Boat Bus Bangkok -How to take the Khlong Canal Taxi
In such a huge city like Bangkok, getting around can be a long and overwhelming experience. Luckily, people have been taking advantage of the canals through the capital from the Khlong Saen Saeb river and turned it into a great way to cover ground effectively: The Khlong Canal taxis.
The Khlong Canal Taxis are basically buses on water. Thousands of locals use them on a daily basis. They’re big, dirty and noisy, but also much fun.
Useful stuff:
There are two lines, so think about where you’d like to go first. The Western line finishes at Golden Mount, while the Eastern line finishes at Wat Si Bunrueang, near the National Institute of Development Administration). The handy crossing point between lines is at
As per Transit Bangkok, the boats ride between 5.30am and 8.30pm on weekdays, and until 7.00pm on weekends.
Price can go up to 20 baht per trip.
How to get it:
First, find the pier! The boats stop at the same piers going both directions, so they can be located on either side of the canal, north or south, no matter the direction.
Use this map on google to find your pier , or this one.
Once you found your pier, make sure you are getting on the boat going in the right direction, just look which side it comes from!
Wait until the boat arrives and wave it down, a deckhand wearing a helmet and a bright orange jacket will jump out, “secure” the boat with a rope and let you get in (they let the boat at the pier for about 15 seconds so be quick).
It is a bit rough, so be careful not to fall in.
Once in, you can buy your ticket with the agent on board (you’ll easily spot him as he will go around). Tell him your destination and he will give you the fare. You must pay in cash so make sure you have some small change with you. If it’s difficult to communicate, just give him 20 bath per person which would cover a ticket to the end of the line (that’s €0.56 so that’s pretty okay).
To get off, when you’re on sight of your pier stand up, and as soon as the deckhand has secured the stowage, jump out, same way you got on.
We first used the Khlong Canal Taxi to go check out the Airplane Graveyard, worth the visit!
