Hotels in Bangkok

Verified by Pau García Solbes
from the blog El Pachinko

Located on the Chao Phraya River delta, Bangkok is the capital and most populated city in Thailand. With a population of more than eight million, the city accounts for more than 12 percent of the country’s total inhabitants.

Over the years, Thailand and Bangkok in particular has come to be regarded as a bucket list destination for any travellers making their way around Southeast Asia, and tourism has become one of the city’s key avenues of income. 22.7 million people visit the city every year. It’s a fabulous place of palaces and temples, and street food, megamalls, and markets and some of the friendliest most welcoming people on earth.

Visitors to Bangkok will find plenty of great options for cheap and affordable hotel accommodation.

Neighbourhoods of Bangkok

The most popular areas of the city for tourists are:

• Banglamphu: The area most associated with backpackers and gap year students, where slightly cheaper accommodation can be found is close to many of the most famous cultural attractions including Mahakan Fort. Its hub is the notorious Khao San Road a Mecca for bars, restaurants, and clubs.
• Chinatown:Absolutely the best place for street food, it is also home to the giant Golden Buddha. Immerse yourself in 200 years of Chinese culture before dropping into one of Soi Nana’s speakeasy bars.
• Ko Rattanakosin: This is the Royal District of Bangkok and is accessible by boat from Tha Chang Pier. The main sights are the Grand Palace and Wat Pho, the Temple of the Reclining Buddha.
• Siam Square: Here are the city’s best shopping opportunities. It is filled with miles worth of malls that also contain much of the nightlife culture of the city.

What to see and do in Bangkok

Some of the key sights and attractions that should be at the top of anybody’s Bangkok bucket list include the museum section of the Grand Palace, Wat Arun which is a riverside temple with a famous landmark spire, Wat Traimit, the temple of the Golden Buddha, the Giant Swing in front of Wat Suthat temple, and Jim Thompson’s House. Must have experiences include shopping at Chatuchak Market and the Damnoen Saduak Floating Market. You can take a Thai cookery class, a meditation lesson, or see some traditional dancing or puppetry, and to escape the buzz of the city, take a rest in Lumpini Park.

What to eat in Bangkok

Bangkok is famous for food at both ends of the spectrum, from humble street food to fine dining in Michelin star restaurants. Some of the dishes that are most famous in the city include Pad Thai, a famous noodle dish, tom yum goong which is a type of spicy shrimp soup, som tum which is a fresh green papaya salad, and tom kha kai which is a delicious chicken coconut soup.

Typical events and festivals in Bangkok

Some of the most popular and well known occasions are the Makha Puja which is a Buddhist holiday involving lots of candle lit ceremonies in February, the World Film Festival of Bangkok which takes place in November, and the Bangkok New Year Countdown which is one of the most famous New Year’s Eve celebrations in the world.

How to move around in Bangkok

There are a wide range of options in Bangkok when it comes to public transport. There is the skytrain, the subway, and a network of river taxis that can help travellers to avoid the busy congestion of normal car taxi cabs that clog up the roads all day long. Your choice of transport really depends on how quickly you want to get from A to B. It is also worth noting that much of Bangkok’s central district can be navigated on foot.

The climate in Bangkok

The weather in Bangkok can be divided into two distinct seasons: the dry season and the rainy season. Dry season is traditionally between November and February, and from March to May the weather is warmest with average temperatures that can reach up into the low to mid 30s. Bangkok’s rainy season occurs from May to November, with extended periods of wetness with the temperatures remaining in the high 20s. This results in high humidity.