Bangkok

Why go

Bangkok makes sense once you stop fighting it. At 7am monks are finishing their alms rounds in the old town, orange-flag boats are already full of office workers, and the first woks are hissing on Maha Chai Road. By noon the heat drives everyone indoors. After dark the city wakes up again, and Yaowarat's pavements fill with plastic stools and charcoal smoke until well past midnight.

In one morning you can stand before the Emerald Buddha, cross the river to climb the porcelain-studded prang of Wat Arun, and eat a bowl of noodles for less than a coffee costs at home. Michelin's inspectors have starred a street-side wok here, and the gap in quality between a 60-baht plate and a hotel tasting menu is smaller than the gap in price.

Bangkok is also a capital of more than eight million people, with traffic, haze and a politics that sometimes spills onto the streets. Plan around them: get up early, rest at midday, travel by rail and river, and save your energy for the evening.

The lay of the land

The Chao Phraya River bends through the city from north to south, and it is still the best way to understand Bangkok. On the east bank, the old royal island of Rattanakosin holds the Grand Palace, Wat Pho and the National Museum, with Banglamphu and Khao San Road just to the north. Thonburi, across the water, is quieter: Wat Arun, wooden houses along the canals, and few hotels.

Downriver from the palace, Chinatown and the riverside lanes of Talat Noi give way to Charoen Krung and Bang Rak, the old trading quarter where the grand hotels, galleries and century-old Thai-Chinese restaurants sit. Inland, the modern centre spreads east along the BTS Skytrain. Siam is the mall district and main interchange. Silom and Sathorn are the business district, with Lumphini Park and the nightlife of Silom's side streets. Sukhumvit Road runs east for miles through Nana, Asok, Phrom Phong, Thong Lo and Ekkamai.

The old town has no Skytrain, but the MRT Blue Line now reaches it at Sanam Chai, beside Wat Pho, and at Sam Yot. A useful rule: river and MRT for the historic west, BTS for the commercial east.

When to go

Bangkok has three seasons, and none of them is cool. The dry window from November to February is the best time to come. Highs sit around 32 to 33°C, humidity drops a little, and rain is rare. It is also peak season, so book early for Christmas and New Year. The catch is smoke. From about December to March, PM2.5 haze from crop burning and traffic can push air quality into unhealthy territory for days at a time. Check an AQI app before outdoor plans and pack a mask if you have asthma.

March to May is the hot season. April averages highs of 35.7°C, and nights barely drop below 27°C. Songkran, the Thai New Year water festival on 13 to 15 April, turns Silom Road and Khao San into a city-wide water fight. It is great fun if you seal your phone in a pouch and a nuisance if you need to get anywhere.

The rains run from May to October and peak in September, with about 336 mm. Storms are usually short and heavy, often in the afternoon or evening, and hotel prices fall. Low-lying streets flood quickly after a big downpour, and traffic seizes up. Events worth planning around: the Vegetarian Festival in Chinatown in mid-October, when yellow flags mark meat-free stalls; Loy Krathong on the full moon of November (24 November in 2026), when people float candlelit offerings on the river and park lakes; and Chinese New Year in Yaowarat, on 6 February in 2027.

What it costs

Bangkok is still one of Asia's better-value big cities, but the gap between local and tourist prices is wide. A plate of pad kra pao from a street stall costs 60 to 100 baht (about $2 to $3). The same dish costs a little more in a mall food court and several times as much in a hotel restaurant. Transport is cheap. A BTS ride costs 17 to 47 baht and an orange-flag boat 19 baht. A good 3-star double runs about 1,500 to 2,500 baht a night.

Money disappears on alcohol, rooftop bars, taxis that refuse the meter and admission fees, which apply to foreigners at the big temples: 500 baht for the Grand Palace, 300 for Wat Pho and 200 for Wat Arun. A pint of local beer in a bar costs 90 to 150 baht, against about 60 to 70 baht for a big bottle at 7-Eleven. Imported wine is heavily taxed.

Locals save by eating at markets and food courts, taking motorbike taxis for the last kilometre and drinking at convenience-store prices. Shops and bars can now sell alcohol from 11am to midnight without the old afternoon break, which ended on 29 May 2026. Sales still stop nationwide on major Buddhist holy days and on election days, so check the calendar before you plan a party.

