Urban City

Bangkok Travel Guide: 11 Tips, Tricks and Takeaways

Bangkok Travel Guide: Our Family’s Tips, Tricks and Takeaways

Our earlier Bangkok guide: what we learned as a family · Full film (10 min 35 sec)

▶Watch full film 10 min 35 sec

Here are our family’s notes on getting around, eating and shopping during five weeks in Bangkok, alongside a few recorded market and tuk-tuk memories.

Our older Bangkok guide reflects a past family stay, including opinions, fares, travel-time estimates and ticket arrangements from that period. Bangkok’s rail network and payment options have changed; use the current operator links in the article. Advice about drivers, childcare, cash or portable Wi-Fi is not a current service guarantee.

I left a bit of my heart in Bangkok.  I fell in love with this city.  It seems like I’m somewhat alone in my strong feelings for traveling Bangkok long-term.  My family liked it, but they were ready to leave after five weeks.  I could have happily stayed another few!

Why did I love it so much?  I think it was what I have been searching for in Asia.  It is a beautiful city full of any modern convenience you could ask for.  Fancy hotels, sky bars with stunning views of the city, designer stores, incredible shopping, incredible food, children’s museums, and amusement parks.  Amid all of this, you’ll also find tons of culture and the affordable side of Southeast Asia.  The contrast on our visit was striking: the street-cart dinner price I described was around $1 USD, with sliced mango costing even less. Those are memories of prices at the time, not a current food budget.  I’ve never seen such a dichotomy.  

More importantly, this stark contrast seems to just be an accepted way of life here.  There doesn’t seem to be resentment about this.  More just a fact of life.  The Thai people are so patient and kind.  If there is a massive traffic jam and everyone has to sit for two hours on the road (happened to us), there are no people getting out of their cars in frustration.  There is no honking or anger.  It is just accepted.

People tend to work hard, are kind to the tourists (although do sometimes take advantage of them and charge more) and love children.  

Here are some more things I learned while traveling to Bangkok:

Watch our original related film on YouTube

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Getting around Bangkok with kids

• Road traffic can make car journeys slow. Grab can be used to book cars, but an app fare is not guaranteed to be half a taxi fare; compare the current quote, vehicle capacity, and any extra charges. I watched scooters move through the traffic and wanted to try one, but we did not use them with our children. That is not a recommendation to weave through traffic or choose a motorcycle just to save time: WHO identifies motorcycle safety as a major road-safety concern in Thailand. A street motorcycle taxi is not automatically a Grab booking.

Our impression of Bangkok’s size and long drives · Scene from our film (20 sec)

▶Watch scene from our film 20 sec

On our first night in Bangkok, I took the three oldest kids to an unnamed night market by tuk-tuk. I accepted the first quote, about $15 at the time, and felt I had overpaid when other drivers laughed. That is one personal memory, not a current fare guide; compare the actual terms before you agree to a ride.

A first-night tuk-tuk fare memory

The first tuk-tuk fare I accepted in Bangkok · Scene from our film (32 sec)

▶Watch scene from our film 32 sec

The amount in this story is a past-trip memory, not a current fare or a rule to halve every quote.

• The public transportation we used felt less convenient for our routes than it had in Singapore and Taipei. Staying near a station was helpful. Bangkok’s network has changed since our stay, so use current operator maps to plan the places you want to visit rather than treating our old coverage comparison as today’s network.

• We used both the MRT and BTS Skytrain. MRT services are not all underground, and those two systems are not the whole of Bangkok’s rail network. Check the current operator map and payment options for each line; for example, BEM lists eligible contactless-card payments on its Blue and Purple lines, while BTS has its own ticket and Rabbit-card information. On our stay, we would take two stops on the MRT and then two on the Skytrain. We bought MRT cards because we stayed near a station, but bought individual Skytrain tickets; at busy times, those queues added about 20–25 minutes for us.

Check the current MRT map, BEM contactless-payment information and BTS ticket and Rabbit-card options for the lines you plan to use. The following clip recalls our old ticket routine.

Our old MRT-card and Skytrain ticket routine · Scene from our film (16 sec)

▶Watch scene from our film 16 sec

Street food and shopping memories

• Street food is SO much more affordable, which we are finding in all our locations.  Even more so in Bangkok, which is all over the place.  Just walk a block or so, and you’ll find it.

• Shopping is BIG here.  We could have filled many suitcases with all the fun things we wanted to buy.  Head to Chatuchak Weekend Market and be prepared to walk away with lots of bags.  You can literally find ANYTHING here.  Pet supplies, clothing, housewares, interior decoration, stationery, great souvenirs, chandeliers, and more.  This is just what we saw in our one day there and we covered maybe 1/5 of the market overall.  It is incredible.  The malls are also stunning, ginormous, and plentiful.

My market memories include a girls’ day with Grandma and Lucy, as well as Chris picking out army outfits and caps for the boys. There was so much to look through. Those were our finds at the time; the stalls and stock may be different when you visit.

Finding our way around the market sections

Finding different shopping sections at Chatuchak · Scene from our film (22 sec)

▶Watch scene from our film 22 sec

Chris’s finds for the boys

Chris’s market finds for the boys · Scene from our film (19 sec)

▶Watch scene from our film 19 sec

Watch our original related film on YouTube

Quotes and evening traffic

• Check fares and compare options. During our stay, quotes varied widely, and we were repeatedly turned down by taxi drivers, especially during rush hour. For your trip, confirm how the fare is calculated and any extras before agreeing to a ride; an app quote, metered fare, and negotiated service are different arrangements.

• Evening traffic felt intense during our stay. We often encountered heavy delays from roughly 4–9 pm, and waits at lights could feel endless. That is our experience, not a fixed rush-hour timetable or a guarantee that a traffic light takes 5–15 minutes; leave a buffer for your own route.

Communicating and exploring the city

• Google Maps and GPS were a little harder to use here.  The train tables didn’t seem up to date on Google Maps, which has been my go-to so far.  It was also difficult to pick a destination without reading Thai, and we sometimes went to the wrong place.

• I had one driver use voice memos to message me back since he couldn’t write English.  I thought this was pretty smart!  It was easier than trying to use Google Translate.  Just a good thing to keep in mind!

• What’s App is still good to use here and is our primary means of communication with locals.  Sometimes even between ourselves.  Our texting through our cell service would get delayed sometimes for a day or two.

• Usually, the “touristy” things to do are still really fun if you’re traveling Bangkok.  I wouldn’t avoid them just because you hear it is very touristy.  Sometimes, these were our favorite activities.

• It is HOT.   One tour guide told us there are three seasons in Bangkok: hot, rainy, hot, and intense.  It was the most heat we’ve experienced so far.  Even Chris agreed it was hotter than Brazil, where he lived for two years.  You are going to be sweating anytime you aren’t in A/C.

Soak up my favorite city for me if you go! And if you want to see more of our adventures, check out all our Bangkok Youtube videos!

Enjoy traveling to Bangkok,

Leslie

Additional Reading

The Best Food in Bangkok: Street Food, Restaurants, and More!

Bangkok with Kids: Top 13 Things to Do

Family Activities in Taipei