All you need to know to visit Bangkok

Travel guide to go and visit Bangkok

With the Great Palace, Wat Phra Keo and Wat Pho to name only the 3 most famous monuments, Bangkok is an essential stop for those who want to discover the Thai culture and understand the place that the Buddhist religion occupies in the Life of the Thais. Lovely parks, day or night markets, klongs, Chao Praya river, vendor stalls that reduce the sidewalk to a narrow alley, people who smile at you, temples, tuk-tuks, nightlife that shows the best and sometimes the worst of Thailand, massage ... You are in another dimension. Sometimes exhausting, Bangkok, if you let it time, will seduce you.

Hotel in Bangkok

Thonburi

Hotel in Bangkok

Sathorn

Hotel in Bangkok

Khao San Road

Hotel in Bangkok

Wang Lang Market

Hotel in Bangkok

Chinatown

Hotel in Bangkok

Thonburi

Guesthouse in Bangkok

Khao San Road

Guesthouse in Bangkok

Khao San Road

Practical information about Bangkok

You can bargain prices for a lot of things in Bangkok especially for tuk-tuk or motorcycle taxis. For taxis, prefer those with a taximeter and insist that they use it. This is the best way to pay the fair price.
Be careful, some tuk-tuks drivers around Wat Pho or Grand Palais may tell you that the temples are closed and propose to take you elsewhere. In the vast majority of cases, nothing is closed, they just want to drive you to stores that reward them with gasoline vouchers for each customer they bring. Sometimes you'll even end in jewelry store where you will be scammed.

My selection of tours & activities in Bangkok

Bangkok Classical Bicycle Tour

Offered in English
Discover the unknown Bangkok on a 3-hour bicycle tour that explores Chinatown and the Chao Praya River. Cross the river by pedestrian ferry and continue through backstreets discovering shop houses and the historic neighborhood of Thonburi.

Other places to see in Bangkok

Wat Benchamabophit
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one of our favorite temples in Bangkok. Peaceful with its small watercourse, it is pleasant to be. In the main bulding, the sitting Buddha with its blue background is beautiful on photographs.

Muang Boran (Ancient City)
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at about 70 km from Bangkok, this park includes replicas at larger or smaller scales of the most famous temples in Thailand and some of Cambodian, Burmese, Laotian or Chinese temples. A suprising visit that can be a introduction to your stay in the country.

Vimanmek Palace (Dusit Palace)
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the largest teak house in the world.

Wat Ratchabophit
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not far from Wat Pho and Grand Palace, this architecturally refined temple is rarely visited but really worth a visit

Jim Thompson House
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turned into a museum, the house consists of old buildings from different provinces of Thailand that Jim Thompson had made rebuilt here. You can see many pieces of his collection of art objects and learn the basics of silk work in Thailand. Jim Thompson was an American businessman who helped revitalize the Thai silk industry in the 1950s and 1960s

Taling Chan Floating Market
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small market held on weekends. The floating portion is quite small but is a nice place and still quite unknown among tourists. It is also a good starting point to visit the klongs, the small canals running through Bangkok. Prices are lower and tours offered interesting.

Koh Kret island
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this small island outside of Bangkok is an exotic and charming place. Here you will be away from the noise of the city. The inhabitants are Mon. They are famous for their pottery.

Phutthamonthon
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about thirty kilometers from Bangkok, this huge park is known for the big Walking Buddha statue standing at its center which is reportedly the largest in the world. Around it, monuments recall the main stages of the life of Lord Buddha and a temple houses the sacred texts of Theravada Buddhism carved in marble stone.

Siam House of Bizarre Creatures
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little funny museum especially interesting for curious people who will love its collections of weird animals such as two-headed turtles. Don't come especially for the museum but it can be nice to see it when visiting the Taling Chan Floating Market next door.

Wat Traimit
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known for its 3 meters high golden Buddha. It is the largest solid golden statue in the world. It stayed hidden under a layer of plaster for a very long time. Rediscovered in the 50s, it is now exposed at Wat Traimit.

Chatuchak Week End Market
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is the largest market in Bangkok. It is held every weekend. You can find and buy almost everything. The Chatuchak Market is such a phenomenon that it has become a tourist attraction even though the Thais remain by far its main customers.

Wat Suthat
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temple in front of which stands the big swing. Its courtyard is very nice and pretty. It is not far from the golden mountain.

Asiatique The Riverfront
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this night market located in old docks of Bangkok along the Chao Phraya river, provides shopping and dinners in quality restaurants. It is a unique place in Bangkok and getting more and more famous. Asiatique is more Hi-So compared to night markets we are used to see in Thailand.

Wat Intharawihan
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interesting for its 32 meters hight big Buddha image decorated with glass and gold mosaics. Oddly little known, Wat Intharawihan worth a visit ofr its unique in Bangkok statue.

