The temple roof and skyline. Wat Phra That Doi Suthep. Chiang Mai, Thailand.

Colombo to Chiang Mai

Compare trains, buses, flights and ferries from Colombo to Chiang Mai. From $288.44, with the total price and every fee shown up front.

One passenger pays $288.44, every fee included. Services cover 3,036 km and are run by 2 operators across 1 mode.

Checked October 6, 2026Priced for October 26, 2026One passenger, all fees included

What one seat costs

Every operator we hold on this corridor starts at $288.44, so there is no spread to show.

Typical fares · Priced for October 26, 2026

$288.44

  • 142%Moves across the booking window

Fares by date

What this journey usually costs, by departure date. It shows which days run dearer.

Typical fares

  1. about $636.59Wed7
  2. about $886.48Thu8
  3. about $730.30Fri9
  4. about $550.04Sat10
  5. about $559.15Sun11
  6. about $461.54Mon12
  7. about $475.20Tue13
  8. about $436.16Wed14
  9. about $535.07Thu15
  10. about $473.90Fri16
  11. about $565.66Sat17
  12. about $482.37Sun18
  13. about $429.65Mon19
  14. about $405.58Tue20
  15. about $396.46Wed21
  16. about $427.04Thu22
  17. about $454.37Fri23
  18. about $427.04Sat24
  19. about $419.24Sun25
  20. about $288.44Mon26
  21. about $317.07Tue27

Based on what this route has cost recently. The live fare is confirmed when you book.

The flight gets you into Chiang Mai. These two partners take it from there, and the bed is theirs to book.

A hotel room

A room in Chiang Mai for the night the flight gets in

Sort by distance from Chiang Mai Railway Station and you can see which places are ten minutes on foot and which are not.

Partner links. We earn a commission when a booking completes, and it never changes what you pay.

Booking window

When to book Colombo to Chiang Mai

The same search run across the whole booking window, so the shape of the curve is visible rather than described.

  1. $301.4590 days
  2. $373.0460 days
  3. $356.7745 days
  4. $324.2330 days
  5. $317.0721 days
  6. $405.5814 days
  7. $475.207 days
  8. $730.303 days
  9. $636.591 days
Cheapest lead time
Fares bottom out around 90 days ahead, at $301.45.
How much it moves
The gap between the cheapest and most expensive lead time is 142 percent. The most expensive point is $730.30, 3 days out.
What that means
Today sits inside the cheap window, which closes about 90 days before departure. Waiting from here has usually cost money on this corridor rather than saved it.
$730.30$301.45137142130456090

Book now Fares on this route are lowest around 90 days ahead. You are inside that window.

This corridor, specifically

Facts that apply to Colombo to Chiang Mai and to no other route on the site.

Clocks

1.5 hours ahead on arrival. The clock moves even though you do not.

The shape of it

3,036 km

2,454 km as the crow flies, 24% further by the route services take. The bearing runs north-east.

Who lives at each end

648,034 → 127,240

Population at the departure city and at the arrival city, which is usually what decides how often anything runs.

The route

IndiaChinaThailandIndonesiaOmanCambodiaGuangzhouGuangzhouHo Chi Minh CityHo Chi Minh CityMumbaiMumbaiKarachiKarachiDhakaDhakaBengaluruBengaluruHanoiHanoiTaipeiTaipeiHyderabadHyderabadAhmedabadAhmedabadNanningNanningKunmingKunmingSingaporeSingaporeBangkokBangkokKolkataKolkataSuratSuratColomboColomboChiang MaiChiang MaiMap data: Natural Earth, GeoNames (CC BY 4.0)Map data: Natural Earth, GeoNames (CC BY 4.0)
The journey

What the journey looks like

Direct or connecting, how far the route really runs, and what happens when a connection is missed.

Direct or connecting
0% of the services we sell on this corridor run through without a change. The remaining 100% involve one connection.
How far it really runs
The route covers 3,036 km against 2,454 km in a straight line, a detour of 24 percent. Track and road geometry account for the difference.
Where the change is
Connections are made at Bangkok. The gap between arriving and leaving is 80 minutes, of which about 14 is walking.
If the connection is missed
The tightest connection we sell here has a 12 percent chance of not being made on the timetable alone. Part of this journey is a self transfer between separate tickets, so leave more time than the minimum and expect to check in again.

The fare from CNX into Chiang Mai is set by whoever drives it.

A taxi stand outside an airport terminal

A car waiting when you land in Chiang Mai

Settled in advance, so the ride into Chiang Mai costs what it said it would rather than what the cab stand says.

