Pattaya to Bangkok by Minibus

[dirtydog]

Several companies ply the streets of Pattaya and Jomtien to take you to Bangkok, Victory monument to be precise, actually they only drive down Sukhumvit Road but it is a quick cheap way to get to Bangkok, takes about 2 hours and haven't been on one where the driver is a drugged up yaba addict.

We catch the one from Sattahip as it stops at the end of Soi Thepprasit, ok costs 140baht when we could catch one from central Pattaya for just under 100baht but it's not worth the savings to us.

At the Petronas petrol station just past Pattaya Klang / Central Pattaya Road is the booth to buy your ticket to Bangkok and where you catch the minibus, can't miss the petrol station as it is a large one, also has buses inside to Nong Khai etc.



This is our Sattahip to bangkok minibus, pretty much the same as all the others.



Victory monument has loads of minibus places round it, this one pretty much covers the whole of Thailand with its minibuses, ie from Hua Hin to Hat Yai or more popular tourist destinations as Phuket and Krabi.



More options on getting to Bangkok from Pattaya https://teakdoor.com/view.php?pg=pattaya_getting_around

[Kwang]

Just thought I'd add, if you are coming from Bangkok, get off the BTS (Victory) at Exit 4, go down the steps and you will see all those minibuses in front of that Century Shopping Mall

Another tip, DON'T sit on the back seat, you will be sat on the rear axle and have your head bounced off the roof all the way

[Marmite the Dog]

Where's your hairdresser's car gone, DD?

[Kwang]

^ stick a picture up for the Lads

[dirtydog]

^^Only got it back from the car shop a couple of days ago, had it resprayed and that, not worth using for going to Bangkok anyway, cheaper by minibus and taxi for us.

[crocodilexp]

That particular company (orange stripe - Rotruam?) regularly has stark-raving-mad drivers doing 160 km/h while tailgating 1m from the car in front and veering across lanes without signaling on the motorway. I had the pleasure of riding with them 2-3 times and observing the madness from the front seat. No more, thanks.

Some companies are better -- the 97 baht Pattaya Van has a strict 120 km/h speed limit (GPS enforced). While some of their drivers are poor, most seem fine.

[boatboy]

How tight do they stuff the buses?
Last time I caught one (Vietnam ) they stuffed if full of passengers then filled the gaps with bags and then stuffed in a few more passengers.
Hot, torturous ride all for the sake of saving a few dollars after a several hundred dollar flight.

[kingwilly]

How cheap can some people be, fark that. Hire a taxi, flag down any cab in Bangkok, negotiate between 900-1200 baht. (keep his number for retrun to Bangkok ~750 baht last I checked).

[DJ Pat]

I just flag down any taxi meter and offer them 1500 Baht. Usually works, and I chuck in a meal stop.

[Kwang]

There's nothing wrong with those mini buses, 1/10th the price of a taxi. The saving you make will get you a hotel for up to 3 nights in Thailand or 2 ladys of the night.
The taxis if you haggle them down will mosey on down the highway at 80 kmh to recoup some of that saving on Gasoline.
If you're on holiday for 2 weeks, and splashing your dough on ladyboys like Pat then it's different, but if you are living here and making regular trips on the highway, you'd be an idiot to spunk your money on taxis IMO

[liveinlos]

There's nothing wrong with those mini buses, 1/10th the price of a taxi. The saving you make will get you a hotel for up to 3 nights in Thailand or 2 ladys of the night.
The taxis if you haggle them down will mosey on down the highway at 80 kmh to recoup some of that saving on Gasoline.
If you're on holiday for 2 weeks, and splashing your dough on ladyboys like Pat then it's different, but if you are living here and making regular trips on the highway, you'd be an idiot to spunk your money on taxis IMO

Take a look at how many times this mini-bus company with the orange stripe has had fatal crashes in the past few years and you (unless you like death) would have to agree there is something wrong.

Less than a year ago they had back to back crashes resulting in over 15 deaths in less that one week

One of those crashes the driver ass-ended a tractor trailer truck that was parked in the break down lane on the highway.

So ask yourself what kind of moron driver would be going so fast as to swerve into the breakdown lane dead-ending into the back of the truck?

Most of the passengers burned to death

[Kwang]

I read somewhere over Songkran period, there was only 30 deaths in these minibuses all around Thailand last year, when compared to other modes of transport especially bikes which account for near 80%, these minibuses are very safe

[Spin]

The taxis if you haggle them down will mosey on down the highway at 80 kmh to recoup some of that saving on Gasoline.

What makes you think they run on gasoline?

[Seekingasylum]

I have been on a minibus on only the one occasion, returning from Hua Hin to Bangkok. Never again. Travelling at 80 mph the entire journey tailgaiting within 10 feet of whichever vehicle happened to be in front did nothing for my nerves and, ultimately, my temper. The sheer stupidity of the driver was one thing but the bloody nerve of the idiot to assume we passengers also shared in his indifference to life drove me to a seething rage by the time we arrived.

Taxis every time now.

[crocodilexp]

How tight do they stuff the buses?
Last time I caught one (Vietnam ) they stuffed if full of passengers then filled the gaps with bags and then stuffed in a few more passengers.

Hot, torturous ride all for the sake of saving a few dollars after a several hundred dollar flight.

It's not nearly as bad as in Vietnam. Most of the vans going from Victory Monument are filled to capacity, but not overfilled. Vans from Pattaya are often half-empty. The aircon actually works and people are quiet, clean and respectful. The vans are cramped by nature, but there aren't people sitting on your shoulders and feet, blabbering away loudly and sometimes smoking like in Vietnam.

However, I would not use a van for a trip over 3h (that is pushing it), maybe 4h in a bind. Not a substitute for a flight, but for a local bus (e.g. Bangkok to Pattaya/Hua Hin/Kanchanaburi). You lose a bit of comfort in exchange for more frequent departures and more convenient arrival point.

As for the actual Thai buses (big ones)... comfort-wise, VIP-24 from Mochit buses are as good as business class on most airlines (3-abreast, massage seats, even personal IFE system on some). I generally prefer an overnight bus (e.g. to Chiang Mai) over a plane, unless I am on business and need a same-day return.

[Tizmoi]

Just thought I'd add, if you are coming from Bangkok, get off the BTS (Victory) at Exit 4, go down the steps and you will see all those minibuses in front of that Century Shopping Mall

Another tip, DON'T sit on the back seat, you will be sat on the rear axle and have your head bounced off the roof all the way

Agreed! it's not just your head that takes a bashing, your lower back gets a severe caning too. Especially when the retard driving aims to hit every bump and pot hole on the f*^"ing road!!

[LooseBowels]

I've had a few runs in them minibus sorts.

Deathtraps.

Like a 90mph sardine tin, but a toss up if in tomato sauce.

Dickhead drivers, I've had to shout at em to slow down ffs.

Leave em, get a taxi

You can't argue with that

[crocodilexp]

^^ I don't think taxis are significantly safer than vans... Bangkok cabbies are just as crazy, it's just that you don't hear about taxi crashes in the media, since there are at most 2 casualties.

You do pay 8-15x the price, with no real time savings (vans leave roughly every 15-30 min, and it takes roughly the same time to find a taxi willing to go the long distance). Of course, if you live in a far-out area of Bangkok, a taxi may shave off a few minutes.

If safety is a priority over convenience, get the big bus from Ekamai or Morchit. Not foolproof, but in case of a two-vehicle collision the added weight helps.