Kanchanaburi is the capital city of Kanchanaburi Province and is located at the confluence of the rivers Kwai Noi and Kwai Yai.
Kanchanaburi (population 52,000) is the gateway to Kanchanaburi Province. For most visitors it holds precisely one sight of interest, namely the Bridge over the River Kwai, the start of the infamous World War II Death Railway to Burma (Myanmar), although there is an increasingly thriving backpacker scene taking advantage of the chilled-out riverside vibe. More foreign visitors are discovering why Thais know it as one of the most beautiful provinces in the country with its easily accessible waterfalls and national parks.
Orienting yourself in Kanchanaburi is very easy. The main road, Thanon Saeng Chuto, runs through the length of town from north to south, connecting the River Kwai Bridge, the train station and the bus station. Running parallel to this, closer to the river, is Thanon Mae Nam Kwae where most of the guesthouses and the local bar scene can be found.
PLACE TO VISIT
Bridge over the River Kwai - Located some 3 km north of Kanchanaburi (down New Zealand Rd off Saeng Chuto), this iron bridge (Saphan Mae Nam Kwae) across the Kwae Yai river is the main attraction for many visitors. Immortalized in the famous movie and novel, it was a part of the infamous Death Railway to Burma, constructed by POWs working for the Japanese in hellish conditions during World War 2. Some 16,000 POWs and 100,000 Asian workers died during the railway construction. The present iron bridge is the second wartime incarnation (a part of the original can be found in the War Museum), but 2 central 'boxy' spans were rebuilt after the war to replace three sections destroyed by Allied bombing.
War Museum. To your left as you enter is this four-story building encrusted with statues, which starts off with a little Burmese shrine but is mostly devoted to pre-WW2 Thai history through the ages and is filled with wall paintings of kings and racks of rusty pistols. There are good views of the bridge from the roof of the riverside building.
World War II and (old) JEATH Museum. Lurking in the basement, this is the main drawcard and features a section of the first wooden bridge, recreations of the POW barracks and random military paraphernalia. Downstairs is an exibit of prehistoric Thailand complete with semi-erotic murals.
Jewelry Museum. Above the WW2 museum is the most bizarre section, housing (among other things) dusty stamp collections and a gallery with wall paintings of all Miss Thailand winners.
Thailand-Burma Railway Centre - next to Kanchanaburi War Cemetery (WW2 rail history). Generally considered to be the best source of information regarding the brige and its construction. Very moving exibits. Admission 100 baht
Amphoe Sri Sawat
Many day-trips to Kanchanaburi include a visit to the Tiger Temple . Admission is 500 baht, and comes with a nice book about the tigers. The temple is nowhere to be seen, but the tigers are lounging in a dusty canyon, surrounded by minders in yellow shirts and overseen by a monk off in the corner. You can watch the tigers from a distance, and when your time comes, the minders will take your camera and snap a few photos of you crouching behind the tiger, as well as a few close-ups of the tigers themselves. (You can also pay a few hundred baht extra for a "special" photo with a tiger.) It's all kind of odd, but the pictures will certainly wow your friends. Unverified reports of a tourist being seriously mauled by the tigers abound, regardless of which it is only common sense to not annoy tigers - a few years of domestication will not erase centuries of innate wildness.
HOW TO REACH
By bus - BKS public buses (line 81) leave from pier 4 of Bangkok's Southern Bus Terminal (Sai Tai Mai). In Kanchanaburi, there are two separate but nearby bus terminals, with 1st class buses departing from an office off Thanon Saengchuto, and 2nd class buses from the larger terminal one block east.
There are also tourist minibuses directly to/from Khao San Road, departing Kanchanaburi at 13:30 and 18:30.
From Nakhon Pathom, there are direct buses (2nd class only) every 15 to 30 minutes between 04:00 and 18:00, which take two hours. Alternatively, you can hop off a 1st class bus when it passes by Nakhon Pathom, but double-check with staff to ensure the route allows this and they know your plans.
By train - Trains leave Bangkok's Thonburi Train Station at 07:45 and arrive at Kanchanaburi at 10:20, also at 13:45 and arriving at 16:35. You may be interested in buying a ticket all the way to the River Kwai Bridge, since these two trains are the only ones which cross the bridge each day. Since December 2005, the fare is 100 baht for foreigners..
Be warned that reaching Thonburi Station from Khao San Road is harder than it looks; tuk-tuk drivers will try to charge you outrageous rates, and walking involves crossing two bridges and looping back a ways. The best way is probably to take the passenger boat from Banglamphu Pier and connect to a cross-river ferry that reaches the railway pier, then walk or take the open minibus from there.
By car - Kanchanaburi is about 3 hours drive from Bangkok, along the highway no.338 from Bangkok to Nakhon Pathom and Ratchaburi. There you can take a detour to the famous Damoen Saduak floating market for some sightseeing and lunch. Then switch to highway no.4 heading towards Kanchanaburi.
You can catch a taxi to Kanchanaburi, return to Bangkok for the day for around 2000 baht. This should include stopping at the Bridge over River Kwai and museum, Kanchanaburi township, the local dam and the cemetary for the prisoners of war. You may need to pay a bit extra to visit Erawan Falls which is about an hour out of the town centre and the Tiger Temple.
