Chiang Mai to Chiang Rai

The fastest way and the easiest way

Your own van is the easiest: about 3 hours 25 minutes from the Old City, Google Maps shows (checked November 2026), with the White Temple on the way in. The Chiang Mai to Chiang Rai bus takes 3 hours 20 minutes in VIP, terminal to terminal.

Green Bus fares are only shown when you book, so check them at the Arcade counter or online on the day.

Ask Tanner which one suits your group.

When does the Green Bus run?

The Green Bus runs about 11 times a day, first at 7am and last at 6:30pm, plus a 6am bus on Mondays, its timetable shows. It leaves Chiang Mai's Terminal 3, the Arcade, calls at Chiang Rai's Terminal 2 south of town, then ends at Terminal 1 downtown, beside the night bazaar.

There's one stop on the way: 15 to 30 minutes at the Mae Kachan hot-springs rest area, about halfway.

Insider tip: the VIP seats fill first in December and January, so book a day or more ahead. Rather skip the terminal? Ask Tanner for the van.

Does the bus stop at the White Temple?

The Green Bus doesn't stop there. Wat Rong Khun sits just off Route 118, about 13 km before Chiang Rai, so your own car stops on the way in, and the driver waits while you look.

On the bus, you ride to Terminal 1 and take the local bus back out to the gate, about ฿20.

The temple is the work of the Thai artist Chalermchai Kositpipat, who began it in 1997. It opens daily, 8am to 5:30pm, with last entry around 5pm, and the ticket includes the Cave of Art. Since January 2026 entry for foreign visitors is ฿200. Cover shoulders and knees.

Insider tip: the coaches from Chiang Mai arrive mid-morning. Staying over? Go at the 8am opening the next day and have it almost to yourselves. Ask Tanner, and the driver waits at the gate.

A day trip, or stay over?

A Chiang Mai to Chiang Rai day trip means about 6 hours on the road for a few hours in Chiang Rai, so stay over.

Photo: Chainwit., CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

• Stay over: the White Temple on the way in, the night bazaar, and the Blue Temple the next morning.
• The first evening: the gold Clock Tower in the middle of town puts on a free light show at 7, 8 and 9pm, a few minutes each.
• The Golden Triangle: further north, where Thailand meets Laos and Myanmar.
• A day by car: possible, with an early start and the temples only.

See our Chiang Rai guide, and ask Tanner to book a hotel near the night bazaar.

Your own car, door to door

Chiang Mai to Chiang Rai by car is about 3 hours 25 minutes, and a private car stops wherever you want: the White Temple, the Mae Kachan hot springs, a coffee break in the hills.

Bags loaded once, hotel to hotel, and nobody in the group has to drive.

Flying into Chiang Mai first? The same van can meet you at the airport; see Chiang Mai airport transfer and our Chiang Mai nightlife guide.

Ask Tanner where you want to stop.

How far is Chiang Rai?

It's about 184 km on Route 118 through the hills, about 3 hours 25 minutes from the Old City, with none of the famous curves of the road to Pai.

Ask Tanner what time to leave.

Is there a train or a flight?

There's no train: the northern line ends at Chiang Mai. There's no non-stop flight either. Flying means changing in Bangkok, 5 to 7 hours door to door. The road wins. Going back, Chiang Rai to Chiang Mai is the same road and the same Green Bus.

Ask Tanner for the van instead.

Four of you, all in

The bus is the budget pick for two. For four, our luxury van for up to 4 is from ฿6,500 for 10 hours, with the White Temple stop built in.

Insider tip: the White Temple is on the road in from Chiang Mai, so the stop adds about an hour, not a detour.

Tanner's pick: drive up in the morning, stay one night, Blue Temple before you leave. Ask Tanner to book the hotel by the night bazaar.

When to go

November to February is best for most trips: clear mornings for the temples and cool evenings at the night bazaar. Book a day or more ahead in December and January.

See every route on Getting around Thailand. Ask Tanner to hold the van for your dates.

Chiang Mai to Chiang Rai in short

• Easiest: your own car, about 3 hours 25 minutes from the Old City.

• The bus: the Green Bus, about 11 a day from the Arcade terminal, 7am to 6:30pm, 3 hours 20 minutes in VIP.
• Cheapest: Green Bus Express, about 3 hours 45 minutes.
• Distance: about 184 km on Route 118; no train, no non-stop flight.
• The White Temple: about 13 km before Chiang Rai, open 8am to 5:30pm; only a car stops there on the way in.
• Best months: November to February.

Checked November 2026.