The open roads of Thailand beckon – Taking a Road Trip in Thailand

[Thailand Explore]

 

Taking a Road Trip in Thailand is a great way to see this diverse and ever changing country. Distances are quite large but there are always so many interesting sites to see whether they be Temples, Museums, Waterfalls, Hot Springs and animal/elephant sanctuaries and much, much more.

 

As Thailand now offers a vast array of domestic flights to all provincial cities you can either choose to fly the longer leg and rent a car at your destination or to start from Bangkok! A majority of the highways and main roads are wide and in excellent condition, the further you go into the countryside however, some rural roads are not at their best and some are not even are not paved. The majority however are excellent to drive and you can enjoy the ever changing scenery. There are several peculiarities to driving in Thailand and we will come to these later!

 

The standards and quality of Rental Cars in Thailand has increase greatly. When you rent from one of the major companies in Bangkok, you will receive a relatively new car, perfectly clean and ready for the road. Our current preference is Europcar as there have highly competitive rates and their location at the Sofitel on Sukhumvit is most convenient.

 

I do suggest planning your trip in advance rather than just jumping into a car and then deciding where to go. There are some major distances to cover (Bangkok to Chiang Mai 8-9 hours) and most of the major road radiate from the capital.

Driving in Bangkok is relatively challenging with a lot of traffic especially motorcycles, however head to one of the Expressways/Highways(many are elevated) and you will quickly be away from local traffic. Tolls are to be paid so it is always good to have small change, though change can always be given. Set your GPS, get on the Expressway and within an hour you will be leaving the sprawling suburbs of Bangkok.

 

Thailand drives on the ‘Left’! For some not a problem but even if you are not used to this a slow and steady start will make you more comfortable. Thai drivers are generally courteous but they do tend to hide behind their tinted screens and the method of staring them in the eye to pull out, generally does not work. Indicate in good time and slowly muscle your way into another lane.

 

The roads are essential to the rural communities in Thailand and even around BKK every second car is a pick-up truck. Many will be laden with pineapples, durian, watermelons and other fruit and vegetables. In fact there is a sort of challenge in Thailand to spot the most overloaded pick-up truck! Some younger drivers have taken to ‘tuning’ their pick-ups, this generally just results in lots of black exhaust but generally the tuned pick-ups are the most obnoxious and dangerous of your fellow road users. Take care.

 

Trucks of every shape and size are found on the roads bringing raw materials from the ports and manufacturing centres around Bangkok and the finished products back for sale or export. Whilst the quality of trucks on the main routes has improved greatly you will also find a range of older, fume belching vehicles that are adorned with hundreds of mirrors, multiple rows of Michelin men and exhausts the size of dustbins! All adding to the charm and excitement of driving in Thailand!

 

The general speed limit is 90 km/hr for cars. You rarely see traffic cops but there are many stationary radar controls and still quite regular police controls. Drive within the limits and drive sensibly and you will normally be saluted through these checks with a smile!

 

Full story at https://meanderingtales.com/the-open-roads-of-thailand-beckon-taking-a-road-trip-in-thailand/

[Billpro785]

Good info, just bought a used car, and planning some road trips from Kanchananburi, where I live. 

Edited July 30, 2020 by Billpro785