Insight Guides Pocket Bangkok (Travel Guide eBook)

By Insight Guides

Insight Pocket Guides: ideal itineraries and top travel tips in a pocket-sized package. Now with free eBook, and a pull-out map.
Compact, concise, and packed with essential information about Where to Go and What Do, this is an ideal on-the-move companion when you're exploring Bangkok
Covers Top Ten Attractions, including the Grand Palace, Wat Phra Kaew, and Jim Thompson's House and Perfect Day itinerary suggestions
Offers an insightful overview of landscape, history and culture
Contains an invaluable pull-out map, and essential practical information on everything from Eating Out to Getting Around
Includes an innovative extra that's unique in the market - all Insight Pocket Guides come with a free eBook
Inspirational colour photography throughout
Sharp design and colour-coded sections make for an engaging reading experience

About Insight Guides: Insight Guides has over 40 years' experience of publishing high-quality, visual travel guides. We produce around 400 full-colour print guide books and maps as well as picture-packed eBooks and apps to meet different travellers' needs. Insight Guides' unique combination of beautiful travel photography and focus on history and culture together create a unique visual reference and planning tool to inspire your next adventure.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Insight Guides
• Release date: Feb 1, 2018
• ISBN: 9781786718624

Insight Guides

Pictorial travel guide to Arizona & the Grand Canyon with a free eBook provides all you need for every step of your journey. With in-depth features on culture and history, stunning colour photography and handy maps, it’s perfect for inspiration and finding out when to go to Arizona & the Grand Canyon and what to see in Arizona & the Grand Canyon. 

Book preview

How To Use This E-Book

Getting Around the e-Book

This Pocket Guide e-book is designed to give you inspiration and planning advice for your visit to Bangkok, and is also the perfect on-the-ground companion for your trip.

The guide begins with our selection of Top 10 Attractions, plus a Perfect Itinerary feature to help you plan unmissable experiences. The Introduction and History chapters paint a vivid cultural portrait of Bangkok, and the Where to Go chapter gives a complete guide to all the sights worth visiting. You will find ideas for activities in the What to Do section, while the Eating Out chapter describes the local cuisine and gives listings of the best restaurants. The Travel Tips offer practical information to help you plan your trip. Finally, there are carefully selected hotel listings.

In the Table of Contents and throughout this e-book you will see hyperlinked references. Just tap a hyperlink once to skip to the section you would like to read. Practical information and listings are also hyperlinked, so as long as you have an external connection to the internet, you can tap a link to go directly to the website for more information.

Maps

All key attractions and sights in Bangkok are numbered and cross-referenced to high-quality maps. Wherever you see the reference [map], tap once to go straight to the related map. You can also double-tap any map for a zoom view.

Images

You’ll find lots of beautiful high-resolution images that capture the essence of Bangkok. Simply double-tap an image to see it in full-screen.

About Insight Guides

Insight Guides have more than 40 years’ experience of publishing high-quality, visual travel guides. We produce 400 full-colour titles, in both print and digital form, covering more than 200 destinations across the globe, in a variety of formats to meet your different needs.

Insight Guides are written by local authors, whose expertise is evident in the extensive historical and cultural background features. Each destination is carefully researched by regional experts to ensure our guides provide the very latest information. All the reviews in Insight Guides are independent; we strive to maintain an impartial view. Our reviews are carefully selected to guide you to the best places to eat, go out and shop, so you can be confident that when we say a place is special, we really mean it.

© 2018 Apa Digital (CH) AG and Apa Publications (UK) Ltd

Table of Contents

Bangkok’s Top 10 Attractions

Top Attraction #1

Top Attraction #2

Top Attraction #3

Top Attraction #4

Top Attraction #5

Top Attraction #6

Top Attraction #7

Top Attraction #8

Top Attraction #9

Top Attraction #10

A Perfect Day in Bangkok

Introduction

A distinctive capital

Population

Religion

Something for everyone

A Brief History

Bangkok’s predecessor

Founding a new capital

Revolution, coup and counter-coup

Democratic struggles

Historical landmarks

Where To Go

Ko Rattanakosin (Royal Island)

Grand Palace and Wat Phra Kaew 1 [map]

Wat Pho (Wat Phra Chetuphon)

Museum of Siam

Lak Meuang and Sanam Luang

Wat Mahathat

National Museum

Chinatown and around

Pahurat

Eastern Chinatown and Hualamphong

Thonburi

Thonburi canals

Royal Barges National Museum

Forensic Medicine Museum

Wat Arun

Santa Cruz Church

Old Bangkok

Wat Suthat

Monk’s Bowl Village (Ban Baht)

The Golden Mount

Democracy Monument

October 14 Memorial and Museum

Khao San Road

Phra Sumen Fort and Santichaiprakan Park

Dusit

Dusit Park

Dusit Zoo

Central Bangkok

Jim Thompson’s House

Bangkok Art and Culture Centre

Siam Square

Wang Suan Pakkard

Thap Thim Shrine

Erawan Shrine

Lumphini Park

Snake Farm

Silom and Bangrak

Sri Mariamman Temple (Maha Uma Devi Temple)

Kukrit Pramoj Heritage House

Patpong

Excursions from Bangkok

Ko Kret

Ancient City (Muang Boran)

