Thailand forum

Khun A,

I used to live in Khon Kaen, so it is a sentimental favorite for me. But even my Thai friends pretty much keep going straight from Nong Khai until they reach Ayutthaya. Most of the scenic or interesting stuff in northeast Thailand/Isan is near the Mekong river or within the corridor of Angkor -era temples farther to the south along the Cambodia border.

If you are looking for some cool stuff along the way from Nong Khai to Ayutthaya, you might make a stopover at Ban Chiang in Udon Province. It's a pretty cool archeological site. There is also the little town of Phimai, which is not far from Korat. It's a cozy little town on its own and has a small but interesting set of ruins from the Angkor era. Another option might be to cut across to Sukhothai (but not by train I'm afraid) and then head south to Ayutthaya. In that case you could stop at Lop Buri too.

One other thing you might consider is a stopover at Phu Kradueng National Park, a really cool cliff-like mountain that's a popular hiking area for Thais. I had a car when I went, but I think you can get there by bus from Khon Kaen. Regards.

Thanks very much for your replies. I would love to see Sukhothai instead of Ayutthaya , actually, my first travelroute was the other way round. Starting in VIE then north to LP and Luang Namtha. From there across the border to Thailand an then turn round and back to Bangkok spending some time in Sukothai. But I think the part Luang Namtha-Border-Chiang Rai/Mai to Sukothai is quite time consuming... So I decided to visit Sukothai on my (hopefully) next time in SEAsia and see Ayutthaya instead.
So exacto and durian, many thanks for your help. I will look into your suggestions.

Best regards
A