Bangkok

Bangkok: One week itinerary

Bangkok Insider

BTS Skytrain passing EGV Grand Cinemas, Bangkok. Photo Lonely Planet Richard Nebesky

With a week in Bangers you can see and experience so much. Structure your week according to this itinerary to ensure you don't miss any of our faves.

After the two-day tour

Spread through the remaining days a leisurely trip to Dusit Park, the enclave of parkland and palaces to which Thai royalty relocated at the end of the 19th century. Highlights include Vimanmek Mansion Museum, built entirely from golden teak (look Mum, no nails!), the Moorish-influenced Abhisek Dusit Throne Hall and the Royal Elephant Museum, where you can learn why white elephants are ornamental but basically useless. Freshen up and head out for sunset cocktails in one of Bangkok's rooftop bars — Moon Bar at Vertigo or Sirocco — for unforgettable views. For my money, however, the food at these bars is overpriced and goes cold fast, so eat elsewhere.

To market, to market

Chatuchak Market is the vast weekend market north of town where you can buy everything from old vinyl to funky new furniture, via a cornucopia of counterfeits and handicrafts; it's a maze, so take a map. Chatuchak rewards a tactical approach: get there (by Skytrain or MRT; by taxi, ask for "JJ") before lunch to avoid the worst of the crowds, spend a couple of intensive hours looking around, then alternate between shopping, eating, drinking and watching live music through the afternoon, so as to avoid melting into a grease spot.

Head North

Escape the bustle of Bangkok for a day and head north to World Heritage-listed Ayuthaya, the island city that was the capital of Siam for 400 years until it was sacked by the Burmese in 1767. You can get there by bus (one hour) or taxi but, for me, the rickety old local train (90 minutes) from Hualamphong is most memorable. Once there, hire a bicycle (about 50 baht a day) and cycle around the flat island. My other recommendation is to pack your toothbrush and a spare pare of knickers and stay the night — the temples are at their most peaceful and beautiful at dusk and dawn.

Shopping

Back in Bangkok, do a bit of shopping in the Siam and Ratchaprasong shopping districts and check out what's on at the nearby Bangkok Art & Culture Centre. Take the Skytrain down to Lumphini Park to see how Bangkokians unwind, then at dusk, walk across to Lumphini Stadium for a night of muay Thai — aka kickboxing (note that Lumphini fight nights are Tuesdays, Fridays and Saturdays only). Tickets for foreigners are pricey at 1000bt to 2000bt; the cheapest are in third class, which also happens to have the most atmosphere.

Cooking

On your last day, take a cooking course at one of the many schools — ranging from the high-end Blue Elephant School to May Kaidee's popular Vegetarian Thai Cooking School in Banglamphu.

Have you tried any of the places on this itinerary? Got any ideas we haven't thought of? Have your say using the comments form below.

See for yourself! Get great deals on hotels and super-cheap flights to Bangkok now on

Next: Hotel reviews

More about Bangkok:

Topics:

Bangkok itineraries Thailand Krung Thep Mahanakhon

User comments

Write a comment

Email: *
Your email will not be shared with any third parties or published with your comment.
Nickname: *
Location: *

Subject:
*
Comment:
*
Maximum characters 1000

* Indicates required field

Comment guidelines

Avoid using:

Personal attacks
Irrelevant comments
HTML tags
Personal information
Offensive language
Text in ALL CAPITAL LETTERS

See full comment guidelines

Comment guidelines X

Thank you for sharing your opinions with other users of NineMSN. People will find your comments more helpful if you include relevant information and avoid some common pitfalls.

Please note: All reviews and comments submitted are subject to moderation, NineMSN reserves the right to alter and / or remove any content that does not comply with usage guidelines.

What to include in your comment: