Airport Bus From Don Muang Airport

Public bus is frowned upon in Thailand, mainly due to safety reasons. Many bus routes in Thailand are run by various private companies. These companies tend to be in a hurry to make big bucks, at the risk of passengers’ life. It was reported in a Bangkok Post article that the drivers and conductors do not get salaries, they get 10% of the ticket sales revenue while the conductor gets 5%. Hence, the need to go fast, faster, and fastest, to make more trips.

 

Airport bus, is the one and only bus that is deemed safe in the City of Angels by bf. Some people called it airport shuttle bus, but I think it should be just airport bus. Airport shuttle is the (free) shuttle service from Don Muang Airport to Suvarnabhumi Airport, and vice versa.

These orange-color air-conditioned buses are run by the Bangkok Mass Transit Authority (BMTA), a state-owned bus operator. Slow and steady, and with good service.

I particularly admire the conductors of this airport bus service. To me, they are the unsung heroes. Each and every one that I have encountered, never failed to impress me. No doubt that they have limited English skillset, but it is sufficient. Limited, but just enough to help non-Thai passengers. These bus conductors’ core responsibility is collecting fares and issuing tickets, but they also help advising on destinations. I have seen them in action many times, and I thought they did a rather good job.

 

There are basically 2 routes, to and fro Don Mueang International Airport: A1: Don Mueang Airport – BTS Mo Chit (every 12 minutes) and A2: Don Mueang Airport – Victory Monument (every 30 minutes). First bus at 7am (from Mochit) / 7.30am (from Don Muang), last bus at 12mn. Flat bus fare of 30 baht applies for both routes. The bus uses Don Muang Tollway, which cut down journey a lot, especially during traffic peak hour.

Update May 2017:

Effective 1 May 2017, there are 2 new bus routes: A3 (Lumpini Park) and A4 (Sanam Luang) and the fare is 50 baht. These buses will use the Don Mueang tollway, just like A1 and A2. The A3 bus will have few stops before Lumpini Park (north of Silom Road), and this includes  Din Daeng, ARL Ratchaprarop, and Ratchaprasong (near MBK-Siam). The A4 bus will stop at Bo Bae Lan Luang, and Khao San, before Sanam Luang.

According to Mayday here:

A3
– Approximate travel time is not over 45 minutes
– During rush hours, approximate travel time is not over 2 hours
– Bus leaves every 30 minutes
– Destination: Lumphini Park opposite of Lumphini police station (at Wireless Road)
– The first bus to Don Mueang Airport: You should arrive at Lumphini Park opposite of Lumphini police station (at Wireless Road) before 8.00 A.M.
– The last bus to Don Mueang Airport: You should arrive at Lumphini Park opposite of Lumphini police station before 11.45 P.M
A4
– Approximate travel time is not over 45 minutes
– During rush hours, approximate travel time is not over 2 hours
– Bus leaves every 30 minutes – 1 hour (might be late)
– Destination: opposite the National Theatre, close to the World War 1 Monument
– The first bus to Don Mueang Airport: You should arrive at opposite the National Theatre, close to the World War 1 Monument before 7.45 A.M.

Update June 2017:

Bus A3 and A4 were spotted near Gate 6 , at Departure Floor of the International Terminal.

Bus A1 on the other hand was parked near Gate 5. Both gates are located next to each other though .. so don’t worry about going to the wrong gate.

Update 18 March 2016:

Bus A1: From Don Muang: 07:30 (first bus)/24:00 (last bus). From Mo Chit: 07:00 (first bus)/24:00 (last bus)

Bus A2: From Don Muang: 08:00 (first bus)/21:00 (last bus). From Victory Monument 08:50 (first bus)/21:45 (last bus)

Route:

Bus A1: Don Mueang Airport – BTS Mo Chit

Inbound
1. Don Muang Airport 2. Kasetsart University (Viphawadi Rangsit Rd) 3. Mo Chit 4. Chatuchak Park 5. Mochit 2 / Northeastern Bus Terminal

Outbound
1. Mochit 2 / Northeastern Bus Terminal 2. Chatuchak Park 3. Mo Chit 4. Kasetsart University (Viphawadi Rangsit Rd) 5. Don Muang Airport

 

Bus A2: Don Mueang Airport – Victory Monument

Inbound
1. Don Muang Airport 2. Kasetsart University (Viphawadi Rangsit Rd) 3. Chatuchak Park 4. Mo Chit 5. Saphan Kwai 6. Ari 7. Sanam Pao 8. Victory Monument

Outbound
1. Victory Monument 2. Sanam Pao 3. Ari 4. Saphan Kwai 5. Mo Chit 6. Chatuchak Park 7. Kasetsart University (Viphawadi Rangsit Rd) 8. Don Muang Airport

 

I have only used Bus A1 so far, to MRT Chatuchak Park / BTS Mo Chit, but bf told me that he used Bus A2 once. The later also stopped at MRT Chatuchak Park / BTS Mo Chit (as you can see from bus routes above).

With the new Domestic Terminal at Don Muang Airport, the bus now has 2 stops at Don Muang International Airport. First stop at Gate 6, at Terminal 1 (International Flights) and second stop at Gate 14, at Terminal 2 (Domestic Flights).

Bus A1’s terminus is at Mochit 2 / Northeastern Bus Terminal. Most passengers alight one stop before, for connecting trains at MRT Chatuchak Park or BTS Mo Chit. The conductor will shout out these stops in English and Thai (just keep your ears open for BTS and MRT words); I am sure that there is no way that you will miss your stop. So, relax and take in the scenery.

After you alight from the bus, just walk straight and you’ll see the MRT station first. BTS is just slightly ahead.

 

 

Do note that there are 2 stops before the MRT/BTS stop: one is near Central Plaza Ladprao (still require a bit of walk), and the other one is at TMB Bank. Sometimes, there will be one or two passengers alighting at Central Plaza Ladprao. If you stay at Centara Grand at Central Plaza Ladprao, then you should alight here.  Otherwise, hold your horses, and you’ll arrive at your destination in another 5 minutes or so.

To give you a perspective, timing below is based on my journey last week:

Don Muang Airport, T1 5:45pm – Don Muang Airport, T2 5:47pm – Central Plaza Ladprao 6:11pm – TMB Bank 6:15pm – MRT Chatuchak Park / BTS Mo Chit 6.17pm – altogether approximately 30 minutes from Don Muang Airport to MRT/BTS.

Read about airport bus to Don Muang here.