Trying Out Different Public Transit in Bangkok - Thailand

On some previous visit, me and hubby had tried taking bus from DMK Airport (Don Mueang) to Pratunam. You could see the post here. It's pretty straight forward, no transfer required. Though if one travels with a big suitcase then it would be a bit tricky to navigate the big suitcase.

After that we realized public transit in Bangkok is worth trying. We haven't spent too much time in Bangkok so we took the advantage of our three day stay to visit different part of Bangkok. We could do some sightseeing and testing out Bangkok transit systems at the same time.

Buses

Buses are probably the cheapest way to get around provided there's a route to where you are heading. There are AC and non AC buses. There's a conductor on the bus who will approach you once you get on. She/he would ask your destination and tells you the price. The fares depend on the distance. For most of the times, we paid around THB 27 per person. That's the amount for the distance from DMK airport to Pratunam area of Bangkok. Later on we traveled further down and it's also the same. Perhaps that's the full price for AC buses. The fares for the non AC buses are fixed at a certain amount.

You don't have to have exact fare when paying as the conductor would be able to give you change. Just don't give him/her a THB 1000 or THB 500. You would then receive a receipt for your proof of payment.

We found Google maps useful in navigating the transit systems. Not only in Bangkok but also other countries with good transit systems like Hong Kong, Malaysia and Singapore.

Choose the transit (red box). The person icon shows that some walking is required.

BTS 

BTS (Bangkok Mass Transit System) is an elevated train system serving some part of Bangkok. For visitors one could purchase a single use ticket from any of the machines at the station. The machines accept cash, coins and QR payment. Unfortunately at the time contactless credit card payment was not accepted yet.

For frequent users, rabbit card could be purchased at ticket office for certain amount then topped up through apps. Visitors could also buy a day pass from ticket office.

The single use ticket was in the form of a magnetic card. To get in the paid area, we tap the card on the card reader. At the end of the journey, to exit the paid area, the card should be inserted to the slot at the gate before exiting.

MRT

I guess it's safe to say that MRT train is underground while BTS is upper ground. Bangkok has four MRT lines. The fares depends on distance. One of the popular line is blue line which was the one we took to go to Chinatown. 

Travelling for three stations cost us THB 21 (USD 0.67). We purchased tokens from the ticket machines using cash. Tokens were then scanned at ticket gate to enter the paid area. At the end of destination station, we inserted the tokens to the exit gate to get out of the paid area.

MRT trains were air conditioned and comfortable to travel in. It's pretty easy to navigate and there's map at the station as well. Each station has local map to help you to decide which exit to take.