Heading off to just south of Hua Hin (nang pong) at the end of March for a wedding I've done the trip both ways a "hundred" times by train, bus, mini van and 'plane. This time we are driving down there.

I beleive there is a road that skirts around Bangkok and heads South? Avoiding all the Bangers traffic at 9 am is my goal. I am siting here and looking at a rather detailed map of Thailand, and am still confused as to where / which way to go when we hit Bangkok.

Directions to avoid the chaos by someone that has done this trip would be appreciated

Entering BKK at 9am from the north you should have little traffic on the tollway to Rama 2. But, you could take the ring road and avoid the tollway.

Entering BKK at 9am from the north you should have little traffic on the tollway to Rama 2. But, you could take the ring road and avoid the tollway.

Thats the word I was thinking about So how does one to get on the "ring road" from the North and bypass Bangers?

South of Saraburi and north of Bangkok you will come across the rings roads. The first ring road is the east bound road and a couple of kilometers later is the west bound ring road. Look for the second turning going west - its a good thee-lane road and no tolls. Do not make the mistake of taking the first ring road (east bound). It will add nearly 100 kilometers and a couple of hours driving time on a typical trip to Hua Hin! East bound goes to Chonburi and Pattaya, West bound goes to Samut Sahkon, Petchaburi and Hua Hin.

South of Saraburi and north of Bangkok you will come across the rings roads. The first ring road is the east bound road and a couple of kilometers later is the west bound ring road. Look for the second turning going west - its a good thee-lane road and no tolls. Do not make the mistake of taking the first ring road (east bound). It will add nearly 100 kilometers and a couple of hours driving time on a typical trip to Hua Hin! East bound goes to Chonburi and Pattaya, West bound goes to Samut Sahkon, Petchaburi and Hua Hin.

Many thanks Nomad. Relating that info to my map, I can see exactly where to go