Well, in terms of comfort, I’m inclined to say the train is the preferred option, unless you’re in third class. I’ve done the trip to Chiang Mai by sleeper train, although that was many years ago. I believe it took around 10 – 12 hours.

I think both are pretty similar if you're talking about journey time/cost. The bus is supposed to be a bit faster than the train, but you’ve obviously gotta factor in traffic conditions with the bus, so there might not be much in it.

Can confirm the time thing. I took the trip back down to Bangkok from Chiang Mai recently, thinking I’d save a few hours by taking the bus — but it ended up being over 12 hours.

Train’s definitely the way to go. I took the sleeper up to Chiang Mai yonks ago. Bit of a rattler, but it’s one of those things you’ve gotta do at least once!

awesome! thanks!!  😉