By Car

From Bangkok, take Highway No. 1 to Saraburi and Highway No. 2 to Udon Thani via Nakhon Ratchasima and Khon Kaen Provinces, a total distance of 564 kilometers.

By Bus

Buses for Udon leave Bangkok's Northern Bus Terminal (Mochit 2 Bus Terminal) throughout the day from 5 a.m. to 11 p.m. The journey takes around 10 to 11 hours and the fare is 145 baht for regular buses (260 baht for air-conditioned buses). Contact Transport Co. Ltd at Tel: 0-2936-2852-66 or visit www.transport.co.th for more information.

Buses leave the main bus terminal in Khorat every half hour during the day and arrive in Udon five hours later. The cost is 81 baht for regular buses (146 baht for air-conditioned buses).

There are buses running between Udon Thani and other provinces such as Nong Khai, Loei, Khon Kaen, Sakon Nakhon, Nakhon Phanom and Ubon Ratchathani. The buses leave Udon Thani Bus Terminal every 40 minutes.

By Train

A train service between Bangkok and Udon Thani is available every day. For more details, contact the Travel Service Unit, State Railway of Thailand (SRT), Tel. 1690; 0 2220 4334; and 0 2220 4444, or visit www.railway.co.th

By Air

A daily flight between Bangkok and Udon Thani is offered by the Thai Airways International Public Company Limited (THAI). For detailed information, contact THAI, Tel. 1566; 0 2280 0060; 0 2282 0080; and 0 2628 2000, or visit www.thaiairways.com. In addition, there are low-cost airlines daily serviced by Thai Air Asia, Tel. 0 2515 9999 or www.airasia.com, and Nok Air, Tel. 1318 or www.nokair.co.th

Travelling around Udon Thani

By Bus

A hassle free way to get around the city is by the city bus. The most useful city bus for visitors is the yellow bus No. 2, which plies a route from the No. 2 bus terminal, south along Suphakit Janya road and then east along Pho Si road past the Charoen Hotel. The No. 6 bus runs between the No. 2 bus terminal and Rangsina Market, while bus No. 23 runs between bus terminals Nos. 1 and 2. The fare for all city buses is 4 baht.

By Car

The car rental places opposite the Udon Hotel offers sedan, jeeps and vans for hire starting at around 1,200 baht.

By Sam lor

Sam lors drivers in Udon Thani practically doubled their rates overnight when 50 Americans arrived to work on the VOA station outside the town in 1990-91, apparently the engineers were throwing their dollars around with abandon. With a permanent contingent of VOA employees in the area, just about any farang (foreigner) who happens to pass through Udon Thani will have to deal with this two tier price system. Reasonable fares are 10 baht to 15 bahts per kilometer.