Bangkok to Chumphon

 I had to do it once: cycling out of Bangkok to Chumphon. The question for me was: is it worth to cycle into south Thailand? I had cycled north to Ayuthaya and east to Cambodia but never south.

So I left on a Sunday morning to avoid the heavy traffic jams of the week days. And even on a Sunday, I was cautious, so I was on the bike at 7 am. The tourist office had given me an excellent map of greater Bangkok. It wasn't hard to find my way out.

So, how did I cycle from Bangkok to Chumphon? Since I stayed near the National Library, just north of Khao San Road, I had to go to Memorial Bridge on Tri Phet Road. All I had to do was following Tri Phet Road to the bridge where the road continues into Pracha Thipok Road.

After the big circle, I took Somdet Phra Chao Tak Sin Road which is in principle the continuation of Pracha Thipok Road and goes south south west. I passed the first outer circle road and then took Chom Thong Road. A few hundred meters further, Chom Thong Road turns south west and is named Ekachai Road.

This road becomes road number 3242 and leads to Samut Sakhon. Do not follow Rama II road since this is a motorway and not accessible for bicycles.

Samut Sakhon has not much to offer. After Samut Sakhon road 4 (which is in principle Rama II road) and 3242 merge into Road 4, which is the main road from Bangkok to Chumphon. It's then no longer a motorway. On Sundays it's not too busy. You pass fish and salt farms. Fresh fish as fresh salt in big packages of 10 or even 20 kg can be bought on the road. But apart of that, there's nothing special to see in these flat lands.

35 km after Samut Sakhon lies Samut Songkhram, another town which offers nothing really special though the legendary Floating Market of Bangkok is just north of the city. There's a few hotels in town.

Even on Sundays the road is quite busy though not too much. After Samut Songkhram it is another 24 km to a junction. Road 4 splits here in a northern and a southern part. Going north leads to Ratchaburi and Nakhon Phatom but if you are interested in those cities, it's better to leave Bangkok direct westwards (which is not much fun too).

Although tourism is nowadays a major income source for many people in south Thailand, the fishing industry is still alive and kicking

Petchaburi is 36 km south on the road from Bangkok to Chumphon. On the way several caves. King Rama II memorial park can be visited before reaching Petchaburi. It's quite a sizable city but it has a mellow atmosphere. A few hotels offer good value for the price and it's a convenient stop for an afternoon though I would not really know why I would stay longer.

Nicer maybe is Cha am, a typical beach town for the Bangkokians during the weekend. On a Sunday afternoon you will see traffic jams for the road back to Bangkok. It's all people who live in Bangkok and who have been to Cha am and Hua Hin for the weekend. The road going south from Bangkok to Chumphon is not too busy but it's not much fun too.

And Cha am is a typical beach town. It's a long beach stretch with hotels, restaurants and other kinds of pleasure on the boulevard. Apart of some tourists (it seems not of interest of backpackers but when I was there, there were quite a few older westerners going around ) most of the beach lovers were Thai.

The beach is clean though the water a bit rough because of the continuing south eastern winds. It's nice enough to spend an afternoon here. This is the same for Hua Hin which I didn't like much. In that sense Cha am was a bit nicer.

Cha am and Hia Hin are basically more of the same with one difference: Hua Hin is spotted by the western tourist and backpackers while Cha am is more for the local Bangkok Thais. I felt Hua Hin was a sort of Khao San Road at the beach.

I was cycling south on the way from Bangkok to Chumphon. Almost 100 km south of Hua Hin is Prachuap Khiri Khan located. I have been here 4 years ago and since then (read 2006) nothing has really changed. There are still only a few hotels though a new guest house is being build right at the beach. The atmosphere in 2002 was very mellow and it was in 2006 still mellow. Mass tourism has not arrived and in some ways I hope it will never arrive.

True, there isn't much to do. There's a temple on a hill top and a few little atolls nearby. Nowadays you can rent a kayak for some kayaking in front of the beach. The beach in town is mostly for the fishermen. The water is not too clean but the beach itself is fine. Just outside town, a little north and on walking distance is a better place for a swim. Ao Noi beach is like the town, not much visited and you can have a nice beach all for yourself.

