Bangkok first timers - your #1 tip?

[diningdecadence]

Hi all,


have a long weekend planned in Bangkok. Neither of us have visited previously. Looking for those with some knowledge to share their tips please. We are early 30's celebrating getting engaged.


Fly in Thursday afternoon (5pm) and out Sunday night (7pm).

Sightseeing
Figure one full day of sightseeing the temples etc.
Maybe a morning half day doing a floating market/ food tour
Some time relaxing (so a good pool/ bar menu)
maybe check out some of the rooftop bars


any tour recommendations for the above?

Hotel
Looks like plenty of 4/5* hotels in our budget (max $300/night). The options seem to be based around Sukhumvit or the River - what would be your suggestion for first timers? I have a plethora of hotel chain status through freebies (Accor Platinum, SPG Gold, Hilton Gold, Shangri La Jade) but open to 4S, MO etc too.

Food
We'd like to try out Nahm. Not sure whether the other Asia Top 50 S. Pelligrino are worth it? (Gaggan, Bo.Lan, Issaya, Eat Me).


Also, are there any good champagne brunches on Sunday that people have been to?

many thanks in advance!

 

[moa999]

Definitely rooftop bars (there are now 20+).
Shopping - Siam Paragon probably most impressive although the new parts of Central are pretty nice.

Hotels - wouldn't spend more than A$200. All the 5* should be in that bucket and all are pretty decent. For first time and short trip I would probably be staying on Sukhumvit.
As you are Hilton Gold I would recommend Conrad - a bit of Sukhumvit but great property and pretty much guaranteed Exec floor. Treats you better than the SPG Gold, unsure about Accor.

Food - maybe consider a cooking class - Blue Elephant which is a top Thai restaurant does a good one.

 

[Limewood]

Shop at the massive MBK shopping centre, nice hotel connected next door Pathumwan Princess Hotel.
[h=3][/h]For night fun try Patpong Road or maybe not.

 

[amaroo]

Peninsula BKK is a wonderful property and has been our BKK base for past 10+ years - the (free) river boats to the skytrain and other destinations is a terrific way to experience BKK. Have stayed at the MO a couple of times (work), it didn't float my boat...

 

[Cynicor]

Don't rate MBK at all, personally. But I found the shopping Bangkok not the greatest.

Nahm was nice, Gaggan was way better I feel. The Local is very nice for Thai cuisine. Didn't get to Eat Me.

All so cheap too!

Stay at the Conrad, you'll have a good chance of exec upgrade if that floats your boat.

Quite a fan of Bangkok. Bang Krachow is really different too, if you feel like being a little active.

 

[JohnK]

Day trip to Ayutthaya the old capital. Coach on the way up and cruise on the way back.

 

[QF029]

Taxi's / Uber are dirt cheap. If you're not in a rush take them, they're not much more expensive than BTS.

 

[justcallmeryan]

Food
We'd like to try out Nahm. Not sure whether the other Asia Top 50 S. Pelligrino are worth it? (Gaggan, Bo.Lan, Issaya, Eat Me).

Recently dined at Nahm on a visit to BKK and it was possibly one of the best meals I have ever had. Highly recommended although be sure and tell them if you can't handle spicy. Also, it's definitely western prices so dinner for 2 with wine will be circa AUD$350.

Even if you're well travelled if it's your first time in BKK beware at all costs of scam artists. If you get approached with anything that sounds too good to be true, it's because it probably is. If you want to take a Tuk Tuk somewhere (which is lots of fun) expect to pay at least 200B to go anywhere. If you get quoted less (think 40 or 50B) then it will be a scam and you'll end up on unexpected shopping trips. Ditto with taxis - even the ones parked right outside the boundaries of your hotel. Only take taxis that your concierge calls for you and make sure they turn the meter on or negotiate an upfront amount. Oh, and the temples are always open most days, no matter what anyone tells you....

BKK is an amazing place, full of life, great food and awesome entertainment but for first timers (especially if you look like it!) you are new meat for the scam artists.

