Chiang Mai to Phuket: bus and flight options (2026)

4 ways to make this trip, from ฿1,150 one way, and 2h05–2h30 on the quickest, direct. Below: what each costs, who runs it, how often it goes and the pier or station it actually leaves from.

Fares checked 7 September 2026 and quoted as one-way bands per adult. They move with season, fuel and demand — the flight bands move fastest of all.

Our pick for time

Flight

2h05–2h30 · ฿1,500–฿4,500 · Thai AirAsia, Thai Vietjet, Bangkok Airways

Our pick for budget

Bus + Bus

฿1,150–฿2,300 · 22h25–29h · Sombat Tour, Nakhonchai Air, Sritawong Tour, Phuket Central Tour

All options

Chiang Mai to Phuket: every option with mode, time, fare, operators and frequency
Option	Time	Fare	Operators	How often	Change
Flight	2h05–2h30	฿1,500–฿4,500	Thai AirAsia, Thai Vietjet, Bangkok Airways	A handful of direct flights a day; the rest connect through Bangkok	Direct
Flight + Flight	3h20–5h30	฿1,900–฿7,000	Thai AirAsia, Thai Vietjet, Nok Air, Thai Airways, Thai Lion Air, Bangkok Airways	Roughly 25–30 departures a day split between Don Mueang and Suvarnabhumi · 30-plus departures a day across both Bangkok airports	via Bangkok
Flight + Flight	3h25–5h45	฿5,500–฿12,100	Bangkok Airways	Seasonal direct service; otherwise a connection through Bangkok · One or two direct flights a day, seasonal	via Koh Samui
Bus + Bus	22h25–29h	฿1,150–฿2,300	Sombat Tour, Nakhonchai Air, Sritawong Tour, Phuket Central Tour	Departures through the day and evening from Mo Chit (Northern Terminal) · Evening departures from Sai Tai Mai	via Bangkok

Booking notes

Flight · 2h05–2h30 · ฿1,500–฿4,500

Direct flights exist but are thin — a connection through Bangkok can be cheaper and is often only an hour longer overall. Check both before assuming direct wins.

Flight + Flight · 3h20–5h30 · ฿1,900–฿7,000

Chiang Mai → Bangkok: The flight is 75 minutes and the airport transfers either side are longer than that, so the real saving over the sleeper is about half a day, not eleven hours. Bands move sharply around Songkran and Loy Krathong.

Bangkok → Phuket: The most competitive domestic route in the country, which is why the floor sits under ฿1,000 outside holidays. Phuket airport is 32km north of Patong — budget an hour and ฿200–800 for that transfer on top.

Flight + Flight · 3h25–5h45 · ฿5,500–฿12,100

Chiang Mai → Koh Samui: Samui airport is privately owned and Bangkok Airways runs almost all of it, which is why this leg costs more than a longer flight to Phuket. Flying to Surat Thani and taking the boat is routinely half the price.

Koh Samui → Phuket: The only quick way to swap coasts. Everything else — coach across the peninsula, or a flight via Bangkok — costs a day or a connection.

Bus + Bus · 22h25–29h · ฿1,150–฿2,300

Chiang Mai → Bangkok: VIP 24-seat coaches sit at the top of the band, 32- and 40-seat services at the bottom. The overnight bus arrives earlier than the train but sleeps worse.

Bangkok → Phuket: Twelve to fourteen hours for a fare that a flight booked in advance regularly beats. It exists, it's cheap in the last-minute case, and almost nobody should choose it over the plane.

Both ends of the trip

Chiang Mai

The northern hub: temples, cooking schools and the road to Pai and the hills.

Airport CNX: 10 minutes from the old city; the busiest domestic route in the country runs here from Bangkok.

Chiang Mai is driest Nov–Apr and wettest May–Oct on its own monthly rain-day normals.

Chiang Mai weather Chiang Mai guide

Phuket

Connected to the mainland by bridge, so it works as an airport hub as much as a beach.

Airport HKT: The Andaman's main gateway, with the widest low-cost domestic and regional network in the south.

Phuket is driest Nov–Apr and wettest May–Oct on its own monthly rain-day normals.

Phuket weather Phuket guide

Frequently asked questions

How long does it take to get from Chiang Mai to Phuket?

2h05–2h30 on the quickest option we hold — flight with Thai AirAsia. The slowest of the 4 options here takes 22h25–29h, so the spread between them is about 23h25. Times are for the scheduled leg and exclude the transfer at either end.

How much is Chiang Mai to Phuket?

From ฿1,150–฿2,300 one way by bus + bus, checked 7 September 2026. The quickest option costs ฿1,500–฿4,500 and saves about 23h25, so the gap between them is ฿350 against roughly that much time. That band comes from a dated route listing rather than a published tariff, so treat it as indicative.

What is the cheapest way from Chiang Mai to Phuket?

Bus + Bus at ฿1,150–฿2,300, run by Sombat Tour, Nakhonchai Air, Sritawong Tour, Sombat Tour, Phuket Central Tour. It takes 22h25–29h against the quickest option's 2h05–2h30, and runs departures through the day and evening from mo chit (northern terminal).

Where does the Chiang Mai to Phuket service leave from, and how often does it run?

Direct flights exist but are thin — a connection through Bangkok can be cheaper and is often only an hour longer overall. Check both before assuming direct wins. A handful of direct flights a day; the rest connect through Bangkok.

Going the other way, or further

The return trip is on the Phuket to Chiang Mai page — fares are the same in both directions on almost every leg here, but the timetables are not. To string this hop into a longer trip with a pace check, use the route planner, and see the island comparison for which coast is dry in the month you are travelling.

Elephant tourism concentrates at this end of the country, and a riding camp with a new name looks the same in a listing as a genuine one. Ethical elephant sanctuaries checks 16 sourced venues against what actually happens on the visit.

Sources

12go.asia route listings (band from what was on sale, not a tariff) — aggregator listings, not a published tariff.
Bookaway Bangkok–Chiang Mai route listings — aggregator listings, not a published tariff.
InsideSamui Bangkok–Koh Samui transport guide (2026 edition) — a dated route reference.

Checked 7 September 2026. Every figure on this page is a range, because every one of them moves.

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