Overnight Train to Chaing Mai

After experiencing all the suspense and excitement at the railroad tracks of the most dangerous market in Thailand, we decided now is as good a time as ever to hop on a train ourselves to head to Chiang Mai from Bangkok.

We headed to Hua Lamphong Station to purchase our tickets for the night and were lucky enough to be able to reserve two seats right next to each other. Try to book your tickets a few days ahead because it does sell out during high tourist seasons. For us the lantern festival was coming up in a few days so a lot of people were heading up to Chiang Mai to see it. That’s exactly what we were doing as well.

I’ve never been on an overnight train before and I was really excited for the experience. To prepare for the journey, we went to the convenience store and picked up a bottle of wine and some snacks before boarding the train. I’m glad we did because to be honest the food didn’t look that appetizing. At least compared to all the delicious cheap street food we’ve been eating. If I could do it again I would have picked up 2 bottles of wine because it’s a 15 hour journey.

When I first entered the train I was curious as to how this was a “sleeper” train since the seats looked normal. But after heading a few hours north, the train was slowly transformed row by row as each two seats were converted into a bunk bed. You even get your own curtain to cover your sleeping space for privacy. Me and Josh played some card games to pass the time by before heading to bed. The next morning I woke up to scenes of the beautiful hills of Chiang Mai passing by my window as we slowly pulled up to the city. We have arrived!

I was getting so excited. We were finally here! I couldn’t wait to check in and start wandering around. There are so many affordable options for places to stay in the city. We decided upon iWulai hotel and it was well worth the price. For $50 dollars a night we stayed in a beautiful modern room with air conditioning right next to the Old City wall, so it was very easy to go sightseeing and to the night markets. The boutique hotel offered free daily breakfast, consisting of fried rice, chicken wings and other small bites, as well as the standard continental breakfast items.

After filling our bellies up, we took a break from the heat and did a quick swim while waiting for our rooms to be prepared. I just love swimming especially on a hot day. Once settled in it was time to start our Chiang Mai adventures.