 

[Alanslegal]

Bangkok has always been one of the most visited cities in the world. According to Forbes, it was beaten by New York City in 2014 for the top spot. Bangkok was the top in 2013.

 

[MEL_Traveller]

Stay: Sukothai
Drink: sunset at the rooftop Vertigo bar - Banyan Tree (a few metres walk from the Sukhotai)
Assault to the senses: night market on Silom Road (after drinks at Banyan Tree)
Probably not essential: floating market... there's supposedly only a few yards worth of floating market, miles out of town, and set up specifically for tourists. Save your time and focus on something closer to the city.
Avoid: day-long trip by train to the Bridge on the River Kwai. Billed as a 12 hour round-trip, frequent delays mean it can take 17 or so hours, and there's only so much interest in a 3rd class rail car for that amount of time.
Essential massage: Healthlands (on Sathorn Road, down from the Sukhothai). Frequented by well-to-do locals, they have floors of massage rooms with Thai massage, hot compress herbal massage, or foot massage.

 

[scwappy]

Red oven at the Sofitel So from memory had a great lunch , great views over the park facing the city. An option to consider staying though would probably suggest Sukumvit also as there is more going on the street.

Have stayed at the Sofitel Sukumvit and is certainly acceptable also. You get amazing value for money in this fantastic city so any 5* is likely to be great.

Great choice of destination for a long weekend!!

 

[smit0847]

Don't go to any of the upstairs ping pong shows

 

[Mattg]

I could recommend a bike tour. Depending on your level of fitness/time constraints etc. you may want to consider the 9 hour all day bicycle/boat/train tour with these guys:

Bicycle and Boat Tours Bangkok Thailand - Co van Kessel Bangkok Tours

The full day tour was a bit of a workout but totally worth it! Though I'm sure some of the other shorter tours are also good.

 

[Alanslegal]

I could recommend a bike tour. Depending on your level of fitness/time constraints etc. you may want to consider the 9 hour all day bicycle/boat/train tour with these guys:

Bicycle and Boat Tours Bangkok Thailand - Co van Kessel Bangkok Tours

The full day tour was a bit of a workout but totally worth it! Though I'm sure some of the other shorter tours are also good.

Thanks for that suggestion, I will look more into it in the next day or two.

Re: getting scammed / ripped off. Sadly, it happens all over the world and Thailand is not excluded. I guess the good thing is you (generally) get ripped off in THB rather than EUR/USD, so it doesn't hurt that much.

Here's some good ideas on things to do:

Twenty reasons to visit Bangkok

And with rooftop bars where there are quite a few options to choose from, I prefer Vertigo which has a bit more relaxed feel and there's seating, whereas Sirrocco - which was highlighted in Hangover II - is way more crowded and standing room only, unless you are dining. If you are staying around the Sukhumvit area, which is where I prefer, then there's a nice open bar at Sofitel Sukhumvit. I actually like that hotel - too bad I am a sucker for loyalty and stay at SPG properties only.

 

[justcallmeryan]

Re: getting scammed / ripped off. Sadly, it happens all over the world and Thailand is not excluded. I guess the good thing is you (generally) get ripped off in THB rather than EUR/USD, so it doesn't hurt that much.

Agreed, it does happen everywhere however in Thailand they are exceptionally good at it....... Better than almost anywhere i've seen before.

 

[drron]

for Sunday brunches this is a reasonable guide.
Though not mentioned is the Sheraton(SGS).They have a sunday Jazz brunch.Foie gras is their attraction.
Any good "luxury" buffets in Bangkok? [flagged for future merge] - FlyerTalk Forums
Also a lot of other interesting threads in the Thailand forum there.

Shopping.Mrsdrron now likes Terminal 21 over the road from the Westin and SGS.A very good Food court-and cheap.We both recommend the oyster omelettes.Several very reasonable restaurants there-not high end.MBK is cheap and quality is commensurate.Paragon is upmarket but not really competitive-the US is much cheaper.

