Bangkok airport to city: BKK and Don Mueang

Check your ticket first, because Bangkok has two airports on opposite sides of the city. Suvarnabhumi (BKK) in the east handles most long-haul flights, and Don Mueang (DMK) in the north mainly takes low-cost carriers. The short answer: from Suvarnabhumi, ride the Airport Rail Link to Phaya Thai or Makkasan and change there. From Don Mueang, take the Red Line, or the A3 or A4 bus if you are heading for Khao San or Lumpini Park. Take a taxi outside rush hour if you can, because traffic can easily double a half-hour ride.

The options side by side

Rail times come from the operators and the tourism authority. Taxi times are pure driving time from OpenStreetMap routing, with no traffic: add at least a third, and considerably more in rush hour. That is why the taxi looks quicker in the chart than it usually is on a weekday evening.

Suvarnabhumi: Airport Rail Link

The airport places the Airport Rail Link station on Level B1 of the main terminal, with trains from about 05:30 until midnight. The line runs for about 28 km on an elevated track through eastern Bangkok, with eight stations including Makkasan and Phaya Thai. The stopping City Line takes about 30 minutes to Phaya Thai, according to the Tourism Authority of Thailand.

The two changes that matter:

• Phaya Thai: connects to the BTS Sukhumvit Line, which takes you to Siam, Chit Lom, Asok and Nana, or towards the river if you change to the Silom Line at Siam.
• Makkasan: connects to the MRT Blue Line. This suits a hotel on that line, for example near Sukhumvit or Silom station.

The tourism authority also describes a non-stop express. That page is several years old, and we could not confirm with the operator that the express still runs, so plan with the City Line. We did not find a current frequency either; the platform display shows the next departure.

The catch is that you still have to drag your case from the station to the hotel. If your hotel is not near a BTS or MRT stop, you may end up in a taxi anyway.

Suvarnabhumi: taxi and bus

Taxis leave from Level 1 between Gates 4 and 7, around the clock, according to the airport. You take a queue ticket first, which assigns your car. An airport surcharge comes on top of the meter, and you pay expressway tolls. The German Foreign Office advises using only metered taxis ("Taxi Meter") or booking by app; the airport lists Grab pick-ups at Gate 4. Level 2 also has counters for the more expensive AOT limousines.

Pure driving time is about 25 minutes to Asok (28 km), about 27 to Siam (32 km) and about 33 to Khao San Road (36 km). A transfer from the airport^* (Welcome Pickups) mostly helps after the last train and on your first evening, when it is useful if the driver already knows the address; there is more on that in when an airport transfer pays off.

The most useful bus is the S1 to Khao San Road, which runs in the daytime from Level 1, Gate 7. The S6 goes to Krung Thep Aphiwat. The other buses and vans leave from the Public Transportation Center and mostly serve suburbs such as Rangsit and On Nut.

Don Mueang: Red Line

The Red Line run by SRTET has a stop called Don Mueang, marked on the operator's map as the link to the airport. The ride to Krung Thep Aphiwat takes 17 minutes according to the timetable. Trains run from about 05:00 until around midnight, every 10 minutes in peak hours and every 15 otherwise.

Krung Thep Aphiwat is the big new rail hub, not the city centre. From there you change to the MRT Blue Line and ride on to your neighbourhood, which works well for hotels on that line, around Silom or in Chinatown. The train does not get you close enough to Khao San.

Don Mueang: buses A1 to A4 and taxi

Four bus routes leave from the international terminal, Level 1, Gate 6 and the domestic terminal, Level 1, Gate 12, according to the airport:

• A1: via BTS Chatuchak to Mo Chit 2 Bus Terminal.
• A2: via BTS Chatuchak to Victory Monument.
• A3: via Pratunam and Ratchaprasong to Lumpini Park.
• A4: via Democracy Monument and Khao San to Sanam Luang Road.

The A4 is the direct route to Khao San, and the A3 suits hotels around Pratunam and Ratchaprasong. These buses sit in the same traffic as everyone else, so allow extra time.

A taxi from Don Mueang takes about 32 minutes of pure driving to Siam (24 km) and about 39 to Khao San Road (28 km). Although the distance is shorter, it takes longer than from Suvarnabhumi because the route is slower. The airport says the Don Mueang Tollway avoids some of the jams.

Between the two airports

If your connection leaves from the other airport, the free AOT shuttle runs between Don Mueang and Suvarnabhumi about every 30 minutes, for connecting passengers only. At Don Mueang you board at Gate 3 (Terminal 1) or Gate 14 (Terminal 2). Keep your flight ticket handy and leave a generous margin: the route is by road and the airport gives no firm time.

Which one suits you?

• Hotel on the BTS (Siam, Sukhumvit), landing at Suvarnabhumi: Airport Rail Link to Phaya Thai, then BTS.
• Hotel on the MRT (Silom, Chinatown), landing at Suvarnabhumi: Airport Rail Link to Makkasan, then MRT.
• Hotel on Khao San: from Suvarnabhumi, the S1 bus by day or a taxi; from Don Mueang, the A4 bus or a taxi.
• Hotel on the MRT, landing at Don Mueang: Red Line to Krung Thep Aphiwat, then the MRT Blue Line.
• Hotel around Pratunam or Ratchaprasong, landing at Don Mueang: A3 bus.
• Late at night, with children or with large cases: taxi or a pre-booked transfer.

If you have time to kill before check-in or a late flight home, a luggage drop in Bangkok^* frees you from the bags. Set up mobile data for Grab and the rail apps before you fly; our eSIM comparison for Thailand lists the plans.

Check before you go

The UK government advises against all but essential travel to areas within 20 km of the Thailand–Cambodia land border and to the southern provinces near Malaysia. Bangkok is not in those areas. Its current advice does report flooding in Bangkok and possible road closures, so look again just before you leave. Advice and entry rules are on the UK government's Thailand page.

How long to stay is covered in how many days in Bangkok, and which month suits you in the best time to visit Thailand. For another Asian arrival with the same question, see Tokyo airport to city.

Bangkok trip planDay by day, with map and tips

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