Bangkok travel tips

Thailand is famous for beaches and resorts, so most people visit Thailand for these things and stopover for a night or two in Bangkok at most. Bangkok is, however, a great city for urban explorers, and worth visiting for at least a week.

General advice

• Bangkok’s layout is centred around thanon (major roads), with soi (smaller streets) extending from them. The major thanon are almost like suburbs in their own right, while soi are clustered together, forming neighbourhoods. Different thanon have different vibes, as do different clusters of soi.
• The most popular thanon for tourists is Sukhumvit, a massive road surrounded by diverse neighbourhoods and serviced by the BTS Skytrain, the best way to get around.
• As with many cities, the best bars and restaurants tend to be a block or more removed from the major roads. If you find yourself put off by the vibe of the venues around Sukhumvit, just head deeper into the soi until you find something better.
• When public transit fails you, use Grab. It’s affordable and easily defeats any language barriers, though traffic can be an obstacle.
• It goes without saying that you should be highly skeptical of any invitations into a sketchy-looking venue.

Specific things to see

• Travel to Phrom Phong, Thong Lo, Ekkamai, and Phra Khanong BTS stations, and explore the off-shooting soi. You could easily spend a day or more exploring each neighbourhood surrounding Sukhumvit.
• Malls in Bangkok are excellent, especially their foodcourts. If, like me, you typically avoid malls, give them a go anyway. EMSPHERE is the gold standard. Also visit Siam Paragon and ICONSIAM. These provide a nice break from the outdoor heat.
• Similarly, hotel bars and restaurants are particularly good in Bangkok. The Queen’s Park Marriot Marquis has a great rooftop bar with unbelievable views as well as some nice restaurants.
• Lumphini and Benchakitti parks are great.
• Visit the Grand Palace and the surrounding historical sights. There is great dining along the nearby river.
• Visit Chinatown (Yaowarat). Chinese traders and labourers played a crucial role in the city’s early development and economy. Features great neon.
• MOCA is the best art gallery in Bangkok, well worth the taxi ride.
• PAGA Microroastery has the best coffee I’ve found in Bangkok.
• Alonetogether is a nice jazz bar.

Accommodation

• While rapidly improving, public transit in Bangkok has major limitations compared to other major Asian cities. The metro (MRT) is in its infancy and poorly connected to the BTS Skytrain, busses are challenging for tourists (and hot), and traffic congestion is extreme. If you choose accommodation with very easy access to the BTS, this won’t be a problem at all, but do your homework, otherwise you could easily end up in a public transit blindspot.
• Families (and prudes) should stay in Siam, near a BTS station.
• Everyone else should stay along Sukhumvit for their first visit.
  • Avoid staying from soi 1 to 23 as they are intensely touristy and red light (though still worth visiting).
  • Soi 29 to 63 is the goldilocks zone, where you’ll find plenty of fun with minimal grit. So, stay near Phrom Phong, Thong Lo, Ekkamai, and Phra Khanong BTS stations.
  • Beyond soi 70 can be a little too quiet, though there are plenty of exceptions and this is likely changing quickly.
• Public House is a nice but affordable hotel with solid amenities.