Trip planningBy Clever Tourists · Published
In Southeast Asia you get between cities on a mix of overnight trains, long-distance buses, shared minivans, ferries and the occasional budget flight, and most of it can be booked in advance on 12Go, the site we used for our buses, trains and ferries across the region. Our route took us through the Philippines in November 2022, Thailand from December 2022 to January 2023, Vietnam from April to May 2023 and Bali in May and June 2023, so this guide covers those countries, plus Japan and South Korea, where 12Go is a much weaker tool. It explains how 12Go actually works, what it charges, which transport to pick in each country, and when you are better off buying from the operator or at the counter.
12Go is a booking platform, not a transport company. It was founded in 2012, is incorporated in Singapore and runs its main operations from Bangkok, and it says it lists more than 30,000 operators. You search a route, for example Bangkok to Chiang Mai, and get trains, buses, minivans, ferries and flights side by side with departure times, journey length, price and operator reviews. Its terms are explicit that it "acts as a platform operator or intermediary" and that the operator, not 12Go, runs the trip and has the final say on changes and refunds.
E-ticket or voucher. This is the detail that matters most on the day. Listings with an e-ticket badge mean the PDF on your phone is enough. Without the badge, you have to print the voucher and exchange it for a real ticket at the operator's counter, or carry it on board. 12Go's FAQ warns that operators can refuse boarding without a printout and that no refund applies if they do, so check for the badge before you pay and find a print shop the day before if it is missing.
Pickup points. Many minivan and island routes include hotel pickup; on 12Go these show up as stops with the word "Transfer" in the name. If your hotel is not listed you pick the nearest one or "Other" and email the address, and the booking is only confirmed once the operator approves the location.
Confirmation. Some tickets are instant. Others are confirmed by the operator by hand, and 12Go notes that some operators only issue tickets a few days before departure even if you booked weeks ahead. The estimate on your receipt is an average, not a promise. If the operator cannot confirm, you get a full refund.
Payment. Cards (Visa, Mastercard, American Express), PayPal, Apple Pay and Google Pay are accepted in most places, and all card payments go through 3D Secure, so keep your banking app handy. PayPal can hold a first payment for up to 24 hours, which delays the ticket.
12Go adds its own booking fee on top of the operator's fare, and your receipt shows the ticket price and the 12Go fees separately. It does not publish one flat fee, so the only reliable figure is the one at checkout. Its FAQ says a higher service fee applies where the operator has no online sales of its own, which mainly means some Thai railway tickets that 12Go has to buy for you.
The fees are the main weakness. On a cheap local bus the fee can be a large share of the fare, and on routes we cover in our guides the gap is visible: for the Chiang Mai to Pai minivan, our route guide found a fare of about ฿200 (≈ $5.9) booked direct showing up around ฿250 (≈ $7.4) on aggregators. Under 12Go's terms, fees and taxes are non-refundable unless the law requires otherwise, so even when you get the fare back you lose the fee.
Other weak spots: quality varies a lot between operators selling the same route, seat choice is not always offered, and support has to go back to the operator for anything non-standard. What you get in return is English-language search, foreign cards that actually work, and a confirmed seat before you reach a town whose bus station you have never seen.
Thailand is where 12Go has the most choice. Our route there ran from Bangkok in December 2022 up through Ayutthaya, Sukhothai, Lampang, Chiang Mai, Chiang Rai and Mae Hong Son, then south to Khao Sok and Ao Nang in January 2023.
• Trains: the overnight sleeper to Chiang Mai is the classic trip; berths, classes and stations are in our Bangkok to Chiang Mai sleeper train guide. The official channel is State Railway of Thailand's D-Ticket site and app (dticket.railway.co.th). SRT's advance window depends on how much of a train's route you ride: under its 2024 rules, as reported by Thai Train Guide, long journeys open up to 180 days ahead, mid-length ones 30 days and short hops one day. D-Ticket shows the limit for your trip when you search. This is also where 12Go's higher service fee bites, so buying on D-Ticket is worth trying first.
• Buses: government and private coaches cover everything. In the north, Greenbus is the operator most travellers use; how to buy its tickets is in our Chiang Mai to Chiang Rai Greenbus guide.
• Minivans: fast and cramped, with little room for luggage. Fine for two or three hours; not something to choose for a full day.
• Islands: joint bus and boat tickets are the norm. Lomprayah, for example, sells combined coach and catamaran tickets from Bangkok to Koh Tao, and these are listed on 12Go.
For short city rides, use an app rather than a booking site; see Grab vs Bolt in Bangkok.
Vietnam is a long, thin country, and most people travel it in one direction. We went north to south between April and May 2023: Hanoi, Ninh Binh, Hue, Hoi An, Da Lat, Nha Trang, Ho Chi Minh City and Can Tho.
• Trains: the Reunification Express runs the coast between Hanoi and Saigon. Vietnam Railways sells tickets on its official site, dsvn.vn, but only part of it is in English and foreign cards have been unreliable there, which is why many travellers use 12Go or Baolau and pay their fee. Vietnam Railways has also warned (in 2019) about copycat sites charging 20 to 40% more than official fares, so check the domain. Cabin classes and timetables are in our Reunification Express guide, and the most popular leg is covered in Hanoi to Hue by sleeper train, bus or flight.
• Sleeper buses and limousine vans: these cover the routes the train does not, such as the climb up to Da Lat. Operators change often, so read recent reviews of the specific company. Vexere is the main local booking app, with an English interface, and is worth comparing with 12Go.
The Philippines is an archipelago, so between islands your choice is a ferry or a domestic flight, and on the islands it is vans, buses and tricycles. Our month there in November 2022 ran from Manila to Sabang, Port Barton, El Nido and Coron in Palawan, then Oslob, Moalboal and Cebu City.
