Tips:  on the station ask for a ticket to a local train, they can assume you are a tourist and proposed a ticket way more expensive. The guy at the counter was trying to sell me the VIP ticket when you’re foreigner I guess which cost 300+ baht/person. But if you wanna try what I tried just ask for the local one. People will sell food on the train and locals will talk with you - always good to travel the “local” class and enjoy the natural way of things.

It was such a fun journey, you can get more connections with the local, starting from a simple smile, small talk, and it keeps going. They always curious where do you wanna go, where are you coming from, what do you like about Thailand, do you like the food. I enjoyed these small conversations cause, in the end, you can feel how warm Thai people are and sometimes as a reward you will get good tips or hidden recommendations from them (my advice is you do not light face these recommendations as many times its a gem worth of an advice not to be found anywhere in guide books or YouTube clips).

Like I wrote, there always be some sellers selling food and drinks. So you won’t suffer from hunger or thirst. For those of you who don’t like noise maybe this is not perfect. There is no A/C but only fans inside the train but I had not sweat, thanks to the small breeze that even made me fall asleep for few moments. The journey itself will take 2 hours.

When you reached Ayutthaya station, there are some rentals available across the street. You have options to do it by yourself ( bicycle or motorbike) or by tuk-tuk service. I traditionally went with the motorbike.

For tuk-tuk service, they will drive you around to all the tourist attractions. The first price I got when asking was 150 baht per hour. It's negotiable and it’s quite a good option when you’re coming with more people. You would need something about 5 hours to get around the main points.

The tuk-tuk itself a bit longer than the one in Bangkok so I guess it can hold more people.
Since I wanted to explore by myself and not be limited by time, I rent a motorbike for 250 baht until 7:00 pm.

Tips: For motorbike, some of the rentals need your passport, but there are also some rentals that just need your id. There are few over there, at the first one I asked they wanted my passport but at the second one they agreed to et only ID. I tried three motorbikes and only the third one was ok with the breaks (they were far from perfect condition though).

What I liked?

Buddha head on the tree:

It’s located in Wat Mahathat in Ayutthaya. Cost 50baht for the entrance. Nobody knows how it was built, maybe the tree simply grew around the Buddha's head. There was another story that said that a thief moved the Buddha head away from the main temple to hide it. And he didn’t make it for taking it back. But no one exactly knows what happens. It is allowed to take a selfie with the buddha's head but in order to be respectful when you want to take a picture, Buddha's head should be higher than yours.

Tips: The basic rule applied here to cover your shoulders and knees (both sexes), and ideally you'd cover your ankles too. There are some shops that are selling pants if you happened to need it, these are cheap to get (around 100-150 baht) and they make for a good souvenir.

Wat Yai Chai Mongkhon:

I came here by luck since it is showing the place closes at 5:00 pm. It was after 5:00 already. But I still was able to pay a visit as there were nobody checking any tickets and you could go freely in and out. The area is quite big, with 3 different sub-areas. Once you enter, you will pass by the sleeping buddha, the monastery, and the main area 2 big buddhas with a stupa. There is a history that is saying they built this place cause of two princesses of Ayutthaya passed away cause of cholera and the previous king ordered the bodies of both princes to be exhumed here. A bit creepy right? That makes it interesting. This place was involved in many histories, and the meaning of this temple itself which is The Great Temple of Auspicious Victory for a celebration after they defeated the Burmese army. I really like the atmosphere here, a lot of trees and there is also a small canal. Worth to visit guys for 50 baht entrance.

Wat Phu Khao Tong:

I actually got lost to get here, it is located quite far from the city center but if you have extra time you should check it out. Compare to the other two, this place is visited by fewer people which makes it more peaceful. From up the temple you can see a nice view. Still not sure why they painted this building into white thou. There is no entrance fee for this temple. There is a learning center nearby, which you can check, they have a coffee place as well if you want to get something to drink or get rest a bit.

Somtum Sukunya:

https://goo.gl/maps/r6rY1j5TsmmkBktLA

Decent restaurant nearby Wat Mahathat. Typical of home-style cooking food. Since giant river prawns are so popular in Ayutthaya I tried the shrimp but sadly it's frozen not fresh (not cool!) And 1600 baht for one. The hidden gem was the fish. Fried Tilapia with sweet and sour sauce. The fish was so crispy and it was filleted already so you could eat it without any problems. They put fresh sliced pineapple, carrot, onion and pepper which just made it even more appetising. And the sauce goes really really well with the fish. Loved it!

Recommendation for other restaurants:
Klong Srabua Boat Noodle (https://goo.gl/maps/LMZrEPCzSmsTSRHE6)
Rauen Sai Nam Restaurant (https://goo.gl/maps/G9ZUHwmS4QNx5aX3A)