Whenever we’ve traveled around Thailand it’s mainly been by train, with a few bus journeys for places the train doesn’t go. But without a car, it can be very inconvenient or very expensive getting too off the beaten track places. So for the next few months, we’ve decided to explore a little by car. For the first part of our journey, we’ll be traveling from Surin to Korat, via Buriram. It’s possible to bypass Buriram but as I’ve never been there it’s a good time to take a quick look.
As mentioned in another post, Korat is the local name for the city of Nakhon Ratchasima. According to Google Maps, the journey is 181 km (112 miles) and takes around 3 hours. It’s a fairly straightforward journey, with almost the whole of it being along Route 226.
For most of the journey there is a dual carriageway, but some stretches of road, especially just after leaving Surin, are smaller and more interesting. In the image below the road passes through a banana plantation.
One thing that I’ve noticed that is very different from traveling by road in Europe is that Thai roads have a lot of rest stops along almost every major road. For Thai people the most popular stopping places at PTT gas stations. Almost all these PTT stations have a range of stores that usually include Amazon Café, 7-Eleven, and some smaller stores. There are more popular than you’d imagine them to be.
When we got to Buriram we parked near the railway station and had a wander around the city center, although there wasn’t too much to see. Buriram does have an excellent football stadium though and also a Formula 1 race track. Both draw huge crowds to the town, but the town center is just like many other Thai towns of a similar size.
Just as we got back onto Route 226 when leaving Buriram we spotted a nice café where we stopped for a coffee and a bite to eat. It’s called Vee’s Café. Check it out if you’re passing that way.
The rest of the journey to Korat was pretty straightforward and uneventful. We had booked a night at Korat Hotel, which was very easy to find, as it’s quite close to the famous Ya Mo statue in the city center. You can see a photo below of what it’s like at night. Many people go there day and night to pray and make merit.
Where To Stay In Korat
For our one night in Korat, we stayed at the Korat Hotel (link to Korat Hotel post). This is a decent 3-star conference hotel that’s reasonably priced.