First class bus
1st class buses from Bangkok to the North Pattaya Road bus station are air-con, almost always have an on-board toilet, are essentially direct (ie no stops), and provide a no fuss, no frills, hassle-free service. Departures from the Eastern (Ekamai) Terminal and Northern (Moh Chit) Terminal are frequent (every 20-40 minutes, depending on the time of day; more frequent still at public holiday weekends) and usually take 2-2.5 hours; those from the Southern (Sai Tai Taling Chan สายใต้ตลิ่งชัน) Bus Terminal are less frequent and take a little longer.
Departure times & fares (as at June 2006):
- Ekamai (East) to Pattaya – first 05:20, last 23:00 – 127 baht
- Pattaya to Ekamai (East) – first 05:20, last 21:00 – 127 baht
- Moh Chit (North) to Pattaya – first 05:00, last 20:00 – 117 baht (tollway route: 121 baht)
- Pattaya to Moh Chit (North) – first 05:20, last 20:00 – 113 baht (tollway route: 121 baht)
- Sai Tai Mai (South) to Pattaya – 05:30, 08:30, 10:00, 12:00, 14:00, 16:00, 18:30 – 117 baht
- Pattaya to Sai Tai Mai (South) – 06:00, 08:00, 10:00, 12:00, 15:00, 18:00 – 113 baht
Fares may vary slightly depending on the route taken – for example, at busy times when the Moh Chit service uses the elevated express tollway, a marginally higher fare applies – however exact prices are always clearly posted at the official ticket counters.
All 1st class direct services to/from Bangkok use the recently redeveloped bus station on North Pattaya Road. These buses are usually full when they depart, and must be boarded at the terminus. Tickets are sold at the bus station; it’s not possible to pre-book these services more than an hour or so in advance. Usually, if the bus that’s due to leave next is already full, there will be seats available on the next one. The longest queues are for the very early morning departures from Pattaya – to get a seat on the first bus of the day you need to be in the ticket queue at least 30-40 minutes early; however the bonus is that these pre-rush hour services can take as little as 90 minutes to get to Bangkok.
From the North Pattaya Road bus station songthaews (a cross between a pickup truck, a share-taxi, a local bus and two pews) depart when full (every few minutes). The fare to anywhere on Beach Road (“the beach”) is 20 baht; press the buzzer button on the underside of the roof when you want to get off.
Pattaya to the Eastern (Ekamai) Terminal: if requested, this bus will stop at the On Nut Skytrain Station (station map [4]) on Sukhumvit Road. Depending on your final destination and the traffic conditions, you may want to transfer to the Skytrain (system map [5]) there; if so, wait until the bus departs Pattaya and then confirm with the crew that you want to be dropped off at “On Nut”. NB: this bus does not stop to pick up passengers at On Nut (or anywhere else) on the outbound leg. Also on request the bus will stop along the Bangna-Trat Expressway opposite the Central Department Store Bangna.
Pattaya from/to the Southern (Sai Tai Mai) Terminal: if the direct bus is fully booked, take the Eastern (Ekamai) Terminal bus instead, and use the #511 (air-con, every 30 minutes 24/7, 20 baht) bus to connect between Ekamai and Sai Tai Mai.
Pattaya from/to Suvarnabhumi Airport: Bell travel Tel 038-370-0556, 02-747-4673 to Airport: 06:00, 09:00, 11:00, 13:00, 15:00, 17:00, 19:00 and to Pattaya: 08:00, 10:00, 12:00, 14:00, 16:00, 18:00. Their bus travels directly from the terminal building to the northern bus station. This service includes delivery/pick up to/from your hotel in the 200Bt price(Feb 2009), although they will not go to hotels located at Sukhumwit rd or at Chayapreuk rd or further. You need to go to Bell Travel’s website [6] to book your travel from Suvarnabhumi Airport to Pattaya. They don’t accept walk-in requests.
Pattaya from/to Suvarnabhumi Airport: Governmental bus[7] 124 bath (as of August 2009) to Pattaya: 07:00, 09:00, 11:00, 13:00, 15:00, 17:00 and 21:00. The bus departs directly from the airport at level 2 and makes stops along Sukhumwit rd at Pattaya Nua (north), Pattaya Klang (middle), Pattaya Tay (south), its bus station at the lower end of Theprasit rd and the bus station at Chaiyapreuk rd. Departing from the bus station at the lower end of Theprasit rd to the airport at 08:00, 10:00, 12:00, 14:00, 16:00, 18:00 and 20:00. It is also possible to board the bus 20 minutes prior to its departing time at the bus station at Chaiyapreuk rd. No other stops are made.
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