Distance from Bangkok to Beijing
🇹🇭 Bangkok, Thailand → 🇨🇳 Beijing, China
The dashed line joins the two city centres; the true shortest path on the globe is a great-circle arc, and real flight paths also bend around restricted airspace and follow airways.
Over Laos and southern China
Drawn as a straight line, the route leaves Bangkok over the rice plains of northeastern Thailand, crosses the Mekong into Laos and enters China near the borders of Yunnan, Guangxi and Vietnam. From there it runs almost due north across Guizhou, the Yangtze basin around Hubei and the loess country of Henan before reaching the North China Plain. Flights on the route depart from Suvarnabhumi (BKK) or Don Mueang (DMK) and arrive at Beijing Capital (PEK) or Daxing (PKX); nonstop service is well established.
Can you go overland?
Since the Laos–China Railway opened in December 2021, it has been possible to travel between the two capitals by train, though not in a single journey. Thai trains reach the Laotian border and Vientiane, the Laos–China line continues to Kunming, and China's high-speed network covers the rest of the way to Beijing. With connections it is a multi-day trip rather than a practical alternative to flying, but it appeals to rail travellers.
A long relationship
Thailand and China established diplomatic relations in 1975, and ethnic Chinese communities have shaped Bangkok for centuries, most visibly around Yaowarat, the city's Chinatown. Today China is one of Thailand's largest trading partners and its biggest source of foreign tourists, which keeps this one of the busiest long-haul routes out of Bangkok.
Bangkok
Beijing
Frequently asked questions
- How far is Beijing from Bangkok?
- 3,296 km (2,048 miles) in a straight line (great-circle distance). The distance is the same in both directions.
- How long is the flight from Bangkok to Beijing?
- A nonstop flight covers the distance in roughly 4h 37m. That estimate assumes an average 800 km/h plus 30 minutes for taxi, climb and descent; scheduled times vary with routing and winds.
- What direction is Beijing from Bangkok?
- Beijing lies roughly northeast of Bangkok; the initial great-circle bearing is 25°.
- What is the time difference between Bangkok and Beijing?
- Beijing (UTC+8) is 1h ahead of Bangkok (UTC+7). Neither city uses daylight saving time.
- Which airports serve this route?
- Bangkok: Suvarnabhumi (BKK) and Don Mueang (DMK). Beijing: Capital (PEK) and Daxing (PKX).
- Is there a train from Bangkok to Beijing?
- Not a through train, but the trip can be made by rail with changes: Thai trains to the Laos border and Vientiane, the Laos-China Railway to Kunming, then Chinese high-speed trains to Beijing. It takes several days.
Other routes from Bangkok and Beijing
See the country profiles for Thailand and China, or measure any other pair with the Asia distance calculator.