Getting there and around

Most long-haul flights land at Suvarnabhumi (BKK), about 30 km east of the centre. The Airport Rail Link runs from the basement to Phaya Thai, where you change to the BTS, in about 30 minutes for 15 to 45 baht, from roughly 5:30am to midnight. Official taxis leave from the public taxi rank. You pay the meter, a 50-baht airport surcharge and expressway tolls, usually 300 to 450 baht in total to Sukhumvit or Silom. Many budget airlines use Don Mueang (DMK) in the north, linked to Krung Thep Aphiwat station by the SRT Red Line and to BTS Mo Chit by the A1 bus for 30 baht.

In the city, rail beats road. The BTS Skytrain takes Rabbit cards or single-journey tickets from machines. The MRT subway stopped accepting its own stored-value cards on 1 June 2026, so tap a contactless Visa or Mastercard at the gate instead. A 45-baht cap per trip across all lines is planned from 1 January 2027, with the excess refunded to the card you used. How that will work for foreign-issued cards had not been published at the time of writing.

The river is the other highway. Orange-flag Chao Phraya Express boats run between Sathorn pier, under BTS Saphan Taksin, and Nonthaburi for a flat 19 baht, stopping at Tha Chang for the Grand Palace and Tha Tien for Wat Pho. The blue-flag tourist boat costs more but sells a hop-on day pass.

For cars, use Grab or Bolt. Street taxis are fine if the driver agrees to use the meter before you get in. Motorbike taxis in numbered vests are quick for short hops and alarming in heavy traffic. Walking works in the old town and Chinatown in the early morning and evening. In between, the heat, high kerbs and pavements full of stalls make even short walks tiring.

Where to stay

Sleep near the river on a first visit. Charoen Krung and the streets around Saphan Taksin put you on the boat and the BTS at once, and the riverside hotels are the city's grandest. Mandarin Oriental has stood on its stretch of the Chao Phraya since 1876.

Banglamphu, especially Phra Athit Road and the lanes around it, is a good base for temples and street food, with guesthouses and boutique hotels at fair prices. Khao San Road itself is loud until the early hours, so sleep a few streets away. Chinatown and Talat Noi suit travellers who care most about food and can live with noise and early-morning deliveries.

Sukhumvit, from Asok to Ekkamai, is where many visitors end up: plenty of hotels and restaurants and direct BTS links, but a long trip to the old town. Silom and Sathorn sit between the two worlds, close to Lumphini Park, the MRT and the BTS. Families often prefer Siam for its malls, rail connections and air-conditioned escape routes. Avoid chasing low rates far out along the Sukhumvit line extensions. You will spend the savings, and an hour a day, getting back into town.

What to do

Start with the Grand Palace and Wat Phra Kaew at 8:30am, when the gates open. Allow two hours, dress for the strict dress code, and buy tickets only at the official entrance on Na Phra Lan Road. Walk south to Wat Pho for the 46-metre reclining Buddha and a massage at the temple's school, then take the cross-river ferry from Tha Tien to Wat Arun. Come back across at sunset to watch its spire light up from the east bank.

Jim Thompson House makes a cool, shaded break from the temples, and the guided tour explains how a former American intelligence officer rebuilt the Thai silk industry. The Golden Mount at Wat Saket is a better sunset viewpoint than any rooftop bar and costs 100 baht. At weekends, spend a morning browsing Chatuchak market; arrive by 10am and finish with fruit at Or Tor Kor next door.

After dark, Rajadamnern Stadium stages Muay Thai with the full ritual of music and prayer before each bout. On another evening, take a long-tail boat through the Thonburi canals as the light fades, or ride the orange-flag boat end to end.

For a day trip, Ayutthaya is the one to choose. Trains from Krung Thep Aphiwat take under two hours and cost little in third class, and the ruined capital's temples are spread out enough to justify hiring a bike or a tuk-tuk by the hour. Closer to town, Bang Krachao is a loop of river land kept largely green, with raised bike paths through mangroves and orchards, a short boat ride from Khlong Toei.

