By bus the journey from Chiang Rai to Nakhon Ratchasima is scheduled to take 14 hours. A faster, but more expensive, way to travel from Chiang Rai to Nakhon Ratchasima would be to fly to Bangkok and then to take a bus or train to Nakhon Ratchasima.
Bus Times from Chiang Rai to Nakhon Ratchasima
There is currently 3 direct bus services a day from Chiang Rai to Nakhon Ratchasima available to book online.
Chiang Rai | Nakhon Ratchasima | Service | Ticket | Company |
13:35 | 03:35 | Express | 843 THB | Nakhonchai Tour |
15:50 | 05:50 | VIP 32 | 967 THB | Nakhonchai Tour |
19:30 | 09:30 | VIP 32 | 967 THB | Nakhonchai Tour |
- Express Bus: 48 seats, no toilet.
- VIP 32 Bus: 32 seats, toilet.
Buy Tickets from Chiang Rai to Nakhon Ratchasima
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Chiang Rai Bus Station
Bus services from Chiang Rai to Nakhon Ratchasima depart from Chiang Rai Bus Terminal 2.
Nakhon Ratchasima Bus Station
Bus services from Chiang Rai to Nakhon Ratchasima terminate at Nakhon Ratchasima Bus Terminal 2.
About Nakhon Ratchasima
With a city centre population of over 120,000 permanent residents, Nakhon Ratchasima is one of the four large towns in the North Eastern Region of Thailand.
Tourism in Nakhon Ratchasima
Nakhon Ratchasima is not itself a popular tourist destination. The old part of the town centre has two places of interest to visit. The most popular is Suan Rak Park which contains a statue to local folk hero Grandma Mo who, according to legend, led an uprising against a short-lived occupation of the city by an army from Laos. The park also contains some interesting statues dedicated to the city’s famous breed of cat, the Korat Blue. The other place to visit is Wat Pha Narai Maharat. Wat Pha Narai Maharat features a temple on an island in a man made lake which houses two ancient Khmer era sandstone statues.

Phimai Historical Park
The most important historical attraction in the province is the Phimai Historical Park, 60 km away from Nakhon Ratchasima city centre. There are frequent bus services to the historical park from Nakhon Ratchasima Bus Terminal 1. The Phimai Historical Park contains probably the best examples of Khmer architecture in Thailand, dating back to the 11th and 12th Centuries. The main temple covers a rectangular area roughly 1,000 metres by 600 metres. Like the more famous Khmer temples in Siem Reap, the central point of the Phimai Temple is its three towers, the tallest one representing Mount Meru, the home of the gods in Hindu mythology.