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Overland
routes into
Thailand
Thailand
has land borders with Burma, Laos,
Cambodia and Malaysia, and all
these countries have embassies in Bangkok. If you
need a visa for China or India,
you might want to apply at their consulates in Chiang Mai,
which are less busy than their Bangkok embassies.
Laos and Vietnam have consulates in Khon Kaen as well as in
Bangkok.
Into Thailand From Burma
At the time of writing, Western tourists were not allowed
to cross between Burma and Thailand
at Three Pagodas Pass near Kanchanaburi, at
Myawaddy near Mae Sot, or at Mae Sai (except for a day-trip and a
fresh thirty-day stamp for your Thai visa when you
return).
However, foreign nationals should be able to cross in and
out of Burma via Victoria Point and Ranong on the
Andaman Coast. Burma now issues four-week tourist
visas for B300-400 - apply to the embassy and you should be able to
collect the same day.
Into Thailand From Cambodia
There are currently two legal border crossings between
Cambodia and Thailand. Be sure to
check with other travellers before opting for either crossing, as
border regulations can vary.
The most commonly used crossing is at Poipet, which lies just across the border from the Thai
town of Aranyaprathet; buses and trains run between Aranyaprathet
and Bangkok.
Increasingly popular with travellers
is the border crossing in Thailand's Trat province,
involving a convoluted route via Hat Lek and Krong Koh Kong . The
speedier alternative is to make use of the daily flights operated by
Bangkok Airways between Phnom Penh
and Bangkok and Siem Reap and
Bangkok.
Into Thailand From Laos
There are currently five points on the Lao border where
tourists can cross overland into Thailand :
Vientiane to Nong Khai; Houayxai to Chiang Kong; Thakhek to Nakhon
Phanom; Savannakhet to Mukdahan; and Pakxe to Chong Mek.
Non-extendable thirty-day Thai visas are available on arrival at all
these points.
Into Thailand From Malaysia and Singapore
Most people choose to travel by long-distance train or
bus from Malaysian cities such as KL or Butterworth to either
Bangkok, Krabi, Surat
Thani or
Hat Yai.
However, you can also
travel by more local transport, as there are eight border crossings
between Malaysia and Thailand -
from Kuala Perlis and Langkawi to Satun; from Kuala Perlis and Alor
Setar to Padang Besar; from Sungai Petani to Betong; from Kota Bahru
to Sungai Kolok; from Kota Bahru , Sadao and Wang Prachan to Ban
Taba.
The train journey from
Singapore to Bangkok (1943km) via
Malaysia involves several changes, but can be done
in around fifty hours at a cost of about £60/$90; trains leave at
least once a day from both ends.
The most straightforward route is
along the west coast line, via Kuala Lumpur and Butterworth (22hr).
The east-coast route involves a short taxi ride across the actual
border, as the lines don't quite connect.
Plenty of buses also cross the Thai-Malaysian
border every day. Buses arrive at Hat Yai from
Butterworth (5hr), Penang (6hr),
Kuala Lumpur (12hr) and Singapore
(18hr).
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