11 days · loop

The Siam Loop

Bangkok → Chiang Mai → Pai → Bangkok

Bangkok's chaos, Chiang Mai's calm, Pai's mountains: the sleeper-train classic.

Per person

11 days · 3 cities · 33h in transit

$270

Excludes international flights

Between cities

$109

2 buses and 1 train

Beds

$161

10 nights across 3 cities

Priced for a 1 Jan 2027 start. Every fare is real, read on the date shown beside it; beds are researched rates. Pick your dates and it all reprices.

Bangkok

🇹🇭 4 nights · Day 1–4 · BKK

Train · SRT sleeper train #9 · 13h · $44

Chiang Mai

🇹🇭 3 nights · Day 5–7 · CNX

Bus · Prempracha minivan · 3h · $11

Pai

🇹🇭 3 nights · Day 8–10 · CNX

Bus · Minivan + SRT sleeper via Chiang Mai · 17h · $54

Back in Bangkok

🇹🇭 the trip ends where it started

Full itinerary

Stay · 4 nights · Day 1–4

Bangkok

Your accommodation

Siamaze Hostel

from $14/night

$67 · 4 nights

Free things to do in Bangkok

Free

Chatuchak weekend market

15,000 stalls, so set a meeting point before you lose each other.

Free

Lumphini Park at dawn

Tai chi, outdoor aerobics and monitor lizards the size of dogs, in the only cool hour of the day.

Free

Yaowarat street-food crawl

Yaowarat only wakes up after dark, and the carts are cash.

Day 5

$44

Bangkok → Chiang Mai

Train · SRT sleeper train #9 · 13h

The overnight classic: ฿1,038 for a second-class air-con lower berth. Lowers sell out weeks ahead on D-Ticket; uppers are a little cheaper.

Stay · 3 nights · Day 5–7

Chiang Mai

Your accommodation

168 Chiangmai Guesthouse

from $15/night

$50 · 3 nights

168chiang Mai guesthouse is private room, family room and bunk bed dormitory with shared shower rooms and toilets.

Free things to do in Chiang Mai

Free

Old city temple loop on foot

Chedi Luang, Phra Singh, and whichever gold roof pulls you in. Thirty-odd wats inside the moat and most ask nothing at the door.

Free

Sunday walking street & night bazaar

Khao soi first, shopping second, mango sticky rice third. The walking street is Sunday only; the night bazaar runs every night.

Free

Wat Umong's tunnels and forest

A 700-year-old forest monastery at the foot of Doi Suthep: brick tunnels, a lake of turtles, and sayings nailed to the trees. Donation box, no ticket.

Day 8

$11

priced 31 Aug

Chiang Mai → Pai

Bus · Prempracha minivan · 3h

About ฿250 booked ahead (฿150 at the Arcade counter on the day). 762 curves. Sit near the front, skip the big breakfast.

Stay · 3 nights · Day 8–10

Pai

Your accommodation

Cody Backpackers

from $12/night

$44 · 3 nights

Free things to do in Pai

Free

Pai Canyon at sunset

Narrow ridge walks. Shoes, not thongs.

Free

Walking street food lap

One of everything, all under $3.

Free

Bamboo bridge over the rice

A boardwalk built by hand across the paddies to the temple, donation box and no ticket.

Day 11

$54

priced 31 Aug

Pai → Bangkok

Bus · Minivan + SRT sleeper via Chiang Mai · 17h

Prempracha van down the mountain (~฿250), then the ฿1,038 lower berth home. The train leg books on D-Ticket.

Back in Bangkok

Fly out, or stay longer. The booking links stop, you don't have to.

Before you go

The gaps the itinerary above doesn't cover.

Data that works on landing

An eSIM activates before you fly, so maps and transport apps work the moment you land instead of after finding wifi.

Travel insurance

10 nights in Thailand. Policies differ on cancellation cover and on whether the activities on this itinerary are included.

We don't recommend one over the other and we're not licensed to advise on insurance. Read each Product Disclosure Statement against your own trip and circumstances.

$270

travel & beds · per person