How to get from Kanchanaburi to Bangkok to train

Kanchanaburi is one of the most popular day-trips from Bangkok, with thousands of local, regional, and international tourists arriving each year to visit the infamous Death Railway and Bridge over the River Kwai. Only a couple of hours from the capital city, many tourists travel back to Bangkok on tour buses, but the most memorable option is to take a local train from Kanchanaburi to Thonburi Station.

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

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Route map and details

Despite its status as one of the busiest and well-visited sites in the country, Kanchanaburi is only served by local trains to/from Bangkok, so it doesn’t use the main station at Krung Thep Aphiwat Central. Instead, trains arrive into Thonburi, a small commuter station just to the west of the Bangkok’s city centre.

Note that an Excursion train (weekends and public holidays only) terminates at Bangkok’s Hualamphong Station instead.

Kanchanaburi is located on the Nam Tok line, which is a branch of the main Southern Line. 140km from Bangkok, Kanchanaburi is where most of the tourist infrastructure in the area is located but many tourists choose to travel from River Kwai Bridge Station, which is directly adjacent to the bridge itself.

Trains on this line originate in Nam Tok, two hours from Kanchanaburi deep in the Thai countryside. If you have the time, travelling the whole length of the line is a fantastic experience and passes through some incredible scenery (and crosses a viaduct).

Timetables

Kanchanaburi to Thonburi

There are two trains per day from Kanchanaburi to Bangkok’s Thonburi Station:

Train No.	Kanchanaburi	Thonburi
260	07:05	09:35
258	14:43	17:40

Nam Tok / Kanchanaburi to Hualamphong

There’s also one Excursion train from Nam Tok to Bangkok’s Hualamphong station via Kanchanaburi, only running on weekends and public holidays. It’s very much aimed at tourists and includes extended stops at the main stations for sightseeing and refreshments.

Train No.	Nam Tok	Kanchanaburi	Hualamphong
910 1	14:25	16:54	19:30

How to buy tickets

Unlike most other routes in Thailand, the trains from Kanchanaburi to Bangkok cannot be bought online via the usual ticket agencies.

The official Thai Railways site might be able to sell you the tickets for the Excursion train from Nam Tok, but it can be hit and miss. As it’s a day-return ticket, you might find it easier to enquire at Hualamphong Station before you depart Bangkok as this train can sell out in advance.

For the daily train to Thonburi, you can easily buy tickets at Kanchanaburi Station on the day of travel. This train cannot sell out and it’s usually easy enough to find a seat.

Keep in mind that if you’re travelling from Nam Tok, the section from there to River Kwai Bridge Station can be busy. Many tourists use the train for this leg, and then take a tour bus back to Bangkok.

How much does it cost?

There is a flat fare for non-Thai travellers of THB100 for any station between Nam Tok – Kanchanaburi – Thonburi (third class carriages only).

The Excursion train is sold as a day-return ticket from Hualamphong to Nam Tok and costs THB120 (third class carriage).

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