This is an overview of a month long cycling tour I did around Central Thailand in January and February 2025.
Detailed information about the rides can be found in Part 1,
Part 2 and
Part 3.
I had cycled quite a lot in Thailand before, doing mostly single centered riding around
Chiang Rai,
Chiang Mai and
Hua Hin. It was fun exploring these places in detail, but I was also keen to do some more traditional cycle touring in the country.
On this trip I stayed for several nights in a few places that interested me (Ayutthaya, Kanchanaburi, Kaeng Krachan National Park, Prachuap Khiri Khan), riding between each of them. For me, it is important not to rush cycling in Thailand - I find that towns are best experienced slowly and over multiple days, so despite being here
for a month I limited myself to a relatively small area of Central Thailand.
I really, really enjoyed this trip. The riding was great: I was able to cycle almost exclusively on very scenic, quiet country lanes or gravel trails. The food was exceptional and there was plenty of cultural and historic interest along the way.
Route Overview
I flew into Bangkok from Kunming (having just finished a superb tour around the mountains of Yunnan in China). On this trip, I decided not to stay in Bangkok, but instead got a transfer with my bike box directly to Ayutthaya.
I wanted to spend a few days in Ayutthaya, exploring the ancient city and the ruins of the temples here.
Some historians claim that Ayutthaya was the largest city in the world in the 17th Century
From Ayutthaya I took two days to ride to Kanchanaburi - a charming town situated on the River Kwai. I then stayed there for a week during Chinese New Year, exploring the town and also doing some kayaking on the river.
From Kanchanaburi I headed south and rode for three days to reach the Kaeng Krachan National Park, where again I stayed for several more nights to get to know the area.
For the final leg of my route I continued south to Prachuap Khiri Khan, a relaxed coastal village with a great beach, before riding up to Hua Hin where I ended the tour! In total I cycled around 835km, with a modest elevation gain of 4,000m.
Logistics
I had pre-arranged a direct transfer from Bangkok Airport (BKK) to Ayutthaya. I had booked a minivan, but at the last minute the company told me that the bike box might not fit and so I had to pay extra for a 'limousine'. It was pricy by Thai standards, but still not overly expensive (around 2,000 baht for the two hour transfer), and I arrived in Ayutthaya without a hitch.
From Ayutthaya I cycled all the way to Hua Hin, with no buses or trains involved! To end the trip I again got a minivan transfer straight to Bangkok (Don Mueang) Airport. This cost around 2,800 baht for the three and a half hour transfer (with Hua Hin Transfers). Since I had my boxed bike with me, I decided not to stay in Bangkok this trip, which was a bit of a shame, but I didn't really fancy riding in and out of the city when it wasn't strictly necessary.
My bike for this trip was a custom built Sardinha Nordest, with titanium frame and carbon fibre fork. It had a 1x12 Shimano SLX grouset (34 tooth chainring) and I put on 38mm Schwalbe Almotion tubeless tyres. I was planning to stay mostly on paved roads both here and on other trips I had planned in the region (in
China and
Vietnam). I anticipated there would be a few gravel and single track sections, but not enough to justify bringing wider tyres or front suspension.
I carried two panniers (one large Vaude and one lightweight Altura), as well as a large handlebar bag. I felt like I had overpacked a bit, but was aware of the possibility of cold and wet weather both in Northern Vietnam and in China at this time of year.
Overall, this set up worked without any problems at all.
My bike on the River Kwai
Alternative Routes
I like to ride at a relaxed pace in Thailand. The heat can be quite oppressive and it is the relaxing nature of the country and slow pace of life that appeals to me the most. There are interesting towns at regular intervals, so I was keen to limit myself to a relatively small area and to explore it in more depth. As usual, it was hard at times to resist the temptation to go as far and wide as possible, but I was pleased that I didn't succumb!
Other routes I considered on this trip were further north. I had initially contemplated flying into Nan, spending a couple of weeks there and then cycling down to Bangkok via Sukhothai and Ayutthaya. I may do this route next time, as I'm sure its beautiful with plenty of historic interest, but I was slightly worried about the impending burning season arriving in the north of the country.
For similar reasons I considered and rejected starting in Chiang Mai.
With regards to the route I actually did, the biggest decision was where to go from Kanchanaburi. I thought about riding to the Erawan National Park and to Hellfire Pass, before heading south along the border with Myanmar. The main thing that put me off was that I would have to ride along fairly busy roads (the 3199 and 323).
I think this route would still be nice to do, but I was enjoying riding on the quiet lanes and gravel roads so much, that I decided to stay on them and head straight to Kaeng Krachan, spending more time there.
Since I had to fly from Bangkok, I didn't consider going much further south than Prachuap Khiri Khan. It doesn't appeal to me too much because you have to ride quite some way on the main road (4), and also the towns are not so culturally interesting until you get down to Ranong, which is far away. I also don't have much interest in going to Phuket, which would be a logical place to finish such a trip.
I really enjoyed the quite roads and gravel trails on this trip.
Overall Thoughts
This was a really enjoyable cycling tour. It was relaxing, interesting and rewarding at the same time. I felt that I had enough time to explore the towns where I stayed for longer, getting to know them well. But I also explored a lot of the countryside, away from tourist areas and I experienced an impressive variety of vegetation, landscapes and village life.
The highlights were exploring the temples of Ayutthaya, relaxing in Kanchanaburi and riding the scenic trails and lanes between Kaeng Krachan and Prachuap Khiri Khan.
The food was predictable excellent. Thai cuisine is one my favourites, and even as I write this, I found myself salivating over the prospect of Som Tam (Papaya Salad), Tom Yum, Pad Thai, Pad Kra Pow, Sea Bass and other dishes! One of the nice things about staying in Thailand for a longer period of time, is that it is also easy to get hold of more familiar foods and products. Although I love Thai food, sometimes it is nice to have a pizza or something from a bakery - which was possible to do in most places I stayed. Likewise, if I felt like a meal or two without eating the Thai staples of meat and eggs, I sometimes bought a whey protein drink, which are sold in many tasty flavours at the ubiquitous 7-Eleven, Lotus's and similar supermarkets.
Pad Thai always gives lot of energy for riding
There is not too much negative to say about this trip, but as always there are a few minor things.
Dogs were quite annoying at times. There were a lot of dogs on this route, mostly belonging to houses, but also a few strays. The majority barely lifted an eyelid as I cycled by, but quite a few did bark and some chased. There was never much aggression in their chasing though and they all quickly lost interest - none of them came close to seriously trying to bite me - it was more of a slight annoyance than anything else.
Another minor quibble is that the air quality was not the best at times - one day in Kanchanburi was particularly bad when a strong wind was blowing over from the Bangkok area. But it was really not too bad in general - I never had any breathing problems or discomfort.
Finally, it's worth noting than this is a hot region - most days it was above 30°C. I like riding in these kind of temperatures, but I know that it's not to everyone's taste. Nearly all accommodation has air conditioning, so sleeping should not be a problem even on warm nights. There was also some wind at times - mostly blowing from the north or north-east, but occasionally changing direction. The route I took on back roads and trails made this almost a non-factor, as you were constantly changing direction, but if you stuck to the straight main-roads, it's definitely better to do this trip in a north-to south direction in the winter months.
A lot of cultural interest
Overall my experience on this trip was great. I would highly recommend it for the scenery, riding, cultural interest, food, quality of accommodation... pretty much everything! My advice would be not to rush through - even though it would certainly be possible to do this entire route in ten days, I don't think it would be so enjoyable. It's definitely a region to take your time and to scratch a little beneath the surface.
