjoy Thailand’s original network and rolling stock as the train makes its way slowly but surely towards Ayutthaya, filling up with passengers at every station until most seats are taken. An hour or so out of the capital, the buildings and suburbs finally recede from view, replaced with open views and increased speed, the carriages cooling down with each passing kilometre.

Two hours after departure, the train arrives into Ayutthaya’s pretty station, from where it’s only a short songthaew ride to the famous temples.