Thailand Buses

The bus service in Thailand is worth commenting. Buses travel throughout the country. The name of the government’s bus company is BKS i.e. Baw Kaw Saw. This Transport Company has a terminal in every town. These buses are best if you compare their price and comfort with others. Several private bus companies are there. But these are not that reliable in terms of schedules, amenities, and safety. Don’t believe in non-government VIP buses because they are also pretty unreliable.

Some of the basic types of buses are local, express, second class, first class, VIP and S-VIP buses.

Local: These buses are relatively slow and can be cramped when full. These buses stop at every village and cowshed along the way. Many of the buses are of larger songthaew flavor. The local buses are not at all suitable for long-distance travel. But of course you can travel locally at very cheap rates.

Express: These buses skip some stops, but no other frills. Express buses can be identifiable by their orange color. Usually size varies but generally one normal sized bus has 65 sitting arrangements.

Second class: Second class buses skip more stops, but often take a less direct route than 1st class, VIP or S-VIP buses. These are Blue and white with an orange stripe. Normally 45-48 seats are there in each bus. In this air conditioned buses some provide blankets while some do not. Most of the buses have no on-board toilet but the frequency of stops helps a lot.

First class: These buses take the most direct routes and make very few stops. First class buses are usually blue and white in color. Some of the other features can be mentioned as air conditioning, fewer seats i.e. 40, blankets, snack and drinking water included. Some of the double decker buses can contain 60 passengers. These buses have a toilet on board.

‘VIP’: These buses are as per first class that provides 32-34 seats. The buses are usually specious and have enough leg space.

‘S-VIP’: Super-VIP is very similar to VIP buses. These buses contain 24 seats, which are wider. Some of the buses may have TVs and sound systems. So, it is advisable to carry earplugs if you have any.

Bus route in Thailand

In Thailand, you will get buses to everywhere you want to reach. An inter city bus route gives an excellent service throughout the city. But they are slow and very uncomfortable while the journey is long. Some of the buses are air-conditioned and a bit costly. But it can be said that having a private car arrangement is always preferable because in that case you can enjoy the time flexibility. In other popular country routes, you'll get minibuses. These are usually air conditioned. These are costlier than the other buses but take less time to reach the destination.

Bus routes are also available within towns and cities. In most of the towns pick up vans are there with two benches in the back. These vans have their fixed routes at 50 baht for a short journey. You can also hire these vans for private use. But the fare should be properly fixed before setting off. In Bangkok and other larger cities, standard taxis are available. Most of these are color coded while some are air conditioned and some are not.

Three wheeled tuktuk is also famous in Thailand. This is named after the sputter of its little two-stroke engine. But these are only available for private hire. Costlier than private taxis these are not that comfortable. You should bargain about the fare. Some of the hotels have their own chauffeur-driven tuk-tuk.

If you are really adventurous in life, another exciting option is waiting for you. You can hire a passing motorbike-taxi. The drivers of these vehicles usually wear brightly-colored and numbered bib-jackets. The drivers occasionally supply helmets for their passengers. In Thailand, if you have an option to avoid the roadways please do that. In Bangkok, you have skytrain, new Metro, canal boats and also longtails which you can avail to avoid road journeys.