• Trains are not an option for visitors. The Philippine National Railways suspended its Metro Manila services on 28 March 2024 for construction of the North-South Commuter Railway, with the shutdown expected to last years.
• Vans: on Palawan, shared vans are the standard way between towns; see Puerto Princesa to El Nido by van or bus.
• Ferries: fast craft link the main islands. El Nido to Coron is the trip most visitors book; the boat versus plane question is in our El Nido to Coron guide. Sailings are cancelled in rough weather, so leave a buffer day before any onward flight.
Many Philippine operators sell mainly through Facebook pages, phone numbers and hotel desks, so 12Go coverage is patchier here than in Thailand. Book ahead for December to April.
Bali has no railway, and public buses are thin on the ground, so most visitors use private drivers, tourist shuttles or scooters. We moved around the island from Seminyak to Munduk, Ubud, Kintamani, Sidemen and Padangbai between May and June 2023. 12Go lists shuttles and private transfers between the main towns, and fast boats from Bali to the Gili Islands and Lombok.
Crossing to Java is the exception to booking with an agency. The public ferry between Gilimanuk in Bali and Ketapang in East Java is run by the state operator ASDP, and tickets are sold electronically only, through the Ferizy app or website; you cannot buy them at the port. Each ticket must match the passenger's ID. Our Bali to Ijen guide covers the crossing and the onward trip to Banyuwangi.
We spent March to April 2023 in Japan and June to July 2023 in South Korea. Both have excellent railways with English booking of their own, and here 12Go is rarely the best tool.
• Japan: 12Go lists routes such as Tokyo to Kyoto and sells the Japan Rail Pass and regional passes such as the Hakone Free Pass. But for the main Shinkansen line, JR's own SmartEX site and app sells seats directly, including advance discount fares, and there is no third-party fee. Whether a pass pays off is in our Shinkansen tickets and JR Pass guide.
• South Korea: 12Go lists Seoul to Busan and Busan to Jeju and sells the Korea Rail Pass, but Korail sells KTX tickets to foreigners on its own website and the Korail+ app. Since 1 October 2026, Korail opens sales two months before departure instead of one, at 7am each day. Fares and stations are in our Seoul to Busan KTX guide.
Where 12Go is still useful in both countries is the odd ferry or bus route you would otherwise have to book in Japanese or Korean, and comparing a train with a flight on the same screen.
• Overnight train: the most comfortable long trip, and it saves a night's accommodation. Slower than flying, and the good berths sell out first.
• Long-distance bus or sleeper bus: the cheapest and most widely available option, and often the only one off the main lines. Comfort ranges from very good to bad depending on the operator, which is why reviews matter.
• Minivan: fastest door to door on short routes, often with hotel pickup. Tight on space and luggage, and driving standards vary.
• Ferry: the only overland way between islands. Weather cancels sailings, especially in the wet season, so do not book a ferry and a flight on the same day.
• Budget flight: on any trip over about 12 hours by road, a flight on a regional low-cost airline usually wins once you count the lost day. Watch the baggage fees and the transfer to airports that are far from town.
A simple rule: under about 4 hours, take whatever leaves at a good time; over 10 hours, choose between the sleeper and a flight; in between, compare reviews and departure times rather than price alone.
How far ahead. 12Go's own answer is that it depends on the operator: some open sales months ahead, others close to departure. For most buses and vans, a few days is enough. Book sleeper trains, island boats and anything around Christmas, New Year, Lunar New Year (Tet in Vietnam) and Songkran in Thailand as early as sales open.
Read operator reviews, not route reviews. The same route can have a good company at 8am and a bad one at 9am. Check recent reviews for the specific operator and vehicle type.
Refunds. You can cancel yourself only if the ticket is refundable and you are inside the cancellation window shown when you booked; 12Go says those refunds start within 24 hours. If the operator cancels, you are entitled to a refund, but some operators refund you directly and others take anywhere from minutes to several months. The 12Go fee is not refunded either way, and outbound and return trips are separate purchases.
When to skip it: buy direct when the operator sells online in English (SRT D-Ticket, SmartEX, Korail, Greenbus), when the fare is so low that the fee is a big share of it, for Gilimanuk to Ketapang (Ferizy only), and for short local buses you can simply turn up for. 12Go earns its fee on unfamiliar routes, island combinations, and anything you want confirmed before you arrive.
Yes. 12Go is a booking platform founded in 2012 and incorporated in Singapore, with main operations in Bangkok. It sells tickets on behalf of operators, so the bus, train or ferry company runs the trip and decides on changes and refunds.
Yes. Its own fee is added to the operator's fare and shown separately on the receipt, and a higher service fee applies where the operator has no online sales, mainly some Thai railway tickets. The fee is not refunded if you cancel.
Only if the listing has the e-ticket badge. Otherwise print the voucher and exchange it at the operator's counter; 12Go warns operators can refuse boarding without a printout.
If the ticket is refundable and you cancel inside the window shown at booking, yes, minus 12Go's fee. If the operator cancels, you are entitled to a refund, though timing depends on the operator.
Usually not for trains. JR's SmartEX and Korail's own site and app sell high-speed train tickets directly without a third-party fee. 12Go is more useful there for rail passes and less familiar bus or ferry routes.
Get our new Bangkok guides and practical tips by email: where to stay, what to eat, what things cost and the rules that catch travelers out.
Free. No spam, only new guides and tips.
Entry rules change, and they depend on your nationality — always confirm the current requirements on the official government site before you book or apply. Only use official government (.gov) portals; ignore look-alike agency sites.
Search verified local fleets with low security deposits and exact model delivery on Localrent.
Get the best deals on your Bangkok stay with Booking.com.
