We planned 2 days for Bangkok and therefore had quite a lot to squeeze in for this time. Here are our top 10 experiences:

1. Railway Market & Floating Market Tour

Number one on our list is a half-day tour to visit the famous Railway and floating markets just outside of Bangkok. We booked this tour through Viator and in summary, it was totally wworth it.

Public transport such as trains and buses are great in the centre of Bangkok, however out in the country, it's so rural and difficult to get anywhere, we opted for a tour.

You meet your tour guides at River City in Bangkok, where you then get taken in a comfortable mini bus to a local train station well outside of Bangkok (around 1hr 30min drive). Our incredibly knowledgeable and humorous guide Sarah taught us different phrases in Thai and explained really interesting facts about the culture and history of the markets.

When we arrived at the local train station, Sarah got us all ready at the platform to hop on a train (as it doesn't wait around). We all bundled in ... she was right, it hardly even stops!

You're on the train for roughly another 40 minutes where Sarah then gives advanced warning that we're coming up to the Maeklong Railway Market and to get our cameras prepared.

You have around one hour at Maeklong to get some shopping done or grab a snack. We bought a fresh coconut and the lady shouted and danced while chopping the top off which made the whole coconut experience, as well as how refreshing the drink was.

We then followed Sarah to where the mini bus picked us up again and they swiftly took us to the Floating Market.

This wasn't nearly as fun as we thought. We found that it was very tourist driven and we almost felt forced onto the long-tail boats as we were pushed around different stalls. Sarah did explain that before the pandemic the boats within the market couldn't move due to how busy it was and at present it seems rather empty and less colourful. Hopefully this picks up again soon.

Not the experience we hoped for in terms of the floating market, but still worth going in our opinion. The Maeklong Railway Market makes up for it in so many ways!

Here's a link to the tour we chose:

Click For Tour Details

2. The Artist House

Number 2 on our list is the Artist House. I would like to start by saying we can’t take credit for this recommendation as it came from a friend who said this was their favourite activity in the whole of Bangkok.

So with a recommendation like that, how could we not try it out!

The Artist House is a quiet art cafe on the side of the river and allows people to sit and enjoy a simple bit of art. We opted to colour a stencilled drawing and sip a coffee while watching the boats float by and massive fish leap over each other for some food.

It felt like a reset after being in full Bangkok busy mode for three days and allowed us to gather our thoughts.

We were also able to plan the next few days in Bangkok there thanks to the free Wi-Fi.

The location from Google Maps was a bit tricky to find so watch out for an early turning and walk along a river bridge.

3. Bangkok's Temples

We couldn't have a top ten list without mentioning Bangkok's 400 + temples.

Throughout our time in the city, we visited countless temples so we made a list of our MUST-SEE Temples and Buddhas. We whittled down our choice to what the locals recommended we see and what grabbed our eye.

Phasi Chareon (Massive Buddha)

We didn't even know about this Buddha until we spotted it from the SkyTrain on the way to the Unicorn Cafe. You can see the golden glimmer from miles away.

Let us know if you find a place where you can view the whole Buddah from the front as we could only access the rear end!

Free to visit.

Wat Arun

This is a must-visit temple because of two things:

• It has a spectacular unique structure and is actually really fun to visit. You climb up these massive stairs and slide through these narrow walkways (major photo / film opportunity).
• The 5 Baht per person boat ride across the river is super fun!

The Grande Palace

The Grande Palace was the first experience we had of Thailand's Temples and our first experience of negotiating on the spot for a pair of temple covering modesty trousers (you won't be allowed in unless you are respectfully covered). 200 Baht down to 140 Baht... not bad at all. (We later found some in town for 100 Baht so we'd recommend coming prepared and covered).

There's so much to see here with plenty of buildings, history and artifacts helping you understand the historical architecture and normal life back then.

Golden Buddha

A must, simply because it is the largest Buddha completely made out of gold (in the World!)

Wat Phra Si Rattana Satsadatam (The Emerald Buddha)

You can see the Emerald Buddha when visiting the Grande Palace. We didn't actually realise we were looking at the Emerald Buddha at the time as it's one of the first things you see when you get here... (that shows how much temple knowledge we have).

Again, there's lots to see here including paintings and a museum.

