Getting Around Thailand. Bangkok Car Rental? Taxi? Train? Boat?

Convincing my wife that we didn't need to own a car or even a Bangkok car rental to get around Thailand was hard work. She didn't fully get it until we moved to America and she could see the difference.

Now that she's seen America she understand that, yes, in America you do need a car or rental to get around but in Thailand you most likely do not.

When I first got to Bangkok, Thailand I was amazed at all the great modes of CHEAP transportation that were available to everyone, it was heaven.

A taxi in the States costs five times what it does in Thailand. The Bangkok taxi meter starts at around 50 baht, that's about $1.50 usd or so. You can actually drive clear across Bangkok for about $7.00 usd in a Taxi!

There are two reasons for the cheap Bangkok taxi; one the labor, and two the taxi's use propane instead of gasoline. These two combos create a cheap mode of transportation.

The taxi option is also not bad for long distance, like driving to the next town but you must haggle for long distance travel as this where they make their money. The Bangkok Taxi's are usually red, blue, yellow or pink in color.

By the way, when you hail a taxi or even a bus, truck or motorcycle, wave the vehicle down with your palm facing down, not up. It looks kind of gay but that's the correct and polite way in Thailand.

Think the bus in your country is cheap? The Thai bus system is even cheaper. They have a few different kinds of buses.

With-in the city of Bangkok is the orange bus. This is the best bus with-in Bangkok. It's air conditioned, less people ride it, it's a Mercedes, and it costs about 10 Thai baht (about .30 cents usd), very nice.

Next is the smaller bus usually red or blue in color (but could be pink, white or green as well), no air conditioning, and people hanging off the side of it. I wouldn't use this in Bangkok though, too busy. I believe they call this the baht bus because it so cheap, something like 3 to 5 baht.

You also have long distance buses that travel all over Thailand. Something like the Grey Hound but much more entertaining. You have a few varieties to choose from here.

They even have this one type of bus that is sectioned off into karaoke rooms where you sit in one of these rooms and sing songs the whole trip to your destination.

You can't miss them if your on a road trip and you see one pull into your gas station. It will have lively colored painting on the side of the bus and music blasting out of it. Usually a younger crowd travels those types of buses but I've seen all ages, hey Thais love to sing!

The major hub for long distance bus travel in Bangkok is Ekamai, which is off of Sukhumvit Road, between soi 50 and 52 .

You also have tour buses which are a great way to learn about an area while you sit back and relax.

Behold, I present to you, a large truck, with Thai people crammed into it. The trucks (called Songthaew, meaning two row for the two row of seats in the back) always look like they're on their last leg and is very cramped inside. I would not take this option in Bangkok.

However, these trucks are very nice to use in smaller townsand cities like Pattaya as the trucks are newer, cleaner and less people ride them but they cost a lot more outside of Bangkok. These trucks are privately run, travel routes predetermined by the owner and they stop and pick up on command.

Don't forget the all famous tuk tuk; Bangkok would not be Bangkok without the distinctive roar of the tuk tuk. Pricey, same as taxi but if there is a great deal of traffic and no available taxis, you might consider this option. They don't have air conditioning but they drive fast enough to get hot air blowing in your face.These guys make the most money during traffic. You must always haggle with these people; it's the way of the tuk tuk.

Oh yeah, did I mention... traffic? Bangkok has so many narrow side roads (called soi's) that peak traffic is a stand still and I'm not kidding here; I got out of a taxi in traffic and walked 2 miles and beat the taxi to my condo by an hour.

(By the way how do people act in traffic in Thailand anyway?)

The motor bike. It's by far the best way to beat traffic but also the most dangerous as there have been more than a few accidents using this mode of transportation. The motor bike driver will drive anywhere and everywhere to beat traffic including the sidewalk.

The motorbike driver is a little less expensive than the taxi but worth it if you must save time. You can haggle with the motor bike driver but usually not by much, only 5 or 10 baht, or sometimes not at all. The motorbike driver wears orange jerseys so you can easily id them.

The sky train BTS and the subway MRT. This is one of my favorite modes of travel. It's cheap, quick, air conditioned, clean and goes most of the places you need to be or nearby.

The BTS Sky Train goes in mostly all directions and the MRT subway goes most places the BTS Sky train misses. So you have most of the city covered in a cross and cirlce pattern. They continue to add on to this system and I think it's great that they are. At peak times it can get crowded but not as bad as Tokyo or India.

Thailand train travel. You can use the traditional Thailand rail travel system which goes all over Thailand and even Bangkok. However, it is a little old and I didn't see air conditioning. I took this a couple of times, once near the River Kwai. It's ok, but it's a little slow and bumpy. It just wasn't a big deal to me but you might like it.

The canal boats. Bangkok, Thailand has an extensive water canal system. Bangkok is basically on a huge river delta and prone to flooding. The canal boats make quick use of the water ways. I really liked using this system going from my condo, the Grand Diamond, to the wholesale silver shops on Khao San Road. No traffic, fast, and cheap but the dirty water can sometimes lap into the boat a little. Some Westerners have a hard time stepping on and off the boats but it was no big deal to me.

The ferry boat. Ahh yes the ferry boat. My wife and I took the ferry boat from the southern area of mainland Thailand to Koh Samui island. The reason we did this was because Bangkok Airways has a monopoly on air going from Bangkok to Koh Samui. It's much cheaper to fly to the airport at Surat Thani province using Air Asia or another low fare carrier and then ferry across to Koh samui. The ferry boats are relaxing and spacious. You're on the ocean, how much better can it get!

All the above modes of public transportation are extremely safe as far as crime goes. Things do happen but much, much less thanin the West. I would be more than happy to take any of theabove at any time of day or night. However, I would not do that in the U.S. or many other major Western cities. It doesn't take a genius to see it's dangerous to travel the subway in New York or San Francisco at night.

My wife and I owned a Honda Accord in Thailand. We bought this car for 1.4 million Thai baht. That's just over $40,000 usd for a Honda Accord when it should be $25,000 usd! And that's only because some of the parts were made in Thailand. Thailand has a 100% import tax on vehicles.

If you are thinking about living in Thailand and buying a vehicle, buy a truck instead. Thailand is the second largest truckmanufacturer in the world and you can get an awesome truck for a great price.

If you'd still like to have a Bangkok car rental then by all means do. You do have your freedom to do whatever you like and that is worth a lot. My wife and I did see many unknown places with the little Honda Accord we owned which we would not have seen otherwise.

Minivans and car rentals in Bangkok are nice but hiring a Chauffeur for your Bangkok rental car can be even nicer if you don't want to drive yourself. Chauffeurs are very cheap, around 200 baht a day or so and maneuver around the city & Thailand like nobody's business.

Remember, they drive on the wrong side of the road in Thailand. At least it's the wrong side of the road for us Yankees but the correct side for Brits, Aussies and a few other countries.

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