How to get from Don Mueang Airport to the tourist area of Pratunam

Pratunam district is one of the most popular tourist areas of Bangkok, where tourists choose hotels (see more details about hotels and districts of Bangkok, and where it is better to choose a hotel). This area is much more comfortable and cleaner than the tourist street Khao San, there are many shopping centers and markets, and urban transport is well represented. There are no problems with getting here inexpensively from the old Bangkok Don mueang International Airport. For all the ways to do this, read on:

See also:

• Guide to Don Mueang Airport and how to get there
• How to get from Don Mueang to Bangkok and other cities
• How to get from Don Mueang Airport by train
• How to get from Don Mueang Airport to Khao San Road
• How to get from Suvarnabhumi Airport to Don Mueang

By taxi

• Cost: from 350 baht (10.5 USD, see Thailand's currency and exchange rate)
• Time spent: 40-60 minutes
• Period of work: around the clock

A taxi from Don Mueang Airport to Pratunam district will cost about 450 baht according to the taxi-meter, plus an additional payment of 50 baht for the toll road. It is best to use a licensed official taxi, ordered at the counter in the arrival terminal. To do this, after receiving your luggage, follow the Taxi signs inside the terminal to the counters. You have to stand in line here, sometimes you can stand for an hour. If you don't want to wait, you can go outside, walk to the left to the public transport stop on the main highway, and catch a car there as usual – by raising your hand. But before boarding, be sure to check with the driver if there will be a trip on the meter, for which just ask "Taxi meter?". If the driver answers no, catch the next car.

Do not use a taxi when leaving the terminal in the parking lot bypassing the queue, as you will be offered a ride at a fixed cost. The price can go up to 2 thousand baht. Also, do not agree to the offers of "helped", which are spinning near the queue, offering to leave faster.

If you have mobile internet or connect to the airport WiFi network, then you can order a taxi through the application, and it is often cheaper than the official taxi at the counter. Uber doesn't work in Bangkok, you need to use Grab, Maxim or InDrive apps instead. In all applications, you will see the cost of the trip immediately before ordering, and you can pay in cash at the end or link your card in the online payment application (Russian bank cards do not work). By the way, in the appendix you can also order a motorcycle taxi, which is almost twice as cheap as a car, although it is suitable only for one passenger, and, of course, without large suitcases.

If you really don't want to stand in line and you are willing to pay more for it, it's better to go further to the Lumisune taxi counter, where prices are about twice as high, or book a tourist taxi in advance. In this case, it will be a more comfortable car that will be waiting for you to board the plane, and the driver will meet you at the airport with a sign. The price for the trip will be fixed, you can pay online. You can book such a transfer using the search form:

By rented car

• Cost: from 600 baht/day (from 13.5 USD)
• Time spent: 1 hour

There are several representative offices of world-famous rental companies at Don Muang Airport, and if you wish, you can leave here by car, and use it to return or return the car to the rental company elsewhere. You can also rent a car in Bangkok itself or at other resorts. It is better to book a car in advance via the Internet. The rental price when booking in advance starts from 600 baht, and the longer the period, the lower the price. You can find and book a car for rent through one of the price comparison services from different rental companies:

To drive a car in Thailand, tourists no longer need to obtain an international driver's license (IDP). On May 1, 2021, the long-awaited event finally took place - Thailand ratified the Vienna Convention on Road Traffic, which it initially joined back in 1968. And now in Thailand, theoretically, it is possible to manage rented transport using ordinary Russian rights. However, so far in Thailand there has not been a practice of adopting national VUS on the roads by police officers, therefore, in order not to finish off our rightness every time, we still recommend that you additionally issue an IDP. For more information about renting a transport in Thailand, read here.

By bus

• Cost: 8 - 36 baht (from 0.24 USD)
• Time spent: 1.5 – 2 hours
• Period of work: 05:00 - 23:00

From the airport to Pratunam can be reached by regular city and special airport bus routes. The fare is very cheap, but there are a couple of inconveniences: buses take a very long time to travel due to traffic jams, and will not take you to the hotel door. But if you are well-oriented, then you can get to the hotel on foot, just choose the right route that runs closer. Or you can come to the area and get to the right place by taxi if you have the address of the hotel. A trip within the Pratunam district by taxi will cost no more than 100 baht according to the meter. To avoid misunderstandings with taxi drivers, it is better to have a hotel address in Thai. On the hotel booking voucher on the sites Trip.com and Ostrovok.ru The address is written in both English and Thai.

To make it easier for you to navigate which bus to choose, look at the position of your hotel relative to the large Victory Monument bus stop (Victory Monument on the map), and the center of Pratunam district (The number of pixels on the map).

• If your hotel is located near Victory Monument, then you should choose buses A1, A2, A4, 59, 29, 510, 187, 538.
• If your hotel is located closer to the center of the district or along the street Ratchadamri Road, then it is better to choose buses A3 and 504, they pass through the entire street.

The A1, A2, A3 and A4 bus routes are special airport express trains that depart from the bus stop right at the exit of the Don Muang Terminal. To take the city buses 59, 29, 510, 187, 538 and 504, you need to go a little to the left after leaving the airport, and follow the Bus Stop sign to the stop, which is located on the main highway passing near the airport.