After many days of fact finding on Pattaya for my Fireworks trip, I discovered that as Pattaya is a tourist city well-liked by both Thais and foreigners with a lot of visitors traveling there each year, there are, therefore, various ways of getting there such as by taxi, by bus, by train, or even by airplane. Today I would like to tell you briefly some popular ways you can travel to Pattaya, and as Bangkok is the usual center where we begin our trips, this is where we shall start our journey -- from Bangkok to Pattaya.
Bus
The first way to go to Pattaya is by bus. This is convenient and popular because no matter which Bus Terminal you find yourself at (in Bangkok there are 3 main Bus Terminals: the Ekamai Bus Terminal, the Mo Chit 2 Bus Terminal and the new Bangkok Bus Terminal (South)) the buses run to Pattaya nearly every hour from morning to evening at the cost of approximately 120 Baht (US$ 4).
Or if you are just arriving in an airplane at Suvarnabhumi Airport you don’t even have to come into the city but can just take a bus straight on to Pattaya at the cost of 134 Baht (approx. US$ 4.5). However, if you are coming on a domestic flight the airplane will land at Don Muang Airport and, unfortunately; there is no direct bus transport to Pattaya and you will have to go to the nearby Mo Chit 2 Bus Terminal and go to Pattaya from there.
For your return trip you will be able to choose to come back from Pattaya to any of these three Bus Terminals in Bangkok.
Taxi
The second way I would recommend is by taxi because after you get down from your flight you can use the airport taxi service to go direct to Pattaya. The fare will mostly be according to what is agreed in advance between you and the taxi driver (a fixed rate). Usually, the taxi fare from Suvarnabhumi Airport to Pattaya is around 1,000 – 1,500 Baht (approx. US$33 - US$50). The fare of 1,000 – 1,500 Baht is also applicable for Don Muang Airport to Pattaya (also depending on your negotiation skills). Otherwise, if you hire a taxi from anywhere else in Bangkok to go to Pattaya the fare should not be more than 2,000 Baht (approx. US$67).
Taxi fare to return to Bangkok from Pattaya will also be approximately 1,000 – 1,500 Baht (US$33 - US$50) depending on where you want the taxi driver to drop you off in Bangkok.
Van
Going to Pattaya by van is a convenient and quick way to travel. There are many places to get on a van to go to Pattaya at different costs, and the most popular place seems to be at the Victory Monument (a one-way ticket Victory Monument-Pattaya is approximately 100 Baht per person (US$ 3.33)). If you, however, have a large baggage which cannot be placed on your lap, you may be liable to buy an extra place beside you for your baggage.
(In my opinion, however, vans going upcountry are driven much too fast and I would not recommend it for any long-distance travel upcountry).
Train
Traveling to Pattaya by train is another way to keep down your travel budget; however, you have to bear in mind that it takes much longer than any other mode of travel. The train going to Pattaya from Bangkok is the Eastern Line train and runs only once per day in the early morning. At my latest check on 22 November 2013, Train No. 283 runs from Bangkok Station (BKK) to Ban Phlu Ta Luang Station (BTG), departing Bangkok Station at 06:55 a.m. and arriving at Pattaya Station around 10:35 a.m. This train operates only from Monday to Friday, so if you want to go to Pattaya on Saturday or Sunday you’d better choose some other mode of travel.
As for the return trip, a train going to Bangkok will arrive at Pattaya Station around 2:20 p.m., and same as the trip from Bangkok to Pattaya, this train operates only from Monday to Friday.
In case you require additional information or want to check the timetable, this can be done through the State Railway of Thailand Website.
Airplane
In addition to Suvarnabhumi Airport, there is another airport situated near Pattaya called U-Tapao-Rayong-Pattaya International Airport (commonly called U-Tapao Airport) at which you can land to get to Pattaya although only a few airlines land on this airport, like Bangkok Airways flying in from Phuket and Koh Samui. International flights are generally chartered flights but most normal flights will land at Suvarnabhumi Airport.