Bang Krachao, Bangkok's green lung
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Also called 'Bangkok's green lung', this little area of nature is a good option to escape the bustle of the city. You can have some nice bicycke rides there, discover a floating market and relax in a beautiful park. A good getaway for weekends (the floating market is only open on weekends).

Bang Nam Phueng Floating Market
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This small floating market is held on Saturdays and Sundays near Bang Krachao, just on the outskirts of Bangkok. This is one of the best floating markets in close proximity to Bangkok even if it is not actually ''floating''. It is interesting to add it to your tour in Bang Krachao the green lung of Bangkok.

Wat Bowonniwet
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A 5 minute walk from the famous Khao San Road, this temple is however not much visited by tourists. It is a very important place in the royal and religious history of Thailand. Several kings were monks there, including the late King Bhumibol who died in October 2016. The temple has a superb chedi and magnificent Buddha images in its main hall.

Wat Pariwat
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Even if its nickname is the David Beckham Temple, it is more for the small statues of various comic and manga characters that are among the statues decorating the exterior of one of the halls of the temple that it is fun to visit Wat Pariwat. It is a curiosity still little known by tourists and a unique temple marrying Buddhism, super heroes and cartoons.

Khlong Bang Luang Floating Market
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This is not a floating market but a small part of a sympathetic canal (klong in Thai language) sometimes on the programme of in tours on the klongs of Bangkok especially for the show at the Artist House. Exotic and only a few metro stops from the Grand Palais.

Artist's House (Baan Silapin)
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Also known as Baan Silapin, this teak canal house in Bangkok is home to a puppet and traditional dance school that gives a show every day.

Wat Bang Chak
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This amazing temple opposite Koh Kret island on the outskirts of Bangkok is in my opinion a must see place when you go visit the island on the Chao Phraya river.

Chinatown
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Bangkok's Chinatown has a life of its own. It is one of the busiest and most commercial area in the Thai capital city and also a convenient base for exploring Bangkok and discovering the famous Thai Street Food in the evening.

Erawan Museum
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This large museum is one of the most interesting and well known in Bangkok although it is a few kilometers outside the city. You can't miss it with its huge statue of Erawan, a 3-headed elephant.

Santa Cruz Church
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It is one of the churches, if not the most famous Catholic church in Bangkok. Ideally located in the Thonburi district, 50 meters from the banks of the Chao Phraya river, it was built by the Portuguese who settled here.

Neon Market
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This fairly new night market is one of the nice places to dine or shop in Bangkok in the evening. Its weak point remains its location a little far from the metro.

Lhong 1919
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This small market located on the banks of the Chao Phraya River, mixing art galleries, craft shops, restaurants and bars installed in warehouses of Chinese architectural style dating back almost 2 centuries, is not lacking in charm, especially with its beautiful Street Art paintings, and really deserves to be better known and more visited.

Amphawa
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Especially interesting for its floating market installed on weekends on a canal, the surroundings of Amphawa Floating Market which is a 1h30 drive from Bangkok are also interesting with boat tours, several other floating markets, the surprising Mae Klong Railway Merket less than 10 kilometers away, its countryside, its crafts... A destination more interesting to visit on weekends.

Ayutthaya
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Even if it is more interesting to sleep there and stay at least 2 days, Ayutthaya, former capital of Siam Kingdom can be visited very easy in one day from Bangkok. It is the nearest historical destination from the capital. Tourists come here to explore its ruins of temples classified as World Heritage by UNESCO. They get here by themselves by train or hire a guide who organizes everything for them.

Kundeejeen Community
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This small hamlet along the Chao Phraya River in Thonburi district in Bangkok is a place steeped in history and tradition. It was first the Portuguese immigrants who came to settle there after the sack of Ayutthaya by the Burmese when the capital of the Kingdom was moved here. Today, the community perpetuates its historical and culinary traditions there.

Thonburi district
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This district located just opposite the most visited monuments in Bangkok, on the other bank of the Chao Phraya river, has a very pleasant small village atmosphere and is full of interesting places to visit to discover both the history and the diversity of Bangkok culture. It can be visited very easily by wlaking. Especially following my Walking Tour itinerarytinerary.

Bang Kapi floating footbridge to cross the canal
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This ingenious floating footbridge installed with a system of pulleys and pedals to move it in one direction or the other is one of the little curiosities of a Bangkok off the beaten track. Not a visit to put on the program if you are in a hurry but if you take the time to discover Bangkok in a different way.

ICON SIAM
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Yes, it's a shopping center but it has almost become a monument to visit in Bangkok. For its architectural style, the fact that it illustrates the splendor of Bangkok's large malls or at least just for the view of the Chao Phraya river that it offers from its 6th floor terrace. By the way, you can also go shopping there ;)

JODD FAIRS Rama 9
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This is one of the nicest night markets in Bangkok. Large selection of food and clothing and craft products including jewelry. A great place to eat well and shop especially as it is right next to a large shopping center.