Train travel from Thailand to Singapore

Hello! I will be in Thailand (Phuket & Ao Khanom) for two weeks before heading overland by train to Singapore.

I would LOVE to get some education about train travel from Thailand through Malaysia: Is it easy to purchase tickets? Where? Can someone give me advise?

Time is pretty flexible; I'd love to be able to stop for a night or two along the journey. I welcome tips about towns to see or guesthouses or train routes, any "do's and don'ts".

Many thanks!

Hi Teainbed,

If you do a quick search of the SE Asia forum, you should be able to find heaps of info on this journey.
Alternatively, http://www.seat61.com will tell you everything you need to know.

Happy travels.

teainbed wrote:Hello! I will be in Thailand (Phuket & Ao Khanom) for two weeks before heading overland by train to Singapore.

I would LOVE to get some education about train travel from Thailand through Malaysia: Is it easy to purchase tickets? Where? Can someone give me advise?

Time is pretty flexible; I'd love to be able to stop for a night or two along the journey. I welcome tips about towns to see or guesthouses or train routes, any "do's and don'ts".

Many thanks!

Probably from Phuket you would have to get to Hat Yai and pick up the train there.
http://www.1stopphuket.com/getting_here/bus/

In Hat Yai you can either take the train to Penang (Butterworth) or even use a van delivery service and pick up the train at Butterworth. Only a short walk from the Hat Yai train station is the Kings Hotel. Across the street from that hotel is a travel agency that I have used for van rides to Penang.

From Butterworth (Penang) you have train service from there through KL and on to Singapore. In Penang there are several small guest houses and hotels you can use. My last time through I used a hotel in Butterworth with the name of P.P. Hotel which was only a short ride by taxi from the train station. This hotel address is: Jalan Kampung Jawa, 12000 Butterworth. Tel. 04-323-0939. Previous visits to Penang I used the Waldorf and Hotel Continental. Hotels in Butterworth/Penang are cheaper than KL.

The last time I used a train from Butterworth I skipped KL. Train left around 7 a.m. and arrived in Singapore around 9 p.m. On previous visit to KL I had a discounted hotel that I booked when in Thailand. Got a good rate for a nice hotel. Get some prices for KL from a Thai travel agency in Phuket. (Phuket, by the way, is the most expensive city to stay in in Thailand. Even Bangkok is cheaper when you factor in the cost of local transportation.)
http://www.seat61.com/Thailand.htm#Singapore
http://www.penang-vacations.com/malaysia-railway.html

You can purchase your train tickets in Hat Yai. Or in Butterworth if you want to skip Hat Yai and spend the night in Malaysia. I bought my last tickets for Singapore when at Butterworth in person.

The Malaysian train had a food car. Chicken and rice was cheap. First Class seats were available at a higher price. Those seats were something like a Business Class seat on a plane where they can recline and have more leg room. Customs and immigration procedures was on the train one time and another time we got off just before Singapore and then back on for a quick ride to Singapore train station.

Have fun.

Thank you!!!