Eat and drink

Many stalls make one dish and have made it for decades. Thipsamai on Maha Chai Road has served pad thai wrapped in a thin omelette since 1966. A few doors away, Raan Jay Fai cooks crab omelettes and drunken noodles over charcoal for diners who queue or book weeks ahead. Go-Ang Kaomunkai Pratunam, the chicken-rice shop known for its staff's pink shirts, has been at it since 1960.

On Charoen Krung, Prachak has roasted ducks since 1909, and Jok Prince serves Cantonese rice porridge in an alley near the old Prince Theatre. In Ekkamai, Wattana Panich is known for a beef broth that has simmered for decades. For dessert in mango season, from about March to June, Mae Varee by BTS Thong Lo sells mango sticky rice to take away.

Street food runs in shifts. Breakfast stalls sell rice porridge, grilled pork and sweet coffee from about 6am. The lunch rush peaks before noon, and the night markets and Chinatown stalls get going around 6pm. Monday is the quietest day, when many street vendors stay home.

Eat with a spoon in your right hand and use the fork to push food onto it; chopsticks are for noodle soups. Season at the table with the caddy of fish sauce, chilli flakes, sugar and vinegar. Ask for "mai phet" if you want less heat. Rooftop bars are spectacular and expensive, with dress codes that turn away flip-flops and shorts.

Practicalities

Money. Cards are widely accepted in hotels, malls and chain restaurants, but street food, markets, boats and most taxis are cash only. ATMs charge foreign cards a flat 220 to 250 baht per withdrawal.

Data. Tourist SIMs from the airport counters cost about 400 to 500 baht for eight days of data; you need your passport to register one. eSIMs work in most recent phones.

Water. Drink bottled or filtered water; refill stations are common. Ice in restaurants is usually factory-made.

Power. 230 V, 50 Hz. Most sockets take both flat two-pin and round two-pin plugs.

Laws and safety. Lèse-majesté laws make insulting the king or royal family a serious crime, including online. Stand for the royal anthem before cinema screenings. E-cigarettes and vapes are illegal to import, possess or use, with heavy fines. Cannabis is prescription-only, smoking it in public can bring a fine, and carrying it across the border is now punishable by up to 10 years in prison. The Tourist Police answer on 1155.

Etiquette. Remove your shoes in temples and homes. Never touch someone's head or point your feet at people or Buddha images. Women should not touch monks or hand them objects directly.

LGBTQ+. Thailand legalised same-sex marriage in January 2025, and Bangkok has one of Asia's most visible LGBTQ+ scenes, centred on Silom Soi 2 and Soi 4. Bangkok Pride holds its parade around the end of May or start of June.

Accessibility. Rail is the easiest way to move with limited mobility. The MRT and Airport Rail Link are step-free, while lifts at BTS stations are less consistent, so check your stations in advance. Pavements are uneven and crowded, and many temples have steps and thresholds.

Phrases. Sawasdee khrap (men) or sawasdee kha (women) for hello. Khop khun khrap or kha for thank you. Tao rai for "how much?" Mai pen rai means "never mind," and you will hear it often.

What nobody tells you

The heat sets your schedule, whatever your itinerary says. Plan a long break between noon and 4pm, drink more than you think you need, and do the big sights early or late.

The famous scam is still running. Someone friendly and well dressed near the Grand Palace tells you it is closed today for a ceremony and offers a cheap tuk-tuk tour instead. The palace does occasionally close for royal events, but the only reliable source is the palace's own website or the gate itself. The tour ends at a gem shop.

Traffic is worse than you expect, and rain makes it far worse. A 5 km taxi ride can take an hour at rush hour in a storm. Use the rail lines, or wait it out with a meal.

Some famous sights disappoint. Damnoen Saduak floating market is mostly souvenir boats. The Maeklong railway market is a five-minute spectacle wrapped in a long drive. Khao San Road is a party street with temple views nobody looks at.

The 60-day visa-free stay many guidebooks still mention is gone. Count your days, keep proof of your flight out, and do not assume a land border run will reset the clock.

On bad days in the dry season the skyline disappears into a grey haze. Check the forecast before you book a rooftop dinner, and take a mask if you are sensitive to smoke.