The comfy way of getting to Mae Sai
Posted by Northerner on January 20th, 2012 filed in Living here, shopping, tourist tipsIt was time for a visa re-entry last week and so a couple of days beforehand I went to the Arcade Bus Station on the eastern outskirts of Chiang Mai to buy tickets. It is not really necessary to pre-book tickets, but it does ensure that you get the bus time and seat location that you want. My personal preference nowadays is the Green Bus VIP service.
Standard single fares on the Green Bus to Mae Sai are 212 Baht, slightly more than the regular air-conditioned buses, but well worth it for the extra comfort. The trip takes around 4 hours 30 minutes and stops in Chiang Rai en route. On previous trips the bus only used to stop at the new bus station there, but it seems that this facility is too far out of town as most buses go to the old station in central Chiang Rai as well now.
Once in Mae Sai it is a 15 Baht songthaew taxi trip to Friendship Bridge 1 and the Thai and Myanmese immigration posts. Motorcycle taxis are available for those wishing to get to the bridge quickly. The visa fee for Myanmar should be $US10, yet Myanmese immigration officers usually ask for 500 Baht. This is considerably more at current exchange rates. It is worth offering the greenback as the officers will accept it if you stand your ground and wait for a few minutes.
There is a small market in Tachilek on the Myanmese side of the border where fake cigarettes and DVDs, and cheap Chinese products are among items on sale. Most of the products are also now sold in the market in Mae Sai, which meanders through the back streets on the west side of the Friendship Bridge. After a little shopping, macadamia nuts and sunflower seeds are tasty snacks for the ride back, it was time to take a songthaew to the bus station for the last Green Bus to Chiang Mai.