BANGKOK
BANGKOK8BANGKOKGETTING AROUNDutes, 150B). Makkasan, also known as Bangkok
City Air Terminal (Map p 56 ), is a short walk from
MRT Phetchaburi, and if you arrive at least three
hours before your departure, also has check-in
facilities for two diff erent airlines (Thai Airways
and Lufthansa). Both train lines run from 6am
to midnight.
The Airport Rail Link is located on fl oor B1 of
Suvarnabhumi Airport.
TA XI As you exit the terminal, ignore the touts
and all the signs pointing you to ‘offi cial airport
taxis’ (which cost 700B fl at); instead, descend
to the 1st fl oor to join the generally fast-moving
queue for a public taxi. Cabs booked through
these desks should always use their meter,
but they often try their luck so insist by saying,
‘Meter, please’. Typical metered fares from
the airport are as follows: 200B to 250B to
Th Sukhumvit; 250B to 300B to Th Khao San;
500B to Mo Chit. Toll charges (paid by the pas-
sengers) vary between 25B and 45B. Note also
that there’s an additional 50B surcharge added
to all fares departing from the airport, payable
directly to the driver.
DON MUANG AIRPORT
There are no longer any express airport buses
to/from Don Muang.
BUS Slow, crowded public bus 59 stops on the
highway in front of the airport and carries on
to Banglamphu, passing Th Khao San and the
Democracy Monument; luggage is not allowed.
Air-conditioned buses are faster, and you might
actually get a seat. Useful routes with air-
conditioned buses:
Bus 510 Victory Monument and Southern bus
terminal.
Bus 513 Th Sukhumvit and Eastern bus
terminal.
Bus 29 Northern bus terminal, Victory Monu-
ment, Siam Square and Hua Lamphong train
station.
TA XI As at Suvarnabhumi, public taxis leave
from outside the arrivals hall and there is a 50B
airport charge added to the meter fare. A trip
to Banglamphu, including airport change and
tollway fees, will set you back about 400B. The
fare will be slightly less for a trip to Sukhumvit
or Silom.
TRAIN The walkway that crosses from Terminal
1 to the Amari Airport Hotel also provides access
to Don Muang train station, which has trains to
Hua Lamphong train station every one to 1½
hours from 4am to 11.30am and then roughly
every hour from 2pm to 9.30pm (3rd-class 5B to
10B, one hour). Boat
Once the city’s dominant form of transport, pub-
lic boats still survive along the mighty Mae Nam
Chao Phraya and on a few interior klorng.
CANAL ROUTES
Over the years boat services along Bangkok
and Thonburi’s klorng have diminished, but with
mounting traffi c woes there may be plans to
revive these water networks. For now, canal taxi
boats run along Khlong Saen Saeb (Banglamphu
to Ramkhamhaeng) and are an easy way to get
from Banglamphu to Jim Thompson House, the
Siam Square shopping centres (get off at Tha
Hua Chang for both), and other points further
east along Sukhumvit – after a mandatory
change of boat at Tha Pratunam. These boats
are mostly used by daily commuters and pull
into the piers for just a few seconds – jump
straight on or you’ll be left behind. Fares range
from 9B to 21B and boats run from approxi-
mately 6am to 7pm.
RIVER ROUTES
Chao Phraya Express (%0 2623 6001; http://www.
chaophrayaboat.co.th) This company provides
one of the city’s most scenic (and efficient)
transport options, running passenger boatsBANGKOK’S ISLAND GETAWAYSoothe your nerves with a half-day getaway to Ko Kret, a car-free island in the middle of
Mae Nam Chao Phraya, at Bangkok’s northern edge. Actually an artifi cial island, the result
of dredging a canal in a sharp bend in the river, the island is home to one of Thailand’s old-
est settlements of Mon people, who were the dominant culture in central Thailand between
the 6th and 10th centuries AD. The Mon are also skilled potters, and Ko Kret continues the
culture’s ancient tradition of hand-thrown earthenware, made from local Ko Kret clay.
If you come on a weekday you’ll likely to be the only visitor. There are a couple of
temples worth peeking into and a few places to eat, but the real highlight is taking in the
bucolic riverside atmosphere. On weekends, things change drastically and Ko Kret is an
extremely popular destination for urban Thais. There’s heaps more food, drink and things
for sale, but with this come the crowds.
The most convenient way to get there is by bus (33 from Sanam Luang) or taxi to Pak
Kret, before boarding the cross-river ferry that leaves from Wat Sanam Neua.