The connections from Singapore to Bangkok are even worse than those from Bangkok to Singapore. Often passengers from Singapore arrive in Butterworth just a few minutes after the Thai train for Bangkok has left. In 1992, a direct luxurious train, dubbed Orient Express , is to go into operation between Bangkok and Singapore. Roughly, fares for second class aircon are about double of third class fares, and first class costs about four times as much as third class. Third class is on small hard benches and not very suitable for long trips.
Most foreign visitors travel second class, either aircon or non-aircon.
For second class aircon and second class non-aircon , and of course in first class , sleeping berths are available on long distance trains. Ordinary trains are slowest, and they often only have third class carriages. Rapid , express , and special express are fast long distance trains. The difference in speed among the three of them is not really sufficient reason for choosing the one and not the other. Special express is a little bit faster than express, and express a little bit faster than rapid.