Ayutthaya

Phra Pathom Chedi

Floating markets

Kanchanaburi

Ko Samet

What To Do

Shopping

Markets

Shopping centres and department stores

Books

Antiques

Entertainment

Theatre

Bars

Dance clubs

Live music

Cinema

Sport

Muay Thai

Takraw

Other sports

Children’s Bangkok

Calendar of events

Eating Out

Where to eat

What to eat

Thai cooking

International cuisines

What to drink

Non-alcoholic beverages

Alcoholic drinks

Reading the Menu

To help you order…

…and read the menu

Restaurants

Ko Rattanakosin

Chinatown and around

Thonburi

Old Bangkok and Dusit

Central Bangkok

Silom and Bangrak

Sukhumvit Road

A–Z Travel Tips

A

Accommodation (see also Hotels, click here)

Airports

B

Bargaining

Budgeting for your trip

C

Car hire (rental)

Climate

Clothing

Crime and safety (see also Emergencies)

D

Disabled travellers

E

Electricity

Embassies and consulates

Emergencies (see also Crime and safety)

G

Gay and lesbian travellers

Getting there (see also Airports)

Guides and tours

H

Health and medical care

L

Language

M

Maps

Media

Money

O

Opening times

P

Police (see also Emergencies and Crime and safety)

Post offices

Public holidays

R

Religon

T

Telephones

Time zones

Tipping

Toilets

Tourist information

Transport

V

Visa and entry requirements

W

Websites and internet access

Y

Youth hostels

Recommended Hotels

Ko Rattakosin

Chinatown and around

Thonburi

Old Bangkok and Dusit

Central Bangkok

Silom and Bangrak

Sukhumvit Road

Bangkok’s Top 10 Attractions

Top Attraction #1

Getty Images

Grand Palace and Wat Phra Kaew

These buildings represent some of the city’s oldest and most beautiful architecture. For more information, click here.

Top Attraction #2

iStock

Wat Traimit

The temple houses a 5.5-tonne solid gold Buddha. For more information, click here.

Top Attraction #3

Shutterstock

Royal Barges National Museum

Offers a glimpse into a water-borne world of ceremony and pageantry. For more information, click here.

Top Attraction #4

Peter Stuckings/Apa Publications

Khao San Road

Asia’s biggest and most popular backpacking hub. For more information, click here.

Top Attraction #5

123RF

Vimanmek Mansion

Built from teak, it is the city’s most splendid example of Victorian-meets-Thai architecture. For more information, click here.

Top Attraction #6

Peter Stuckings/Apa Publications

Wat Pho

Bangkok’s oldest temple contains the longest reclining Buddha in Thailand. For more information, click here.

Top Attraction #7

Hans Fonk

Jim Thompson’s House

Visit the famous expat’s house, full of beautiful art and antiques. For more information, click here.

Top Attraction #8

Peter Stuckings/Apa Publications

Erawan Shrine

Traditional spirit worship and Hinduism combine here. For more information, click here.

Top Attraction #9

iStock

Thonburi

Colourful longtail boats ply its network of canals, offering another perspective on the city. For more information, click here.

Top Attraction #10

Peter Stuckings/Apa Publications

National Museum

Every period of Thai history is displayed and documented in its stately buildings. For more information, click here.

A Perfect Day in Bangkok

8.30am

Breakfast

Get an early start and a river breeze to beat the heat with breakfast on the terrace of the Mandarin Oriental. It is rich with history, as Bangkok’s most famous hotel, and the boats lend a relaxing backdrop.

9.30am

Chinatown

A 15-minute taxi ride and you’re at Wat Mangkon Kamalawat, Chinatown’s biggest and most important temple. Later, wander down the evocative Soi Itsaranupap, a historic lane packed with Chinese culture, traditional streetfood and a 200 year-old market.

11.30am

Art shows

Next take a taxi to the Bangkok Art & Culture Centre, which has temporary exhibitions of local and international works displayed over several floors. The gallery often features Thailand’s best established and rising stars.

12.30pm

Siam Square

The Siam Square zone marks the beginning of Bangkok’s downtown shopping malls, so there’s lots of choice when it comes to lunch. A good option is the ground floor food court at Siam Paragon mall for a range of local streetfood, reasonably priced and in air-conditioned comfort.

1.30pm

Ocean World

In the basement of Siam Paragon is Ocean World, which has tanks containing some 30,000 marine species. You can take a glass-bottomed boat ride, go diving with sharks and marvel at South African penguins.

2.30pm

Shopping

Paragon is just one of many malls along this stretch, with a phenomenal choice, whether you want high fashion, smartphones, spices, or copies of master artworks executed by painters in MBK. You can use skywalks between several of the malls, so you avoid the cluttered pavements below.

4.00pm

Time for pampering

After a long day, there’s nothing better than a relaxing massage, and Bangkok is full of pampering options. The nearby Grand Hyatt Erawan hotel has a luxury rooftop day spa, while Siam Square has many streetside parlours to ease those aching limbs.

5.30pm

Sunset cocktails

A taxi to the bottom of Silom Road brings you to Sirocco, a 300-metre-high rooftop restaurant and bar that provides a stunning view for sunset cocktails. Either linger here for dinner or take a five-minute walk around the corner for a choice of Thai at Harmonique.

9.00pm

Nightlife

Still at the bottom end of Silom Road, Maggie Choo’s is one of the city’s classiest and most imaginative nightlife spots. It’s based on a vision of slinky 1930s’ Shanghai, with a slightly naughty vibe, great sounds and serious drinks. They also have a period-style noodle shop, so you could just as easily eat here.

Introduction

Bangkok is one of the most exciting and dynamic cities in