Kanchanaburi, Thailand: Bridge on the River Kwai (minus the bridge)

It was easy-peasy to get from Bangkok to Kanchanaburi. We hopped on the 7:50am train from Thonburi Station (formerly known as Bangkok Noi station).  The train is a comfortable and easy way to travel in Thailand, but don’t wear your best clothes as all the windows are open and it can get a little smokey and fumey. Make sure you consult the man in seat 61.


100 Baht and 2.5 hours later we arrived in Kanchanaburi. Made famous by a bridge. And a movie starring that bridge. Although it’s not actually the real bridge… or the right river.

Bus to Erawan Falls, Thailand
The local bus to Erawan Falls

We took a pass on the bridge. The star attraction of Kanchanaburi for us was Erawan Falls (200 B admission).  We took the first bus at 8am (highly recommended to avoid the crush of tourists that arrive on the next bus) to the seven tier waterfall.  It was beautiful: turquoise water, sunshine, and monkeys stealing unsuspecting tourists’ lunches. The last bus back to Kanchanaburi is at 4pm, but to avoid being squashed like sardines in an un-air conditioned can, we left early.

We stayed at Tamarind Guesthouse and for a very reasonable 350 Baht per night we had a raft house on the water with air-conditioning, private bathroom with a hot shower, and a killer view.

Raft house Kanchanaburi
The view from our raft house deck

Our next stop is Ayutthaya which just so happens to have its World Heritage Festival on.