Chiang Rai to Chiang Mai: bus options (2026)

1 way to make this trip, from ฿280 one way, and 3h20–6h40 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

Bus

3h20–6h40 · ฿280–฿770 · Green Bus

Our pick for budget

Bus

฿280–฿770 · 3h20–6h40 · Green Bus

Same option twice: on this pair the quickest way is also the cheapest, which is rarer than it sounds — it usually means one operator has the route to itself.

All options

Chiang Rai to Chiang Mai: every option with mode, time, fare, operators and frequency
Option	Time	Fare	Operators	How often	Change
Bus	3h20–6h40	฿280–฿770	Green Bus	Hourly or better between about 06:00 and 18:45	Direct

Booking notes

Bus · 3h20–6h40 · ฿280–฿770

Green Bus grades its own fleet: the cheapest V-class seats sit at the bottom of the band and the wide X-class reclining seats at the top. 154km, so the fast services do it in about 3h20.

Both ends of the trip

Chiang Rai

The White Temple, the Blue Temple and the Golden Triangle border country.

Airport CEI: Direct low-cost flights from Bangkok; from Chiang Mai the bus is usually quicker door to door.

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

Frequently asked questions

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

3h20–6h40 by bus with Green Bus — the only routing we hold for this pair, so there is no faster or slower alternative to weigh. Times are for the scheduled leg and exclude the transfer at either end.

How much is Chiang Rai to Chiang Mai?

฿280–฿770 one way by bus, checked 7 September 2026. It is the only option we hold for this pair, so the band is the whole answer rather than the bottom of a range of choices. That band comes from a dated route listing rather than a published tariff, so treat it as indicative.

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

Green Bus grades its own fleet: the cheapest V-class seats sit at the bottom of the band and the wide X-class reclining seats at the top. 154km, so the fast services do it in about 3h20. Hourly or better between about 06:00 and 18:45.

Going the other way, or further

The return trip is on the Chiang Mai to Chiang Rai 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

Bookaway Chiang Mai–Chiang Rai route listings — aggregator listings, not a published tariff.

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

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