How to Get To Ayutthaya From Bangkok

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Wondering how to get to Ayutthaya from Bangkok? If you are planning a trip to Thailand and visiting Bangkok Ayutthaya is just a short distance away. In this post, I’m going to talk through your options to help you visit the temples of Ayutthaya from Bangkok.

How to Get To Ayutthaya From Bangkok

We had planned to get a bus from Monument Square to Ayutthaya and then take the night train from there to Chiang Mai that evening. We decided to arrive at around 1 pm which would give us plenty of time. Sounds good, right? Unfortunately, we woke up with the mother of all hangovers (Cheers Koh San Road) all we wanted to do is stay in bed and feel sorry for ourselves for being so silly. Anyway, we pull ourselves together and pack up. Now if there is one tip I can give anyone when dealing with taxi drivers it’s not to worry about them not putting the meter on (they just won’t fix the price first and you will be fine if you don’t then it’s tough luck) what you should be cautious of is them not knowing where you want to go!

If you want to be sensible the best thing to do is to get it booked online the day before, you can finally do this now (yay), it may just save you all the drama we had. You can book a train from Bangkok to Ayutthaya with Bookaway.com so that you can enjoy all the best Ayutthaya tours without worrying about transportation.

Did You Get Travel Insurance Yet?

If 2020 taught us anything, it’s that you need to be prepared for anything! Travel insurance has always been high my list of things to get before I travel but now more than ever its at the top of my list.

I’m pretty sure we have all had travel plans messed up because of COVID and not all insurers covered this. So when looking for travel insurance it’s important to check it covers travel disruption due to COVID-19, Hey Mondo, Passport Nomads, Safety Wing, and Travel Insurance Master all provide cover for this.

Hey Mondo is great if you are looking for a great value flexible policy. They offer single trip cover, annual multi trip cover, and long term travel cover. You even have the option to start the cover when you are already on your trip, although you won’t be covered for the first 72 hours. For me my favourite feature is their app which offers you a 24/7 Dr chat and the ability to file a claim direct in the app.

Passport Nomads provides the most comprehensive cover for Digital Nomads. The game changer with them is that you have a red card and if you find yourself in need of medical care you just contact them and they will pre load your card with the funds to cover your treatment, meaning you won’t need to pay out of pocket and then put in a claim later.

Safety Wing is great value with monthly cover starting at $39. It’s super easy to use and it just renews each month. They have an excess of $250 and it’s simple to make a claim through their website. I currently use them as they offer me free cover for my son as part of my policy and I like that it renews on a monthly basis, so I don’t have to pay out a big lump sum up front.

I also use Travel Insurance Master for some short vacation type trips.

If you are doing shorter trips or an extended backpacking trip then Hey Mondo or Travel Insurance Master are the best option. If you are a digital nomad or planning travel of at least 6 months then go for Passport Nomads or SafetyWing.

Booking.com

A point about Taxi Drivers in Bangkok

It had is so many times, they say yes yes get in. Then they call their mate, then another mate, then they ask for the hotel number and so on… In Koh Phangan, we got dropped at a beach in the North West of the Island when we wanted to go to the East of the Island. He had left before we realized where we were! Anyway, we wanted to go to Victory Monument to get a bus to Ayutthaya but none of the drivers seemed to know where it was. We asked the hotel and they didn’t know, two drivers and a few phone calls later we are on our way. Then the driver offers to take us to Ayutthaya for 1000

Anyway, we wanted to go to Victory Monument to get a bus to Ayutthaya but none of the drivers seemed to know where it was. We asked the hotel and they didn’t know, two drivers and a few phone calls later we are on our way. Then the driver offers to take us to Ayutthaya for 1000 tbt we look at each other in our drunken states and said yes in a heartbeat…It was 1000 tbt well spent!

What to Do With Your Luggage While You Are in Ayutthaya

On arrival, we asked to be dropped at the station. If you aren’t planning on staying the night there you have two options with your bags

1. Leave it at left luggage at the station or
2. Hire a room for just the day that way if you are getting the night train you can have a nap and a shower before the train.

It’s pretty cheap to leave your luggage, maybe 10 tbt? And you can get a room for about 250-300 tbt for the night. If you speak to them you may be able to come to a deal if they have a free room.

Booking the Night From Ayutthaya to Chiang Mai

If you are planning on getting the night train to Chiang Mai from here then get this booked as soon as you get there as they do fill up quickly. Or better still book the train to Chiang Mai online here. Things have changed since I was in Thailand, back when I was here I tried to book the day before in Bangkok and they wouldn’t let us as you could only book a train ticket at a train station. Thankfully now it can be done online which could have saved me a lot of stress back then!

Top bunks are cheaper than bottom bunks (only slightly) as they are bigger. My upper bunk ticket cost about 600 tbt, I think Laura’s bottom bunk was 766 tbt. Once you have ditched your bag and booked your ticket you are ready to explore!

Getting Around the Temples in Ayutthaya 

You have a few options of how to view the temples in Ayutthaya:

• On foot
• Push bike
• Moped
• Tuk-tuk

My dad who came here a few years back actually paid a taxi driver to drive them from Bangkok to Ayutthaya around all the temples and then back again…actually, he paid him to drive them around for 2 days for about 2000 tbt!! That was 10 years ago though so it will most likely cost you a bit more now…

There are tuk-tuks everywhere so you won’t find it difficult to get one. I’m not sure of the cost, though, sorry, we didn’t choose this option. We decided to go by bike which was a lot of fun and kept us cool in the sweltering heat. We hired a bike for 40 tbt, they gave us a map and directed us either to a bridge or on a boat…we went for the boat.

The map was really easy to read and the roads/ paths were fine for cycling so felt very safe. It took us a few hours to see all of the temples in the city area. There were 3 on the map we couldn’t reach easily by bike due to time constraints (and hangovers).

Entry to the Temples in Ayutthaya

The cost to get in each temple is 50 tbt or you can get a joint ticket for 200 tbt (could be 250 tbt). I didn’t realize this until after I’d visited 2 temples already, so don’t make my mistake getting a joint ticket at the first Temple Wat Mahn That. It’s not far from each temple and they are easy to find. The first temple has the best facilities so if you want to eat do it there as there are vans/ carts at the others but there isn’t as much on offer.

I loved wandering around the temples and taking pictures, after the first temple which was really busy, there weren’t too many people around so I was able to wander around pretty much on my own with my camera.

So that was Ayutthaya! We had a bit of time before our night train so we just set up camp in one of the cafes close to the train station and had some dinner. Well, I did Laura was still throwing up…

Need Transport in Thailand?

I’m a big fan of using BookAway.com when booking transportation in Thailand. I wrote a whole blog post about using them that you can read here. It makes the whole booking process so much easier, plus they have 24/7 support in case you need it!

This post was proofread by Grammarly