Partner links. We earn a commission on a booking, and the fare is the same as going direct.

Who runs this route

The flight gets in hours before any room is ready. Holding a bag is not what we sell.

Left luggage lockers

Baggage storage near Chiang Mai Railway Station

Most of the points near Chiang Mai Railway Station open before the first train and close after the last one.

Partner links. We earn a commission on a booking, and the price is the same as going direct.

Questions about Colombo to Chiang Mai

The questions people actually ask about this trip, answered from the same prices and times the page above is built on rather than written once and left to go stale.

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

Colombo to Chiang Mai covers 3,036 km. Each operator's own departure and arrival times for the date you pick are in the search at the top of this page, beside the total price.

How much does it cost to travel from Colombo to Chiang Mai?

The cheapest fare from Colombo to Chiang Mai is $288.44, as of October 6, 2026. A typical fare across the next three weeks is $461.54. Both figures are the total for one passenger, including taxes, supplier fees and our service fee, so nothing is added at checkout.

What is the cheapest way to get from Colombo to Chiang Mai?

The cheapest way from Colombo to Chiang Mai is by flight, at $288.44 for one passenger on October 26, 2026. The comparison table on this page shows what each mode costs side by side.

When should I book Colombo to Chiang Mai?

Fares from Colombo to Chiang Mai bottom out around 90 days before departure, at $301.45. Across the whole booking window the gap between the cheapest and the most expensive lead time is 142 percent, measured on October 6, 2026. Booking inside the last week has consistently cost more on this corridor.

Which day of the week is cheapest for Colombo to Chiang Mai?

Tuesday is the cheapest day to depart from Colombo to Chiang Mai, at $405.58. That is the median of 21 priced departure days across the next three weeks, as of October 6, 2026. Shifting a departure by one day is usually worth more than shifting the booking by one week.

Which month is cheapest for Colombo to Chiang Mai?

February is the cheapest of the next 6 months to travel from Colombo to Chiang Mai, at $266.96 for one passenger. Each month is priced on its fifteenth, so the comparison is like for like rather than a mix of weekends and midweek departures.

Who runs service from Colombo to Chiang Mai?

2 operators sell services from Colombo to Chiang Mai across 1 mode: Cathay Pacific, การรถไฟแห่งประเทศไทย. Journey times, fares and fare conditions differ between them, and the operator table on this page compares all of them on speed, flexibility and what is provided on board.

Is there a direct service from Colombo to Chiang Mai?

0 percent of the services we sell from Colombo to Chiang Mai are direct. The rest connect at Bangkok, with about 80 minutes between the two services. Both legs are sold on one booking, so a missed connection is rebooked at no charge.

Which station or terminal do services from Colombo to Chiang Mai use?

Services from Colombo to Chiang Mai by flight leave from Bandaranaike International Colombo Airport CMB and arrive at Chiang Mai Railway Station. Allow about 1h 57m in total for reaching the departure terminal and leaving the arrival one, which is already included in every door to door time on this page.

Can I change or refund a ticket from Colombo to Chiang Mai?

1 of the 2 operators we sell from Colombo to Chiang Mai allow a change or a refund. A change on a changeable fare costs $5.51. The operator table on this page names which is which, and the condition is shown again before you pay.

Where these numbers come from

Places, coordinates, operators, which operator serves which pair, and every distance on this page are real and come from open data. Where a corridor has a filed timetable the departure times are real too, and ferry fares are the prices the operators publish themselves.

Observed service A carrier record names this operator on this pair, carried through unchanged.

Prices come from the supplier wherever we hold a live quote. Elsewhere we show an indicative price built from the real distance, the real operator and a fare curve over lead time, day of the week and season. Those are labeled Estimated fare and cannot be booked.

Defined in full at Door to door, Fares, The booking window, Carbon, Distances

The flight is the simple part. What you do once you are in Chiang Mai is somebody else's catalog.

A guided tour group

Day trips out of Chiang Mai and across Thailand

Day trips that leave Chiang Mai in the morning and cover a good part of Thailand by evening.

Partner links. We earn a commission on a booking, and it never changes the price.

The two ends, compared

Colombo reaches 81 places in 31 countries on services we hold, over distances from 26 to 13,612 km. Chiang Mai reaches 108 places in 21 countries, from 20 to 13,358 km.

Other ways to make this journey

Leaving Colombo

  • 81Places you can leave for
  • 31Countries
  • 29Operators

Arriving in Chiang Mai

Leaving Chiang Mai

  • 108Places you can leave for
  • 21Countries
  • 26Operators

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