For my mode of transport to Pattaya this time I choose… train. This is because I would like a change of atmosphere for my travel ;) and if there is nothing untoward affecting this trip (such as a depression which has been passing through Thailand a lot lately and would mean a cancellation of my trip), then I will certainly have plenty of photos to share with you on my return. :)
Bus
The first way to go to Pattaya is by bus. This is convenient and popular because no matter which Bus Terminal you find yourself at (in Bangkok there are 3 main Bus Terminals: the Ekamai Bus Terminal, the Mo Chit 2 Bus Terminal and the new Bangkok Bus Terminal (South)) the buses run to Pattaya nearly every hour from morning to evening at the cost of approximately 120 Baht (US$ 4).
Or if you are just arriving in an airplane at Suvarnabhumi Airport you don’t even have to come into the city but can just take a bus straight on to Pattaya at the cost of 134 Baht (approx. US$ 4.5). However, if you are coming on a domestic flight the airplane will land at Don Muang Airport and, unfortunately; there is no direct bus transport to Pattaya and you will have to go to the nearby Mo Chit 2 Bus Terminal and go to Pattaya from there.
For your return trip you will be able to choose to come back from Pattaya to any of these three Bus Terminals in Bangkok.
Taxi
The second way I would recommend is by taxi because after you get down from your flight you can use the airport taxi service to go direct to Pattaya. The fare will mostly be according to what is agreed in advance between you and the taxi driver (a fixed rate). Usually, the taxi fare from Suvarnabhumi Airport to Pattaya is around 1,000 – 1,500 Baht (approx. US$33 - US$50). The fare of 1,000 – 1,500 Baht is also applicable for Don Muang Airport to Pattaya (also depending on your negotiation skills). Otherwise, if you hire a taxi from anywhere else in Bangkok to go to Pattaya the fare should not be more than 2,000 Baht (approx. US$67).
Taxi fare to return to Bangkok from Pattaya will also be approximately 1,000 – 1,500 Baht (US$33 - US$50) depending on where you want the taxi driver to drop you off in Bangkok.
Van
Going to Pattaya by van is a convenient and quick way to travel. There are many places to get on a van to go to Pattaya at different costs, and the most popular place seems to be at the Victory Monument (a one-way ticket Victory Monument-Pattaya is approximately 100 Baht per person (US$ 3.33)). If you, however, have a large baggage which cannot be placed on your lap, you may be liable to buy an extra place beside you for your baggage.
(In my opinion, however, vans going upcountry are driven much too fast and I would not recommend it for any long-distance travel upcountry).
Train
Traveling to Pattaya by train is another way to keep down your travel budget; however, you have to bear in mind that it takes much longer than any other mode of travel. The train going to Pattaya from Bangkok is the Eastern Line train and runs only once per day in the early morning. At my latest check on 22 November 2013, Train No. 283 runs from Bangkok Station (BKK) to Ban Phlu Ta Luang Station (BTG), departing Bangkok Station at 06:55 a.m. and arriving at Pattaya Station around 10:35 a.m. This train operates only from Monday to Friday, so if you want to go to Pattaya on Saturday or Sunday you’d better choose some other mode of travel.
As for the return trip, a train going to Bangkok will arrive at Pattaya Station around 2:20 p.m., and same as the trip from Bangkok to Pattaya, this train operates only from Monday to Friday.
In case you require additional information or want to check the timetable, this can be done through the State Railway of Thailand Website.
Airplane
In addition to Suvarnabhumi Airport, there is another airport situated near Pattaya called U-Tapao-Rayong-Pattaya International Airport (commonly called U-Tapao Airport) at which you can land to get to Pattaya although only a few airlines land on this airport, like Bangkok Airways flying in from Phuket and Koh Samui. International flights are generally chartered flights but most normal flights will land at Suvarnabhumi Airport.
For my mode of transport to Pattaya this time I choose… train. This is because I would like a change of atmosphere for my travel ;) and if there is nothing untoward affecting this trip (such as a depression which has been passing through Thailand a lot lately and would mean a cancellation of my trip), then I will certainly have plenty of photos to share with you on my return. :)
No comments:
Post a Comment