SUKHOTHAI

Van is definitely much faster than taking a bus! Go to the Mae Sot bus station and you'll find a window that says Tak-Sukhothai-Phitsanulok. The van starts in Mae Sot, passes Tak, Sukhothai and stops at Phitsanulok. The guy phoned someone and told me to standby until the van arrives at 1pm, and to pay the driver, B150, 3 hours. It will pass through the Old City and you will be dropped at the Bus Station in New Sukhothai. The 1pm is not on the posted departure times of 07:00, 08:00, 09:00, 10:50, 13:30, and 14:40! (maybe this is the bus schedule and not the van?)

1. Sukhothai Historical Park -
2. Si Satchanalai Historical Park -
3. Wat Si Chum -
4. Wat Si Sawai -
5. Wat Chang Lom Sukhothai -
6. Wat Maha That -
7. Wat Traphang Thong Market -

1. arrive early - in case there is a snag (visa snag, documentation snag, transport ticket snag, etc.), you will have ample time to troubleshoot the problem if you arrive early (to the airport, to the bus terminal, etc.)
2. put detailed itinerary on the Calendar apps of your smart-phone according to timelines - this is where you do all your thinking and planning. Once written down, you don't have to think anymore while you are on the journey...you just follow the steps. This frees your mind for something else that might happen while you are already en route
3. avoiding scams - as a general rule, I ignore the touts or anyone I don't know who call out to me. The calling comes in many forms - "Hi! Where are you from?", "Excuse me! Excuse me!", "Where are you going?". I don't look them in the eye and I remain non-verbal with them. If you reply to them, you just gave them an 'in' to hound you. In order not to look rude, I smile and wave the 'not interested' hand to them, without looking at them.
4. power bank - hand-carry your power bank. Do not check it in. You can be called in when you are already inside the plane to go all the way to the loading dock so you can personally remove the power bank...and chances are, you'll have to surrender it to them. And you might delay the plane departure!