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.

Travelling the other way? Check out our guide for taking the train from Ayutthaya to Bangkok.

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Route map and details

There are two possible departure points from Bangkok, either Hualamphong (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

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 including Ayutthaya on their schedule. They start from the newer station in Bangkok, Krung Thep Aphiwat Central 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).

Train No.	Hualamphong	Ayutthaya
303	04:15	05:48
339	05:05	06:44
201	10:15	12:14
209	11:15	12:57
233	12:00	13:38
211	12:55	14:34
207	14:20	16:07
301	16:30	18:23
341	17:00	18:52
317	17:30	19:12
313	18:20	20:08

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.

Train No.	Krung Thep Aphiwat	Ayutthaya
SP21	06:10	06:58
RP135	07:10	08:27
SP7	07:30	08:21
RP111	07:50	08:57
EX75	08:45	09:41
EX71	10:35	11:30
RP109	14:15	15:18
RP145	15:50	16:56
SP9	18:40	19:43
EX77	19:05	20:03
RP139	19:25	20:25
SP13	20:05	21:07
SP25	20:25	21:38
RP107	20:45	21:48
SP23	21:05	22:01
RP133	21:25	22:29
EX67	22:05	23:03
EX51	22:30	23:36
RP141	23:05	00:16

How to buy tickets

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

The Ordinary/Commuter trains cannot be booked in advance and must be purchased from the station on the day of travel. These trains can’t sell out and you won’t be assigned a seat, instead you find an available one and enjoy 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, tickets must be pre-booked and you’ll be assigned a seat. The only confusion is that Thai Railways don’t open bookings for this short journey until the day before travel, so you’ll need to be slightly organised. To compound this, tickets (usually) can’t be booked online on the day of travel either, so you’ll need to purchase from the station in that case.

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 a non-AC second class seat, 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.

Class	Cost (THB)
Second class seat (A/C)	240
Second class seat	60
Third class seat	20

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