Day trips from Bangkok by train: Ayutthaya to Kanchanaburi

Thailand's railways are slow, cheap and run through the back gardens of the country, which makes them the right way to leave the city for a day. These four day trips from Bangkok by train cover a ruined capital, a market on the tracks, a beach and the River Kwai. The one complication is that Bangkok now has several departure stations, so the first thing to check for any trip is which one your train leaves from.

Day trips from Bangkok by train: know your stations

Since 2023 most long-distance and express trains leave from Krung Thep Aphiwat Central Terminal in Bang Sue, reached by the MRT Blue Line to Bang Sue station or the SRT Red Line. Ordinary and suburban trains still use the old Hua Lamphong station on the MRT. Trains west to Kanchanaburi leave from Thonburi station in Bangkok Noi, and the Maeklong line starts at Wongwian Yai on the BTS. Timetables change; check the State Railway of Thailand before you go, and buy tickets at the station on the day for ordinary trains.

Ayutthaya: the ruined capital

The easiest and most popular. Trains from Krung Thep Aphiwat, and ordinary trains from Hua Lamphong, take between one and two hours north to Ayutthaya, the Siamese capital from 1350 until the Burmese burned it in 1767. From the station, a short ferry crosses to the island city, where bicycle and tuk-tuk hire is on every corner. The core sights, Wat Mahathat with the Buddha head in the tree roots, Wat Phra Si Sanphet's three chedis and Wat Chaiwatthanaram on the river, are a comfortable cycling loop. Leave the city by eight, lunch on Ayutthaya's river prawns and roti sai mai sweets, and take a late-afternoon train back.

Maeklong: the railway market

This one is a journey in three parts and worth it for the oddness. From Wongwian Yai station in Thonburi, an hour-long train runs through the suburbs to Mahachai, a fishing port in Samut Sakhon. Walk through the fish market to the ferry across the Tha Chin river, then catch the second train from Ban Laem for another hour to Maeklong in Samut Songkhram. The line ends inside Talat Rom Hup, the market where stallholders fold their awnings back as the train squeezes through at walking pace. Time your arrival for one of the train passes; the market is open in between and the fresh seafood is good. Amphawa floating market, which runs on weekend afternoons and evenings, is a short songthaew ride away.

Hua Hin: the beach

The royal resort on the Gulf is a long day but a real one: trains from Krung Thep Aphiwat take about four hours each way, which makes a dawn departure and a late return, or an overnight stay. Hua Hin's station, with its old royal waiting room, is one of the prettiest in the country. The beach is a ten-minute walk, the night market opens at dusk, and the old town's seafood restaurants are built on piers over the water. Consider a special express for the shortest journey.

Kanchanaburi: the River Kwai

Two ordinary trains a day leave Thonburi station for Kanchanaburi, about three hours west, continuing over the Bridge on the River Kwai to the end of the line at Nam Tok. The bridge, the war cemetery and the Thailand-Burma Railway Centre museum are all near Kanchanaburi station. Riders who stay on to Nam Tok cross the Wang Pho viaduct, a wooden trestle hugging a cliff above the river, which is the line's best stretch. The State Railway also runs a weekend excursion train from Bangkok to Nam Tok that covers it in one day; check the dates. The full return is long, so many people stay a night.

Getting there

• Krung Thep Aphiwat: MRT Blue Line to Bang Sue, or the Red Line; allow time, the terminal is large.
• Hua Lamphong: MRT Blue Line, Hua Lamphong station; see the Sam Yan and Hua Lamphong guide.
• Thonburi (Bangkok Noi) station: taxi from the Wang Lang area, or the Chao Phraya Express to Wang Lang pier and a short walk.
• Wongwian Yai: BTS Silom Line to Wongwian Yai, then a five-minute walk to the SRT station.
• For trips without a train, Koh Kret and Bang Krachao are the easy ones.