Maeklong train times

How many times does the train run through Maeklong market each day?

Eight: four arrivals from Ban Laem and four departures back toward it. The first pass is the 06:20 departure and the last is the 17:40 arrival, after which nothing moves until the next morning.

It is not every hour, whatever you may have read. The SRT timetable lists trains 9380 to 9387 and nothing else, and Wikipedia gives the same pattern: four trains a day each way between Ban Laem and Mae Klong. The line is single track, metre gauge and about 34 km long on this side of the Tha Chin River, with no signals.

Read the times in order and you notice something. Each departure from Mae Klong follows the previous arrival, and each arrival follows the previous departure from Ban Laem, with turnarounds as short as 10 minutes. The timetable reads like one railcar shuttling back and forth all day. That matters later, when we get to delays.

What is the Maeklong train timetable for 2026?

Arrivals at Mae Klong: 08:30 (9381), 11:10 (9383), 14:30 (9385), 17:40 (9387). Departures: 06:20 (9380), 09:00 (9382), 11:30 (9384), 15:30 (9386). Each run takes about an hour to or from Ban Laem.

The table lists all eight passes in the order they happen at the market. We added Ban Ka Long, a halt about 30 minutes up the line, because several tours board there to ride the last stretch into the market.

What is the best time to see the train at Maeklong Railway Market?

The 11:10 arrival, then the 11:30 departure from the same spot. You get two passes 20 minutes apart, the market is in full swing, and it fits every way of getting there from Bangkok.

Each pair has its own character:

• 08:30 in, 09:00 out: cooler, a little calmer, and the stalls are freshly stocked. You need an early start from Bangkok (about 1.5 hours by road), and the half-hour gap leaves time for a coffee between passes.
• 11:10 in, 11:30 out: the classic. Most tours aim for it, so it is the busiest, but the short gap makes it the most efficient pair of the day.
• 14:30 in, 15:30 out: a full hour between passes and fewer morning groups. It is hot, and third-party guides such as train36.com put market hours at about 07:00 to 16:00, so some stalls are packing up by the second pass.
• 06:20 out and 17:40 in: outside those market hours. Expect bare track and few awnings, which defeats the point.

Our pick for a self-planned visit is the 08:30 arrival if you are an early riser, and the 11:10 if you are not.

How do Maeklong tours time the train?

They work back from one arrival. Ride-in tours drive you to a station up the line and put you on the scheduled local train; watch-only tours park in town and walk you to the track before a pass.

The listings rarely name the train, but the arithmetic is easy to follow. The Mahanakhon day trip meets at 09:00 near BTS Asok and drives about 1.5 hours to Ban Ka Long, which lines up with the 10:40 from Ban Ka Long, due in the market at 11:10. The flagship tour leaves Samyan Mitrtown at 06:30 or 08:30 and drives 45 to 90 minutes to a countryside station, which fits the 08:30 and 11:10 arrivals. Two operators say the order of the markets may switch to fit the trains, and the boat tour's 07:00 start has no train ride at all.

The local train into the market, about an hour on the tracks, then a 45-minute longtail ride to Damnoen Saduak. Morning departures at 06:30 and 08:30 from Samyan Mitrtown.

★ 4.9 · 8.5 hours · from $23

Explore the train market experience → Tour details

Should you ride the train into the market or watch it pass?

Ride in if you can, then watch the next departure from the track. Riding shows you the awnings lifting from inside; watching gives you the photo.

On a ride-in tour you board at a small halt and roll through salt pans and villages for half an hour before the market closes in around the windows. Then you climb down at Mae Klong station and walk back along the rails to see the next train leave. The train market experience, the private tour, the Khao San departure and the Mahanakhon day trip all include the ride. The small-group tour and the Amphawa day trip have you watch it pass.

★★★★★

He suggested to drop us off at Bang Si Khot station (10 stops from the market). It was such an experience (and only 3baht each) to ride the train past local villages and see the salt farms and then into Maeklong Station. It arrived at 8:30am, then we walked through the markets for 30mins and then found a spot along the tracks to watch the train leave.

What happens if the Maeklong train is late?

You wait, and it comes. Because one railcar appears to work every run, a late arrival usually means a late departure too, so keep slack in your plan and check with the station or the SRT hotline 1690.

A few minutes late is normal on a slow single-track line, and the timetable has little padding: the railcar turns around at Ban Laem in 10 or 11 minutes before the 07:30 and the 10:10 runs. The vendors know the rhythm far better than any app. When they start folding, the train is close.

• On a tour: the guide watches the time for you. Operators that switch the market order do it precisely so the train and your slot line up.
• On your own: do not leave the track to look for it. Order a drink at a stall with a view and stay put.
• Planned works: the line does close now and then. In 2016 trains were suspended until 1 April for track repairs (Khaosod English). We found no 2026 suspension when we checked in November.
• Going home by rail: a late train can cost you the Mahachai connection. The getting there guide has the return times.

Where should you stand when the train comes through Maeklong market?

Behind the line of stall fronts, flat against them, with bags in front of you and both feet clear of the rails. If a vendor waves you into their stall, go.

The railcar clears the stalls by very little. The flagship listing puts it at centimeters, and the awnings swing back down behind it within seconds. Third-party guides describe a horn as it approaches; the private car listing mentions a warning bell. Either way, most vendors wait for the last moment, so do not take their calm as a sign you have time.

• Best photo: a straight stretch with the train coming toward you, shot from inside a stall line.
• Best moment after: look behind the train. Watching the baskets slide back onto the sleepers is half the show.
• Never: step back onto the rails until the last car is past, or sit on a basket that is not yours.

For more on safety, cash and what to wear, see the Maeklong tips guide.

How long does the train stay at Mae Klong station?

Between 20 minutes and an hour, depending on the run: 30 minutes after the 08:30, 20 after the 11:10 and an hour after the 14:30. The 17:40 does not leave again until 06:20.

Those gaps come straight from the SRT times. They are your window to walk from the station back down the market and pick a spot for the departure. Twenty minutes after the 11:10 is enough if you walk straight there. If you want to shop between passes, the 14:30 pair gives you a relaxed hour.

★★★★★

Took one and half hours to get there , 2 hrs at railway market with the 11.10 am train there to see it arrive and then leave at 11.30 am before we got back in the mini van again

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