Top 10 Things to See and Do in Bangkok

Bangkok will probably be your fist stop in South East Asia and to have a good start, I created a list with the 10 best Things to See and Do in Bangkok.

 

#1 Enjoy the view of Wat Arun at night

 

In a busy city like Bangkok, you also need to relax and treat yourself to something from time to time. A good place to do this in the evening is at Arun residence on the 4^th floor at Armosa bar. The cocktails are good (around 7$) and with them you can enjoy a great view on the enlightened Wat Arun.

 

 

 

#2 Visit Grand Palace

The 500 Baht entry fee are definitely worth paying. The palace is beautiful, colorful and ornamented with a lot of gold. We looked at all the buildings, tried to figure out the story on the wall paintings, blessed ourselves with water from a flower, talked to Thai school girls who thought that we were very beautiful because our skin is so white (in the 7/11 stores here we found lotion which is supposed to make your skin lighten up) and enjoyed the air-conditioned rooms in the upstairs crafts and textile museum.

#3 Visit Wat Po with the Big Buddha

 

Wat Po is a huge temple and a must see! It has beautiful buildings and shrines and a highlight of course is the big golden buddha. Dress appropriately with covered knees and shoulders.

 

#4 Have a Thai Massage

If you go to Thailand, you have to get a massage! All my massages were wonderful and at a price of around $7 for an hour, you can even afford to go several times during your stay 😉 I really liked Baan Sabai Massage, which was right near our hostel (Kahosan Baan Thai). I would recommend staying in the historic part of town anyways, since it seemed more authentic to me. The modern part of Bangkok is better organized and more expensive.

#5 Eat street food

Thai food is so yummy, I want to return to that country, just to be able to eat more of its food. We always had delicious meals, no matter what and where we ate and never had stomach problems except once after eating in a fast food chain restaurant (Noodle House).

#6 Take a boat on Chao Praya river

The boats with an orange flag at the back ride to the most important stops in Bangkok. This is definitely the quickest and also most adventurous way to get to a place along the river. You just have to go to a pier where an orange boat stops and as soon as other people start boarding it, just go with the flow. They don’t really tie the boat to the dock, you really just have to be quick and before you know it, the boat will start leaving. Same for getting off the boat, just be quick and get past the people who don’t want to get off the boat. In case you are on crutches, this is probably not the best transport option for you. A ticket costs 15 Baht.

 

#7 Ride the local bus

The cheapest mean of transport is the public bus. We never figured out how the buses were organized but since most of the people speak English and gladly help you, we just always asked and then hoped that we were on the right bus. Tickets cost between 11 and 15 Baht, some of the buses have ac and if there are too many people on the bus, so that you have to stand, you pay half price 😉

 

#8 Drink Thai Ice Tea

Mhh, I fell in love with this sugary milk tea. I only found it in Bangkok and north of it. It’s a drink made out of tea leaves mixed with condensed milk, sugar and ice cubes. You can even have take-away at the 7/11. Very refreshing in the heat!

 

#9 Shop until you drop in the modern part of the city

There are man malls in the modern part of the city. I really liked terminal 21 (at Sukhumvit station). Every floor is named after a world city and you find recreated sights on each level. There I also watched a movie at the movie theater for 180 Baht. That was a funny experience, since before every movie, the people have to get up and listen to the king’s hymn.Another place is MBK, probably the biggest mall in Thailand. Oh dear, there was no way I would ever remember where I had to go or where I’ve already been. I walked around in there for at least 7 hours! With some stalls it was like at the market and you could haggle.  Headphones were very chea

p but not very good quality (at least the ones I tried). There also were good restaurants (American prices).

I don’t recommend Paragon shopping mall, as the prices in there were higher than in Switzerland and the same brands we have there too.

Tip: Bring a jacket to the mall. It will be freezing cold compared to the outside

 

 

#10 Get a tailored dress or suit

My friend Hedi was very happy with her tailored blazer jacket. They can probably help you at the hotel to find a place where they won’t rip you off too much. It’s likely, that you still pay too much but the quality is good and still cheaper than what you might pay for a not so well fittet piece of clothing at home.

 

#11 And after Bangkok, go and explore the rest of Thailand!!!

Thailand is wonderful. Here are my top picks for Northern Thailand, neatly organized in a two-week itinerary.

Plus, some of the world’s best diving can be found on Koh Tao.

What’s your insider tip for Bangkok? What do you find most useful in this post?