From Sukhothai to Chiang Mai by bus

Moving between cities in Thailand by bus is super easy. In this post, I go over my experience taking a long-distance bus from Sukhothai to Chiang Mai for a total trip of 5.5 hours!

This time I bought my ticket in person at the bus company’s office within Old Sukhothai. It was MUCH cheaper at only only 324 baht / $9 USD compared to the online price of 599 baht / $16.80 USD. I also got to select my seat right away, and I managed to snag a window seat.

Still prefer to book your buses online? Here’s the best websites to buy bus tickets in Southeast Asia.

The bus was perfectly fine; a little older maybe but clean enough and with comfortable seats. The seat next to me stayed empty the whole time so I was able to spread out a bit, which helped. Like the last bus, we got a free snack and water when we boarded– but we didn’t get a lunch break.

We arrived in Chiang Mai on time and without any problems. Once we pulled into the station, the bus was immediately swarmed by taxi drivers trying to get riders, but I escaped down the street and caught a Grab to my hostel. We made it right before it started raining!

I stayed at Baan Lung Poshtel, a local-run hostel recommended to me by a friend. It was very quiet, only me and one other person in the room. Comfortable beds and nice showers, though they’d stopped doing breakfast. I dropped off my bags and went out wandering for food.

Dinner was a delicious beef noodle soup from a local place that invited me inside when the restaurant I originally wanted to visited was closed. I think technically they were closed too, but they waved me in and put something together for me. Cost (with drink): 120 baht / $3.36 USD.

Walking around after dinner was a little tough— it was raining pretty hard and the cars just loved driving through puddles near the sidewalk— but I did get a glimpse of a part of the Chang Phueak Gate and old city wall at the north end of the city.

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More adventures in Thailand and Southeast Asia:

• From Siem Reap to Bangkok by bus | Overland travel from Cambodia to Thailand
• What to pack for Southeast Asia | Unpack with me
• Visiting Mulberries Organic Silk Farm in Phonsavan, Laos
• Three days at the Elephant Conservation Center in Sayaboury, Laos
• Best Budget Resources for Long-Term Travel