Bangkok, Thailand is an exciting place with lots of spicy tastes, colorful sights, and sometimes fishy smells. There's something for everyone to enjoy, and most of the time its rather unexpected what you find. And it doesn't cost as much as it might in some other countries. The city has been ranked the number one visited city in the world multiple years, so you can expect many, many tourists and visitors at all times of the year. However, the best times to visit Bangkok is between November and February when the heat is not too unbearable, making Bangkok a popular tropical winter destination. My visit was hectic, bright, and jam-packed in the days just before Christmas, just how I like it.
What to Do
Grand Palace, Wat Pho, and other Temples
For the history buffs of the group, visiting the luxuriously built temples in Bangkok is a must. The Grand Palace and Wat Pho are close to one another in location making it easy to visit both temples in the same day. The best way to get to the temples from your hotel is with Grab or local transportation via train. I would avoid getting a taxi since they tend to have high standard rates instead of using meters. In order to navigate to the temple entrance, either follow the crowds of people heading that way or use your own navigation system. There may be some vendors trying to convince you that it is Buddha day and the temples are closed for a few hours, but trust what Google says about the temple hours. We were almost tricked to pay 1000 baht per person for a boat ride since they claimed the temples were closed from 11 AM to 12 PM, which was not at all true.
Once you've figured out getting into the Grand Palace, it's time to take in all the splendid colors and tall spires adorning every structure you see. There's a lot of people at all times at these temples, so having a strategy in place in case your group gets separated is a good idea. All temples require you to remove shoes at a designated area and being properly covered up before entering.
Wat Pho, also known as the Temple of the Reclining Buddha, is about a 10 minute walk from the Grand Palace. It is a rather large complex with several different areas to explore with the main being the temple housing the 46 meter long gold reclining buddha. Around the temple grounds, there are four large chedis, or tall long colorful spires, and 91 small chedis scattered throughout the grounds, some of which carry the ashes of the royal family. Wat Pho is known as the oldest univeristy in Thailand and still offers medical courses. There are many artworks throughout the complex depicting various subjects including techniques for Thai massages.
For those interested in seeing more temples that are not as popular but just as impressive, try visiting Wat Benchambophit, Wat Samphran, and Wat Saket as well. Or spend a day visiting Ayutthaya, a popular day trip from Bangkok to visit old ruins similar to those in Angkor Wat. We decided against doing this day trip for time sake and because we were headed to Angkor Wat in a few days. However, this is a great way to vist some ancient historical sites away from the modern hustle bustle of Bangkok.
Wat Arun
Even though Wat Arun is a temple, it really deserves its own category as the most recognized temple in Bangkok. Wat Arun stands out from the rest of the temples in Bangkok with its white porcelein exterior decorated with many different colored tiles and seashells that reflect the sun. It stands about 75 meters tall and is a famous landmark to easily see from the Chao Praya River. As evening comes around, the temple is lit up. You can get a really good view from opposite side of the river. The best time to go to Wat Arun is sunrise or sunset to avoid some of the crowds and the humid heat.
To get from Wat Pho to Wat Arun, there a short 5 minute ferry for 4 baht/person located on the river bank.
Floating Market
I visited the Taling Chan Floating Market which was only a 20 minute drive away from my hotel in the center of Bangkok. You don't get to actually sit in a boat that travels through the market but you get to see how the market is conducted and try the different foods they sell. There is an hour long boat tour that takes you through the nearby canals to see how people live and stops at a small shrine to visit. I would try sitting towards the front of the boat if you want to avoid getting water sprayed on you at times. The craziest thing was seeing the hundreds of swarming fish that live in the water when you throw bread to feed them. These fish are then caught to be sold at the markets. After the tour, you can explore the outdoor market that is not on the water to try street food amongst a more local crowd than tourists.
There were several reasons why I chose to visit Taling Chan over the more famous and larger floating market, Damnoen Saduak. Frankly, the decision against Damnoen Saduak was time to get there and cost. The drive to Damnoen Saduak is about 1.5 hours from Bangkok, which means 3 hours of my limited time in Bangkok would have to go into travel. Once there, negotiating a decent price for a boat to visit the floating market is known to be difficult. The pros for going to Damnoen Saduak is that its the most famous market for a reason. Also, on the way to the market, you can make a stop at the famous train market where the Thai sellers move their shop off of the train tracks when the train passes through.
