Saen Saep Canal Boat Guide (Update 2026)

Saen Saep Canal is a very long canal in Bangkok which runs from the Bang Pakong river in Chachoengsao province, passing through residential areas in the northeast Bangkok as well as many commercial districts along Sukhumvit road and ends at the temple of the Golden Mount.

Since it passes both residential and commercial areas, there is definitely a boat operated along the canal for the commuter.

It is a very useful canal and best to avoid heavy traffic in the commercial district of Bangkok. I highly recommend you to use this boat route in case you stay at a hotel very near to this canal. Here is the routing.

Routing and Nearby Area

Saen Saep canal boat service starts from Wat Sriboonrueng in Bangkapi and ends at the temple of the Golden Mount.

For tourists, I highly recommend to focus only on piers from the Thonglor Pier until Panfa Leelard Pier, where there are many hotels in a walkable distance as well as interesting places to visit along these piers.

Schedule

The boat will come every 5-15 minutes, depending on the hours of the day. During rush hour on weekdays, between 05:30 until 9:00 and 16:00 until 20:30, you can expect to wait only 5 minutes. However, the boat can be very crowded.

Outside rush hours and weekends, you can expect 10-15 minutes waiting for a boat.

The boat schedule will only show the departure time from the origin and its final destination pier.

You will not be able to know the exact time the boat will arrive at each pier in advance.

The first ride from Wat Sriboonrueng pier is 05:30 on weekdays and 06:00 on weekends. The last ride from Wat Sriboonrueng pier is 19:15 on weekdays and 18:00 on weekends.

The first ride from Panfa Leelard pier is 06:15 on weekdays and 06:45 on weekends. The last ride from Panfa Leelard pier is 20:00 on weekdays and 19:00 on weekends.

Price and Form of Payment

The fare for the Saen Saep canal boat is progressive rate per a single ride (not hop on-hop off). This means the fare is higher when you go further from your origin pier you hop on the boat.

The fares can be adjusted anytime with almost no notification to the public. The latest information I found as of July 2026, the fare starts from 13 Baht (0.4 USD) and goes up to the maximum 23 Baht (0.7 USD) per a single ride, depending on the distances you take.

You can pay the fare in cash only. The fare collector on the boat will notice who hopped on the boat at which pier and you have to tell them the destination pier you want to go. They will do the calculation for you.

My Experience

Many people said that the name “Saen Saep” comes from the feeling when you ride a boat along the canal and once a drop of water from the canal spills on to your body, you will feel “saep” which means “burning” on your skin due to the poor conditions of the water in this canal.

It could be true in the past, but based on my experience recently it was far from what people said.

There are many projects that improved the quality of the water as well as the communities along this canal since covid time, and many projects are still running until today.

I would say the water is quite safe for the commuter. Of course on some rides I got spilled water from the canal to my arms. It did not burn my skin or give an itchy feeling.

I also noticed that there is a long walkway along the canal which was just built as a part of the improvement projects.

It connects you from one pier to the next as well as many narrow “soi” or sub-street from the main road of Sukhumvit.

If you want to experience something very Bangkok and a bit adventurous at the same time, you can always walk or ride a bike along the walkway.

My recommended routing for walk or bike is between Thonglor Pier and Nana Nua Pier where the walkway is already finished.

Be careful as the operating hours of the boat are very limited, especially after 18:00. If you plan to go to Pratunam or Central World by this canal boat and not sure if you would come back to the pier on time, I would recommend getting back by BTS skytrain instead.

Connection to Subway/Skytrain and Commuter Train (MRT/BTS/SRT Red Line)

Saen Saep canal boat has many connecting points to the Subway (MRT) and Bangkok Skytrain (BTS) network.

• MRT
  You can take the Saen Saep canal boat to Asok pier which connects to MRT Phetchaburi station.By walking around 150 meters from the Asok pier, you will reach the MRT Phetchaburi station. You can take the MRT for 1 stop to MRT Sukhumvit station to go to Terminal 21 as well as to connect to BTS Asok station.

• BTS
  There are 2 piers that connect to the BTS in a walkable distance, which are:

• • Chitlom pier connects to BTS Chitlom.
    Accessing the BTS system at this station is recommended for those who want to travel to/from the other part of the city such as Prompong, Sathorn or Silom area.

• • Saphan Hua Chang pier connects to BTS National Stadium and BTS Ratchathewi.
    The interesting part of Saphan Hua Chang pier is that it is located in between 2 BTS stations and each of them are on a different line.Accessing the BTS system from BTS National Stadium station, this station is recommended for those who want to travel to/from Siam, Sathorn or Silom area.

    Accessing the BTS system from BTS Ratchathewi station is recommended for those who want to travel to/from Siam, Asok, or Prompong area.

• SRT Red Line
  Saen Saep canal boat does not directly connect to the SRT red line. However, if you want to travel on the SRT red line, you can travel by MRT to Krungthep Aphiwat Station to use the SRT red line. I recommend to take off the boat at Asok pier, which connects to MRT Phetchaburi (read MRT section)

Connection to Long Distance Trains

Saen Saep canal boat does not have a direct connection to any long distance train station, but to travel from a pier to the long distance train station can be done by accessing to the MRT station near the long distance train station as follows:

• Krungthep Aphiwat Central Terminal Station
  If you want to travel by Saen Saep canal boat to Krungthep Aphiwat Station, you will need to transfer to the MRT first. The recommended pier is Asok Pier, which connects to MRT Phetchaburi. From this MRT station, you can travel to Krungthep Aphiwat Central Terminal Station in around 30 minutes

• Hua Lamphong (Bangkok Train Station)
  Since Hua Lamphong is reached by the MRT, the recommended pier is also Asok Pier which is the only pier that connects to MRT. It should take around 20 minutes to arrive at Hua Lamphong.

Connection to Airports

Traveling by Saen Saep canal boat is not the best option to get to the airport as there are no piers close to the airport. However, if you have to travel by Saen Saep canal boat to the airport, you should travel to a pier that connects to the MRT or BTS station to continue your journey to the airport. Recommended piers include:

• Asok Pier connects to Airport Rail Link Makkasan Station.
  The Airport Rail Link Makkasan Station is just around 280 meters from the Asok pier. However, I highly recommend you to go down to the MRT Phetchaburi station and cross the underground walkway to the Airport Rail Link Makkasan Station which is much safer.
  Here you can use the Airport Link to travel to Suvarnabhumi Airport which will take around 30 minutes to arrive at the airport. 
• Saphan Hua Chang Pier connects to BTS Ratchathewi Station.
  Continue your journey using BTS skytrain to BTS to Mo Chit Station and use bus line A1 to travel to Don Mueang Airport.

Connection to Long Distance Buses

Saen Saep canal boat does not connect to any long distance bus station. Even if you use the Saen Saep canal boat to connect to BTS and MRT to get to the long distance bus station, only Ekkamai Bus Terminal connects to BTS Ekkamai Station. Other than these bus terminals, BTS and MRT do not directly connect to other bus stations. You may have to take a taxi from BTS and MRT stations, which may not be worth the price and time.
If you are near the pier of the Saen Saep canal boat and want to travel by long distance bus, especially Sai Tai Mai and Mo Chit 2, we recommend that you call a taxi to go directly to these two long distance bus stations.