What to do and see in Bangkok

Bangkok is one of those cities that instantly seduces you with its colors, sounds and odours. It’s one of the largest cities of Southeast Asia with so many different sides and faces, and most travelers love to return there every now and then. Bangkok has a lot of ancient monuments, fantastic gastronomy that gives you new impulses even after a lot of time you spent there. It’s also an ideal place for all sorts of shopping and everything is integrated together to such extent that in this city even the shopping malls seem to be monuments that have to be visited.

Here, we just give you a shortlist of what to see and do in Bangkok, the “must stuff” from our point of view.

Do you plan to travel to Bangkok alone? Check out this read for some really great Bangkok solo travel tips. 

VISIT TEMPLES AND OTHER MONUMENTS

Without any doubt the Grand Palace and the huge temple complex Wat Phra Kaew, are amongst the essential places to visit in Bangkok. The temple of Wat Pho is also indispensable with the famous golden reclining Buddha-statue in its interior. In addition, we really recommend you to visit a place that is not in all tourists’ agenda, that is climbing the Golden Mount, where you will find a beautiful golden stupa and you can enjoy the most spectacular views of the city.  

Another not so touristic, but very authentic and somewhat peculiar location is Erawan Shrine, a holy place where locals say thanks to the Gods, which is situated between skyscrapers and skytrains. A strange encounter of modernity and tradition.

WALK IN SOME OF THE NICE PARKS

Despite the huge traffic in Bangkok, which you will notice everywhere, there are places in the city where you can escape from the hustle of the city. Our pick would be the Lumphini Park, where apart from a nice pond you can also meet some really huge lizards walking around (which are by the way completely harmless).

ENJOY THE COLORS OF CHINATOWN

Chinatown is probably the most vivid part of the city, where you can find endless variety of street food, small markets and shops, where you can buy all that you can imagine. At night street life becomes even more lively, and experiencing it is something that you really have to live at least once.

VISIT THE SOI COWBOY STREET

We included Soi Cowboy amongst the things that you have to see and do in Bangkok, because it’s a very peculiar place, which many of you will find funny and strange. A street with lots of lights, a little bit in Amsterdam style, a very small “red light district” with girls inviting you inside the bars to see the shows, where who knows what’s going to happen. 

EAT, EAT AND EAT

If there’s something that especially makes worth visiting Bangkok, for us these are the food stalls, which you can find everywhere. It’s funny to see local businessmen waiting in line for a piece of fried chicken. We really tried to taste as many different kinds of things as possible, and we spent basically the whole day eating, since these food stalls are just everywhere and they make you feel like trying these delicacies. 

If you are vegetarian or vegan, you will also find a bunch of great places to eat. Here’s a great guide for you about vegan Bangkok.

DO SOME SHOPPING

Apart from the famous MBK shopping mall, where you can find technological products of all famous brands (phones, laptops, etc..), we also recommend you a walk in the Terminal 21 shopping mall. The latter has a very original design: it’s like an aiport where all floors have the name of a famous city and the design is related to that particular city. 

Another must visit place is the Chatuchak Market, which is the largest market in Thailand, and where you can buy absolutely everything you can think about, while you enjoy the great food you can taste there.

ENJOY THE VIEW OF BANGKOK FROM THE SKY

And finally we left one of our favorite places to the end, which really can’t be left out from the list of what to see and do in Bangkok, and that’s the impressive Sky Bar. They have a strict dress code, it’s very overpriced, but the views you can enjoy from there are unbelievable and compensate for everything. It opens around sunset, so it’s worth going there early to enjoy the day view, the sunset and the lights of the city at night, too. 

Check out here the best rooftop bars in Bangkok.
We returned to Bangkok several times during our travels around Thailand, and we really fell in love with the city. It is so vibrant, it never makes you feel bored and wherever you go, you will always find surprises and new things to see and do.

Bangkok will probably be one of your first stops in the region, check out here what your possible budget can be in SE Asia.