Phra Borom Maha Ratchawang (The Reclining Buddha)

Well worth seeing as it's massive! We didn't spend much time here though as you get an idea of how impressive the Buddha is instantly.

Make sure you give the massive gong a whack on your way out.

4. China Town

Visiting China Town in Bangkok is on all the Must Do lists we found online and we really couldn’t disagree!

It seemed to be the hub of Bangkok with hundreds of food stalls, smoothie stalls and shops on each side of the long street.

The decorations hung from each side of the street and bright lights make it the perfect insta photoshoot spot. Although we struggled to get an insta worthy picture as our phones have rubbish Night Modes (the picture above doesn’t do it justice).

There were even singers adding another layer to the atmosphere.

We did intend on finding a scorpion on a stick but failed (probably a blessing in disguise). The one product that was very prevalent was sadly shark fin soup which I was surprised was still so popular.

5. Food Markets

Before we left for Thailand, everyone who had previously gone encouraged us to try as much street food as possible.

I was cautious to jump straight in as the majority of the meat was just laid out in the air without any ice or cover. This worry only lasted a few hours and we dived right in with a Thai kebab thingy. It was delicious and only 10p!

Even more surprising than the price was the fact that there were no repercussions after (if you know what I mean)...

Overall, going to different food stalls was really fun and a more authentic experience than buying snacks from one of the thousands of 7-elevens (although I would be lying if I said we didn't grab a packet of crisps of two in one).

6. Hail a Tuk Tuk

Hailing a Tuk Tuk is on our top 10 list for two reasons:

The first, is that the experience was exhilarating and daring. Our little Tuk Tuk raced frantically in and out of any car, man, woman, child, dog that stood in it's path. It really was a fun way to see part of Bangkok.

The second is that it made us more aware and cautious travelers. What we mean by this is we were actually taken to a massage parlour outside of Bangkok when we specifically asked to be taken to a particular street in the centre of Bangkok. Not only was it a waste of 80 Baht, the sudden sense of 'oh f***' slapped us both out of our fantasy rosey travelling world and into reality as we watched the driver take us further and further out of the city.

After reaching the massage parlour we paid him the agreed price and firmly walked away. Safe to say he wasn't best pleased that we didn't each go for a 800 Baht massage but that was the end of the matter.

My advice is to agree a price before getting in, show the driver your location on Google Maps and keep it on the whole time!

7. Views from a Rooftop Bar

We have always wanted to visit one of Bangkok's rooftop bars and were really spoilt for choice!

I wish we could give you a top ten list of the best rooftop bars, but honestly it wasn't in our budget so we went to only one - The Rainforest Rooftop Bar.

We arrived just after a flash shower so we were the only ones there, which was lovely (after wiping down the wet seats).

We really believe that whatever rooftop bar you end up in, it will be a great experience. The views and sense of peace being above the busy streets is a feeling we will look back fondly on.

Ps. If we had more money and smarter clothes we would have opted for the rooftop bar where they filmed The Hangover!

8. Unicorn Cafe

We couldn't finish our top ten list without including the elaborate Unicorn Cafe.

The Cafe can be found down a quiet road which proved a nice break from the rush and hectic streets of the rest of Bangkok.

The menu was colourful and we opted for the waffles which tasted like home. Most of the customers were little girls, so be prepared to feel slightly out of place.

But then again, Enjoy it! You may only be in Bangkok in a Unicorn Cafe eating rainbow waffles once!

9. Visit a Park

After a long day of viewing temples, we really just wanted to relax and see the sunset.

We chose to go to Lumphini Park which was so peaceful and quiet. There were a couple of kids playing football which kept us entertained but the sunset was just beautiful.

10. Bangkok's Redlight District

I've added this to our list because everyone knows, when you visit Bangkok, you also visit a Lady Boy or Ping Pong show. It's just what you do.

It is however number 10 because both of us mutually chose not to / were too scared to watch one of these shows. This was mainly due to us scouring the internet and only finding negative reviews and stories. From being forced to tip and being ripped off to being chased down the street, we had a sour and unsettling feeling.

We decided to visit the street and view the signs and shops during the day. We're glad we did it, but some parts of the visit were slightly dodgy...

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