Shopping
For the shoppers in the group, Bangkok was one of the best places to shop at for affordable prices. I'm gonna share my favorite places to shop while in Bangkok!
ICONSIAM. One of the most modern shopping malls I have ever seen. The bottom floor celebrates the Thai culture with locals selling street food, souvenirs, clothes, and more. The interior decoration is inspired by classic Thai architecture that you might see around Bangkok. The rest of the mall has a great selection of stores including high end stores like Louis Vuitton and Chanel. It's a great place to spend a few hours when it gets too hot outside. Outside the mall, there is a water show at specific times in the evening to watch with the Chao Praya river in the background.
PATPONG NIGHT MARKET. For all the cheap knockoffs and random souvenirs you could possibly want, Patpong night market is the place to come. I bought the cutest pair of loose Thai pants that you'll see everyone wearing here. There are some seedy appearing bars running along the night market, so whether thats something you are or aren't interested in, here's a heads up.
KHAOSAN ROAD. This street is mostly well known for its street food during the day and the party scene at night. But there were also a lot of affordable souvenir shops for small trinkets, bags, magnets, wall hangings to bring back home for friends and family as well. Of course, the food here was also just as affordable and delicious to try in between exploring the many shops.
CHATUCHAK WEEKEND MARKET. My favorite place for shopping in all of Bangkok. Suprisingly, this market was not talked about more a lot when I was doing research before visiting. But if you like shopping for nice things on a budget, definitely plan on having lots of cash and time to explore this market. There were quality items for super reasonable prices, but it can depend on which section of the market you are in. I also got a 30 minute foot and shoulder massage for a great price in between shopping! I wished I had budgeted more time to spend in this market just because of the great stuff I found to buy.
Lhong 1919
For the hipsters in the group, Lhong 1919 is a bit of a low-key place for tourists to visit. It is an old Chinese mansion that has been renovated to house small boutiques and art galleries with a shrine in the middle dedicated to the goddess of the sea, Mazu. Throughout the mansion, there are little plaques to tell you more about the Chinese immigrants that had initially built the mansion back in 1919. There are several creative murals to find scattered throughout the complex. It's a nice way to wind down a long day of exploring, especially at twilight.
Sky Bar/Rooftop Bar
For the party people, Bangkok is one of the best cities to get out and paint the town red at night. The famous Lebua Sky Bar was featured in the film, The Hangover II. However, there are rooftop bars all around the city with great views of the city lights at night if you're not interested in that specific one. Try seeing if your own hotel has a roofbar. They all require guests to be dressed up to be allowed in.
One of the more touristy things to do in Bangkok is to find a rooftop bar with the view of Wat Arun to see lit up in the evening. If this is something you would like to do, then make a reservation the day before or even earlier to avoid any disappointment.
Where to Eat
Eat anywhere and everywhere you find street food, and try a little bit of everything. Especially on Khao San Road. We definitely found things we loved like coconut ice cream, Pad thai, sticky rice, and things we were not so impressed with as well. We didn't eat in restaurants as much as we did street food, so have a look in my other article for more details!
Read| Street Food Diary of Bangkok and Singapore!
Transportation
I used the Grab app for most of my travel in Bangkok due to convenience and cost. The other pro for using the app was that they took credit card. However, there are certain places such as around ICONSIAM where it can get pretty congested in the evenings where you may need to flag down a taxi if you aren't able to get a Grab. It was about $4-6 dollars to travel anywhere within the city.
There is also public transportation including the BTS Skytrain or the MRT Subway, which I have heard is also a reliable way to travel the city. However, I didn't try them during my stay in Bangkok to offer any more advice.
Where I Stayed
One of the benefits of visiting Thailand is that nicer hotels can be a little bit more affordable if you have a mid-tier travel budget. I got to stay at two amazing hotels. One with an extensive breakfast buffet and gorgeous rooms called the Athenee Hotel and the other with an infinity pool with views of the Bangkok skyline to die for called Bangkok Marriott The Surawongse.