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Date of the journey:- February 2020
Distance travelled:- 582 miles
Tania’s brother and his family were having a holiday in Laem Sing, Thailand. So we thought it would be great to have a “holiday” ourselves and spend some time with them whilst they were there. This meant a mammoth journey right across Thailand to get to where they were staying.
From Hpa An
The first leg of the journey was to the border crossing at Myawaddy. A journey of 4 hours in a shared minivan costing 10000 Kyat per person. We booked the minivan through our accommodation, the Vintage Hpa An Hotel.
We were collected from the hotel at 0900 hrs as arranged. The road to Myawaddy started off well nice new smooth tarmac road surfaces. However, it didn’t last long. With the roads deteriorating into little more than dusty dirt track. Mainly due to the construction of a new road being undertaken. When finished, it will drastically reduce the travel time from Hpa An to Myawaddy.
Arrival in Myawaddy was at 1300 hrs, having had a 30 minute stop on route for a toilet/food break. The driver dropped us at the No 1 Friendship Bridge border crossing point. Taking the opportunity to change what Myanmar currency we had at one of the money exchanges, just to the left of the Myanmar immigration checkpoint.
Immigration
Prior to being able to exit Myanmar. A visit to the immigration office is required. To complete the departure paperwork and get the required exit stamps in our passports. This was done at immigration booth number 9. Our exit process was quite slow, as someone was arguing with the immigration officials about the fine for overstaying his visa.
Paperwork complete, it was a 10 minute walk across the bridge to the Thailand immigration checkpoint. Foreign nationals proceed to immigration booth 14 where an arrivals card must be complete. Your photograph and fingerprints are taken as part of the process. Then a 30 day visa is issued. A very easy procedure. British passport holders arriving by land can enter Thailand for 30 days without a visa under the visa exemption scheme between the two countries.
Entry into Thailand through a land border using the 30 day visa exemption is only permitted twice per calendar year. In order to cross more frequently, an appropriate visa is required to be obtained in advance of travelling.
Your passport must have at least 6 months’ validity remaining from your date of entry into Thailand. Entry is normally refused if a passport is damaged or has pages missing. Entry formalities complete, we were free to continue our travels and enter Thailand.
Immediately outside the immigration offices, on the left-hand side of the road is where the songthaews wait. A pick-up truck or larger truck, used in Thailand, as a shared taxi or bus.
To get to the first overnight stop in Tak, we took a songthaew to Mae Sot bus station for 20 Baht per person. Only to find when we got there that we required the minibus station, not the bus station for transportation to Tak. A short tuk tuk ride and 100 Baht later, we got to the minibus station.
The minivan journey to Tak took an hour and a half and cost 78 Baht per person. With extremely smooth roads we were able to enjoy the scenery along the route. Three immigration checkpoints were passed, our passports having to be shown at each one. The minivan dropped us off at the Tak bus terminal.
Accommodation in Tak
Was at the White House Hotel, booked through Booking.com. A large hotel with spacious rooms overlooking the swimming pool. Our room had a small terrace, a fridge, tea/coffee making facilities, a TV, air conditioning, and free wifi. The restaurant was closed for dinner and served an excellent buffet breakfast.
Whilst relaxing at the hotel, we booked the following days bus tickets to Bangkok using the online service busonlineticket.com. The 1000 hrs bus from Tak bus terminal to Bangkok Mo Chit Bus Station cost 362 Baht per person. A little more expensive than just turning up and buying the ticket. But we needed to make sure we got the bus.
We chose to go to Bangkok from Tak as this was the only day bus. There is a night bus, which goes directly from Mae Sot. The journey took 6 and a half hours and included a 20-minute food stop. The bus was nice, had air conditioning that worked, a toilet, a snack, and a bottle of water were provided.
Arrival in Bangkok was at the Mo Chit bus terminal. The following morning the bus to Chanthaburi was departing from the Ekkamai bus terminal, some 12 miles away. Having arranged accommodation closer to the Ekkamai bus terminal, we needed to make our way over there.
Mo Chit bus terminal is huge and we thought that it would be easy to get a city bus to the Ekkamai bus terminal from there. This proved not to be the case. Information on where to go to get the bus was hard to get and everyone we asked told us something different. We ended up getting a taxi for 200 Baht. In the busy Bangkok traffic, it took an hour to get us to our accommodation, at the Nego Home Ancient Hotel, booked through Booking.com.
Accommodation in Bangkok
Nego Home Ancient Hotel boutique bohemian hotel close to the Ekkamai bus terminal. Our room was cosy and decorated in a vintage style. The air conditioning was brilliant and there was a small fridge and a small TV in the room as well. We had a private bathroom, which was just down the hall.
A good breakfast in the morning was included.
The following morning the hotel arranged a taxi to the Ekkamai bus terminal for the final leg of this journey to Laem Sing. As we specifically wanted to get the 1100 hrs minivan. So we pre-booked the tickets online with busonlineticket.com for 291 Baht per person.
The journey was on nice smooth roads and reasonably scenic for the 4 hours that it took to get to the Chanthaburi bus terminal. A songthaew was the only option for the final 30 minute journey to Laem Sing at a cost of 300 Baht.
Our initial accommodation in Laem Sing was at the Nisasiri Boutique Resort. Our room was clean and spacious, has an LCD TV with cable channels, air conditioning, a fridge with daily free bottled water, tea/coffee making facilities, and a private patio with table and chairs. The large ensuite bathroom had a hot water shower and daily toiletries were provided.
The hotel is just a few steps away from Laem Sing beach and has a swimming pool and a beachfront seafood restaurant. A small buffet breakfast is included. The wi-fi strength is good.
We stayed here for 4 nights before moving onto Namfon Resort Laem Sing Beach. Not really a resort, more of a few rooms on the beach. A reasonably sized clean room with air conditioning, a fridge with daily bottled water, a small dressing table, and a wardrobe. The ensuite bathroom has a hot water shower.
The owner lives in one of the rooms and is always on hand to help. Right on the beach is the small open-aired seating/breakfast area, which has tea/coffee making facilities. A good choice for good accommodation on a budget.