Bus from Suwanaphum Airport to Isaan

[peter37]

This might be of interest for people who are flying in lateish either planned or unplanned to Suwanaphum and want to set off as soon as possible to Isaan.

There is only one bus per day in each direction. It leaves Suwanaphum at 21.00 and passes through Korat (15 minute rest stop), Khonkaen and Udon Thani before arriving at Nongkhai. It leaves Nongkhai as a reverse journey beginning at 20.00. The bus is the regular “luxury” air-conditioned long distance type with reclining seats. A thin blanket, bottle of water and packet of wafer biscuits were supplied to me at the outset of my recent journey. I was told the seat cannot be booked any other way than visiting the bus station. The fare in my case to Udon Thani was 403 baht.

I am led to believe that until relatively recently the bus could be boarded immediately at the airport near where bus/minibus transport is still available to Huahin and Pattaya on the 1^st floor. But the bus to Isaan (and others) is now located about 10 minutes away at the Kunsong bus station. You can get a free transfer there with the shuttle bus. Most of you maybe would not have a problem at this juncture but I asked inadequately prepared questions (in Thailand sometimes a dangerous route to go) and ended up on a minivan which only indirectly took me to the bus station but if you get on the large bus that says specifically in big red letters “shuttle bus” then you will get to the Kunsong bus station.

Personally I find it difficult to sleep on these buses, I love catching the train to Isaan but if your flight arrives late into Suwanaphum you not only have to get to Huamlamphong train station in time (approx. 20.00) but there is a possibility you will not get a sleeper ticket if the train is busy whereas I saw people getting tickets right up to the last minute at the bus station and there were still empty seats when we set off.

[JoePai]

Stay overnight at a local hotel (they will pick you up) and fly up in the morning - get there fresh and only lose a few hours

[peter37]

"and want to set off as soon as possible to Isaan."

[tolsti]

Blue ball express?

[peter37]

I would like to offer some clarification/correction regarding the name of bus station at Suwanaphum. For those of you who understand some Thai you will appreciate that Kunsong as I stated (better transliterated as kohn sohng) merely means transporting people and is not the place name of the bus station per se. In English the best way to ask is perhaps simply: the Suwanaphum bus station. For those who want the fully fledged transliterated Thai it is something like satani kohn sohng thaaaagaatsayaan suwanaphum.

I do not understand Tolsti's comment regarding "Blue ball express?". Does it help in some way with asking for the bus at Suwanaphum, can he clarify?

[tartempion]

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