Prachuap Khiri Khan has is a great local food market. In Hua Hin and Cha am you can find it too but the temptations to get a good pizza might be too much. The local food market in Prachuap Khiri Khan however is not to be missed. Some of the fish served here comes straight out of the sea and is hard to beat. At day time the food market is in use for local busses but after 6pm the stalls open. Needles to say I recommend Prachuap Khiri Khan above more well-known beach destinations as Hua Hin or Cha am. Prachuap Khiri Khan is a neat little town just to hang out and relax for a few days.

The last 190 km on the way from Bangkok to Chumphon can be done in one day by Superman. However, I am not and I guess you are not. It's not necessary to cycle Prachuap Khiri Khan - Chumphon in one day. The first 15 km can be done on a nice very quiet road which goes out south of Prachuap Khiri Khan. The road leads to the commercial beach stretch where beach chairs and other pleasure is available. For the visitor coming by bus or train this stretch is easy to miss since in Prachuap Khiri Khan there are hardly signs. It is as if the town doesn't want you to know it's there.

The little road continues to a science museum before it goes west and back to the main road (number 4). By the time you reach the main road, you're already 15 km from Prachuap Khiri Khan.

There's nothing much to say for the road between Prachuap Khiri Khan and Bang Saphan. Bang Saphan is a nice little and quite busy town. There's a beach and a few hotels. But I choose, despite the heavy rain, to continue further south. I thought there would be more resorts on the way since the road now follows the coast line. Indeed there are resorts. Some look good, others rundown. The one I enjoyed is the Ban Sai Thong Beach Resort, about 80 km from Chumphon. As you know, I hardly recommend hotels or guest houses but this one deserves a bit of attention. Read more about the Ban Sai Thong Beach resort here.

The restaurant of the Ban Sai Thong Beach Resort

The last part on the way from Bangkok to Chumphon can be done on small and quiet roads. In fact it is a really nice and green ride, those 80 km to Chumphon. From the resort, you simply follow directions south. Follow the direction to Ban Thung Maha and then Pathiu. Those villages are really small and there are beaches nearby, so if it gets too hot, you can get a dip in the Gulf of Thailand. The road is surprisingly hilly though never steep or high or long climbs. The 3180, this is the road number, brings you all the way into Chumphon.

Now before I answer the question from the first paragraph of this page, there's one more question: is Chumphon worth a visit? The answer is in fact simple: not more then an afternoon. Yes, the market is, as usual scenic and street life is busy. Chumphon is not a small city. It's OK for an afternoon.

Chumphon was and still is a sizable fisherman place. The market offer all fresh fish and other sea products. And around the town everywhere you find little harbors with little fishing boats.

If Koh Tao is your next destination, the journey has not ended. The ferries leave quite some kilometers out of town: almost 30! Follow the direction in Chumphon to the Koh Tao ferry. This is a few kilometers out of town. You can try to get a slow boat here. In 1991, when I visited first Koh Tao the boat left from here at 12 midnight. Nowadays there's a 7.30 am high speed ferry which brings you in one and a half hour to Koh Tao (contrary to the 6 hours in the past).

The high speed ferry is not leaving from the old Koh Tao pier but much further on this road. Follow the road to Ban Hat Sai Ri,. Every once in a while you will see announcement boards. In fact the high speed ferry leaves from a little hidden place behind a hill. There's a resort next to the pier which offers nice little bungalows with all the luxury you may want to have (fridge, TV, hot water and air-con).

Conclusion

Is it worth cycling from Bangkok to Chumphon or the other way around? It can be done in 4-7 days depending how fast you cycle and how many kilometers you want to do a day. The distance between Bangkok and Chumphon is 468 km.

Is it worth? Cycling out of Bangkok is not nice but it's not too bad too. If you consider doing it, start early on Sunday morning. It's quite straight forward. Nice? Not really. In fact, it starts to get a bit more interesting once you come to Petchaburi. From here on the road gets less busy though still busy enough. Cha am and Hua Hin are great if you want a Khao San Road on the beach. To me the real pleasure started after Prachuap Khiri Khan. From here on it is easier to find smaller roads that do not loop every time back to the National Highway 4. The last part from Bangkok to Chumphon is probably the nicest part, if you take road 3180.

Bottom line: would I do it again, would I cycle Bangkok to Chumphon again? Considering all, I would probably take the train or bus to Prachuap Khiri Khan and from there cycle partly on the main road from Bangkok to Chumphon. That would be nice enough.

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