Bangkok on Rails — the BTS & MRT, Alive
Every Skytrain and metro line in one animated map — press play and watch the city move.
Bangkok's traffic is legendary, but its rail network is the quiet cheat code — elevated BTS Skytrain, underground and monorail MRT, the Airport Rail Link, and the SRT Red commuter lines all lace together at a handful of interchange stations. This is a schematic, not a to-scale street map: the lines and interchanges are real and in the right relationships, but distances are stylised for clarity. Press play, let the trains run, and tap any station to see which lines meet there and what's worth getting off for.
Network status
How to actually ride it
Two operators, two ticketing systems, one very walkable set of interchanges. The elevated BTS Skytrain (two lines, Sukhumvit and Silom) and the underground/monorail MRT (Blue, Purple, Yellow, Pink) are run by different companies, so historically you bought a separate ticket for each — but contactless bank cards (Visa/Mastercard) and the stored-value Rabbit Card (BTS) now smooth most of that over. You tap in and tap out at the gates, and fares are by distance.
What it costs (indicative)
| Line | Typical fare | Good to know |
|---|---|---|
| BTS Skytrain | ~17–62 THB | Elevated; the tourist workhorse for Sukhumvit & Silom |
| MRT Blue Line | ~17–45 THB | A full loop — it now circles the old town and Chinatown |
| Airport Rail Link | ~15–45 THB | Phaya Thai ↔ Suvarnabhumi (BKK) in ~26 min |
| MRT / SRT day out | ~100–150 THB | A realistic all-day budget hopping around on rails |
Fares are indicative single-journey ranges and change with distance and operator promotions — treat them as ballpark, not gospel.
The interchanges that matter
- Siam — the heart of the BTS: the only place the Sukhumvit and Silom Skytrain lines cross. Also Bangkok's mall district (Siam Paragon, MBK).
- Asok / Sukhumvit — BTS Sukhumvit meets MRT Blue. Terminal 21 mall sits on top; Soi Cowboy is a block away.
- Sala Daeng / Si Lom — BTS Silom meets MRT Blue, at the top of the Silom business-and-nightlife strip (Patpong).
- Mo Chit / Chatuchak Park — BTS Sukhumvit meets MRT Blue at the giant Chatuchak Weekend Market.
- Phaya Thai — BTS Sukhumvit meets the Airport Rail Link. This is your fast, cheap ride to Suvarnabhumi.
- Bang Sue / Krung Thep Aphiwat — the vast new Grand Central Terminal: MRT Blue, both SRT Red lines, and long-distance trains, plus the Red Line link toward Don Mueang (DMK) airport.
Rides worth planning around
- Grand Palace & Wat Pho — take the MRT Blue Line to Sanam Chai, the beautiful temple-themed station that put the old town on the metro for the first time.
- Wat Arun & the river — ride BTS Silom to Saphan Taksin, walk down to Sathorn (Central) Pier, and hop a Chao Phraya boat.
- ICONSIAM — the riverside mega-mall is a short ride on the little Gold Line from Krung Thon Buri to Khlong San.
- Suvarnabhumi Airport (BKK) — Airport Rail Link from Phaya Thai or Makkasan. Don Mueang (DMK) is reached via the SRT Dark Red Line from Bang Sue.
Etiquette & tickets
- No eating or drinking on trains or platforms — it's enforced with fines.
- Let passengers off before boarding; stand on the right of escalators.
- Grab a Rabbit Card for the BTS if you're staying a while; a contactless Visa/Mastercard works on the MRT and the Airport Rail Link.
- Trains run roughly 06:00–midnight; they get genuinely packed at morning and evening rush — try the Rush hour button above to see why.