As a first timer I would be recommending staying on the Chao Praya-the life on the river is amazing.We have stayed at the Hilton,Conrad,Peninsula,Royal Orchid Sheraton and the SGS and a few other hotels in the distant past.As it is a celebration the Peninsula would be the pick but a little more expensive.We sent our son there on his honeymoon and they treated him and his wife quite royally.The Peninsula,ROS and the Hilton are the river hotels in our list.

At night a visit to Asiatique a reasonably new upmarket night market might be worth a visit.
Just catching the Chao Praya ferries is cheap and interesting.
A walk through Chinatown is also quite interesting.

 

[Alanslegal]

Agreed, it does happen everywhere however in Thailand they are exceptionally good at it....... Better than almost anywhere i've seen before.

I got ripped off once in a taxi (he had a super duper fast meter) in my dozen or more trips to Bangkok - paid like AUD$10 more than what it would have been. Never felt unsafe or felt like being pick pocketed, wherease in Europe - you gotta be sooooo careful. And in Rome, if you haven't had your wallet stolen yet, my taxi ride to/from airport/city which is a flat fee (60EUR?), well about 10minutes into the drive, the driver says 'due to roadworks, i have to go the longer way' so its an additional 20EUR ... what the? its a flat rate duuhh... what do I do? tell him to stop?? 20EUR = $30?!

for Sunday brunches this is a reasonable guide.
Though not mentioned is the Sheraton(SGS).They have a sunday Jazz brunch.Foie gras is their attraction.
Any good "luxury" buffets in Bangkok? [flagged for future merge] - FlyerTalk Forums
Also a lot of other interesting threads in the Thailand forum there.

Shopping.Mrsdrron now likes Terminal 24 over the road from the Westin and SGS.A very good Food court-and cheap.We both recommend the oyster omelettes.Several very reasonable restaurants there-not high end.MBK is cheap and quality is commensurate.Paragon is upmarket but not really competitive-the US is much cheaper.

As a first timer I would be recommending staying on the Chao Praya-the life on the river is amazing.We have stayed at the Hilton,Conrad,Peninsula,Royal Orchid Sheraton and the SGS and a few other hotels in the distant past.As it is a celebration the Peninsula would be the pick but a little more expensive.We sent our son there on his honeymoon and they treated him and his wife quite royally.The Peninsula,ROS and the Hilton are the river hotels in our list.

Terminal 21 across the Westin/SGS is our favourite mall too. It suits our style and more importantly our budget. We can't afford to buy high end brands or Lamborghinis as they do offer at Siam Paragon. The food court in T21 is cheap and good quality for a food court. I always order two or three dishes per person purely because it will set me back $5-6 for three dishes.

One of my favourite dishes there is the stewed pork with egg; it's around 40BHT. Here's a video I found on YT, don't let it scare you cos the pork is reallly soft, moist and flavoursome.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A8ENA1nZq2I


Also our favourite massage place is nearby too, it's called Urban Retreat. Very good value for money, and CLEAN

Btw we are staying on the river our upcoming trip to Bangkok, we've never stayed on the river (at the ROS for 2000BHT per night ++) so this will definitely be an eye-opener for us.

 

[Sprucegoose]

Don't go to any of the upstairs ping pong shows

Never go off the ground floor if you don't want to be scammed. Used to travel to BKK when we had business there now I find there are 'easier' destinations. Do it while you are young

 

[JohnK]

Don't go to any of the upstairs ping pong shows

One thing I learnt in my first trip to Thailand in 2003.

Do not go upstairs or downstairs to visit any bars.

Oh and if the price of something is not clearly visible then make sure you know the price before buying.

Oh and in some bars the price of beer is say 60 baht. During happy hour buy one get one free the price of beer goes up to 90 baht. :mrgreen:

 

[Kolo]

Definitely go to Nahm but avoid Sirocco...or go for just a drink. But as others said, there's other rooftop bars you could choose.