Bangkok to Kanchanaburi
Kanchanaburi is known for the River Kwai bridge and Erawan Falls. The scenic train leaves Thonburi twice a day. The new central station does not run this branch. Take a van from Sai Tai Mai if you need the waterfalls tomorrow.
Kanchanaburi is a river town, not a ruin loop and not an island. Give it two nights if you want the bridge story and Erawan. The atmospheric arrival is the ordinary train from Thonburi station, formerly Bangkok Noi. The practical arrival is a minivan from the Southern Bus Terminal (Sai Tai Mai).
Thonburi is about a 750 m walk from MRT Bang Khun Non on the Blue Line. The trains also stop at Jaran Sanitwong, beside that MRT, which is easier with a suitcase. They have not moved to Krung Thep Aphiwat. Weekend tourist extras sometimes use Hua Lamphong. Read the number.
Ways to go
| Mode | Time | Cabin or seat | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ordinary 257 from Thonburi | About 2 hours 45 minutes | 3rd class fan bench. Day-of ticket | About 07:45 to Kanchanaburi about 10:30, River Kwai Bridge about 10:35. Check on arrival. Seat61 and local boards drift by a few minutes. |
| Ordinary 259 from Thonburi | About 2.5 hours | 3rd class fan bench | About 13:55, arriving late afternoon. Hot. Fine if the museum is tomorrow. |
| Minivan or bus from Sai Tai Mai | About 2 to 2.5 hours | Van seat, about 110 THB on many desks | The first-trip move when Erawan is the next morning. Southern Bus Terminal, not Mo Chit. |
| Private car | About 2 hours without Friday traffic | Charter | Worth it for three people or a same-day Hellfire Pass plan, which is not on the train. |
Nam Tok is not Hellfire Pass
The passenger line continues past the bridge toward Nam Tok. Floods have shut the Tha Kilen to Nam Tok stretch before. Call SRT 1690 before you treat the viaduct as a must. Foreign tourist fares apply on these ordinary sets. Tickets are often day-of. The train cannot truly sell out the way a sleeper can.
Hellfire Pass (Konyu Cutting) is about 80 km northwest by road past Nam Tok. It is not a station. Arrange the car in town. Erawan is a different 65 to 70 km road, local bus 8170, last-bus questions before you walk to tier 7.
Keep going
Book
Common questions
- Which Bangkok station?
- Thonburi for daily ordinary trains 257 and 259. Krung Thep Aphiwat does not serve this branch. Hua Lamphong appears on some weekend tourist extras only.
- Train or van on a first trip?
- Van if Erawan is tomorrow. Train if the rice fields are the morning and the falls can wait a day.
- Can you do this as a Bangkok day trip with Erawan?
- You can see the bridge. You will short-change the seven tiers. Stay two nights.