From Kota Bharu, local bus 29 will take you to the border at Rantau Panjang (what the Malay side of the border is called). The bus runs every 30-45 minutes, and takes maybe 1 hour (if memory serves - I'm writing this blog two weeks after I actually crossed, as I'm a lazy bugger).
The bus stops just before the Malaysian customs building - it should be easy to spot, not least because 2/3 of the bus will alight there. The bus then continues to other spots in the town. (Note, a handful of people got off one stop earlier, I think because motodops wait there. Ask the driver if you're unsure if you're at the right stop).
When you alight, walk straight ahead into the customs complex. The road curves to the left, to go around the complex, so you'll have to cross a couple of lanes of traffic. Luckily, it's not that busy. The pedestrian entrance is on the far left of the complex, as you enter (the pedestrian sign is blocked by the gate, so you can't really see it until you enter).
Malay exit customs is efficient and straight forward - just show your passport at the desk, and you're done. Keep walking straight to exit the building, then just walk over the bridge.
At the Thai side you'll enter the building to find a mass of people in several snaking queues. There is no separation of queues into Thais vs foreigners - everyone just lines up together. But first you'll have to remember to pick up a landing card (known by the staff as the "white form"). They are not on display anywhere; there's no pile of them as you enter or stack on a counter. Instead you need to stick your head into the medical room, where the nice lady behind the desk will give you the form.
No, I don't know why they're kept there, either.
Then you join one of the snaking queues, and hope that no one in front of you has any problems, because the customs officers will hold up your queue for 20 or 30 minutes while they sort it (why can't they take the person aside to wait for the checks to be made or the call to come in, I don't know).
Not many Westerners cross by land here, so you may get an officious customs officer who gives you a hard time. Mine demanded to know, repeatedly, why I didn't have a Thai visa. I had to point out, repeatedly, that I didn't need one. Try to remain polite and smiling, even though it's hard not to get annoyed at the hassle, and the time wasted (in all my visits to Thailand, I don't think I've ever made it through customs in less than 45 minutes. No other country I've visited has such consistently slow immigration).
Once you're (finally) through Thai customs, just walk out the back of the building, ignore all the people hanging about waiting for their friends to get through, and walk straight ahead to leave the complex and enter the town of Sungei Kolok.
If you want the train heading north to Hat Yai and beyond, keep walking straight as you leave immigration. Ignore google maps, which puts the station entrance on the right of the tracks, and tells you that you need to go one street over. Google is wrong - the entrance is straight ahead, on this main road.
Thai trains are usually late, so don't expect your train to leave on time (mine sat on the tracks until 30 minutes after our scheduled departure time). Tickets on this section of the line are noticeably more expensive than on other sections (maybe because of the extra security). I paid 92b for a third class seat up to Hat Yai, and they wanted more than 400b for a second class seat. Expect friendly locals who seem genuinely surprised to see a foreigner sharing the bench with them. Carry loads of water (the third class carriages have no AC, nor do the fans run while you're sitting in the station, so expect to sweat. A lot).
Welcome to Thailand!
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