Northeastern Thailand - Thailand - page 938

AIR
The nearest airport is 55km south in Udon Thani. Udonkaew Tour ( 0 4241 1530; Th Pranang
Cholpratan; 8.30am-5.30pm) travel agency runs minivans (150B per person) to/from the air-
port. Coming into town they'll drop you at your hotel or the bridge; going back you need
to get yourself to their office. It's best to buy tickets in advance.
BUS
Nong Khai bus terminal ( 0 4242 1264) is located just off Th Prajak, about 1.5km from the main
pack of riverside guesthouses. Udon Thani (40B to 45B, one hour, every 30 minutes) is
the most frequent destination. For those travelling west along the Mekong, there are buses
to Sangkhom (60B, three hours, 7.30am, 11am, 3pm) with the 7.30am bus continuing all
the way to Loei (130B, 6½ hours). There are also buses to Khon Kaen (119B to 176B, 3½
hours, hourly), Nakhon Phanom (210B, 6½ hours, four daily until noon), and Kan-
chanaburi (855B, 10 hours, 8am) and minivans to Udon Thani (50B, 45 minutes, hourly)
and Bueng Kan (100B to 150B, 2½ hours, eight daily). Many people headed to Udon Thai
catch buses at the junction of Hwy 2 and Hwy 212, though you may not get a seat if you
board here.
Bangkok (380B to 490B, 11 hours) buses are frequent in the late afternoon and early
evening, but less so during the day. Nakhonchai Air ( 0 4242 0285; ticket 762B; departs 8.30pm) ,
Chan Tour ( 0 4246 0205; ticket 620B; departs 7.45am, 10.15am, 7.30pm, 8.45pm) and 999 VIP ( 0 4241
2679; ticket 762B; 8pm) offer VIP buses.There's also one bus direct to Suvarnabhumi (Air-
port) bus station (495B, nine hours, 8pm). For Chiang Mai, you have to change at Udon's
Bus Terminal 2.