One of the best budget travel destinations in the world is Bangkok. Even on a budget, the Thai capital can keep you entertained for months, even on the most famous backpacker strip in the world.
Wat Pho and the Grand Palace are two of the most well-known sights, but there are many other religious and historic sites that are free. One of the most pocket-friendly city tours on the planet is to explore the river on the Express Boat.
The street food will make you want to eat like a king or queen. The best free things to do in the city can be found here.
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It's a great place to just wander and watch as people look through magnifying glasses for hidden meanings and hidden value. "Trok Maha That" is the easiest place to enter the market.
Less valuable talismans can be picked up for as little as 10B and mounted into metal and plastic amulet cases.
The charming Bangkokian Museum is home to three early-20th century wooden bungalows. The main residential building is free to visit and contains beautiful wooden furniture, porcelain and other remnants of pre- and post- war family life.
There are themed displays in an adjacent shophouse. The third building was built in 1929 as a doctor's clinic. Photography is encouraged during a visit that takes the form of an informal tour.
Even if you don't plan on buying anything, you can still have a great time at the largest market in the world. It's free to visit and there are more than 15,000 stalls to explore, divided into 27 covered sections that cover everything from antiques and souvenirs to used vintage trainers.
The market is open from 9 am to 6 pm on Saturday and Sunday. Arrive by 10am to beat the crowds and the heat, as there is lots to see and do.
Many of the objects in this celebrated four-story antique store are for sale, but prices for the owner's collection of 19th- and 20th century artifacts are so high that the collection never seems to deplete. Papaya is a great place to browse without being pressured to purchase anything.
The exhibition space is filled with art Deco furniture, 1960s beer signs, superhero statues, Piaggio scooters, typewriters, movie projectors, love seats, TV sets, VHS players and storefront mannequins.
If you're visiting Papaya, it's a good idea to visit Wat Lat Phao, which has a collection of standing and seated Buddhas.
The Golden Mount is one of the best temples you can visit for free in Bangkok, and it has some of the best views of the city. It can be seen in the sky above old Bangkok and the canals. There is a fee to go to the summit of the hilltop temple, which is free to visit.
There is a small meditation center located inside Wat Mahathat near the river. The classes last between 2 and 3 hours. Students are expected to follow a strict regimen of conduct when studying for longer periods of time.
From the backpacker ghetto of the 1980s to the atmospheric flashpacker hub of modern times, Khao San Road has undergone a considerable image makeover. The sleazy dives created by Alex Garland in The Beach have been replaced by boutique hotels and hip hangouts. Its legend continues to live on.
The lively thoroughfare is lined with market stalls and food carts and is a great place to sleep, eat and drink. There is a long-simmering debate regarding its merits. Is it a good idea to stay on the road? Is it really travel? Is it actually Thailand? Just go is the advice we give. It is free, it is nice, and it poses a question: if a traveler goes to Bangkok but doesn't visit Khao San Road, did they really go to Bangkok?
It's a good idea to bring an appetite to the road. As the sun sets, carts with inexpensive street food options such as satay skewers, pad thai noodles and popiah spill out onto the streets.
The notorious strip of go-go bars and porn shows in the Patpong Red Light District is just as much a part of the city as the temples. It's not for everyone, but a visit to Thailand will reveal a lot about the country's attitudes to sex.
Patpong is still a place of blazing neon, pumping music and scantily-dressed women, but it is now an established stop on the tourist circuit. There is a museum of Patpong. The time to visit is after 5pm when the market is open.
It's not known for its calm, green spaces, but there is a park in the city. The city park is an antidote to traffic fumes and sun- blocking skyscrapers. With manicured lawns, thickets of trees, winding walkways and swan-shaped pedalos for hire on its glassy lake, this free-to-visit park is a great place to pause and relax. Locals start their mornings with a small t'ai chi.
It's a good idea to combine a visit to Lumphini Park with a stroll around Benjakiti Park, which was once part of the Tobacco Monopoly. There are wetlands, woodland, and cycle paths for rent in this former industrial zone.
The museum displays old photos and artifacts to show the life of the last absolute monarch of Thailand. The only foreign-owned business allowed on the royal road is a firm of Bond Street merchants, which was built on the orders of the king.
When he became king, Prajadhipok showed a lot of diplomacy in dealing with the new intellectual class of Thais. The life of Queen Rambhai Barni is dealt with on the first floor, while the king's life is covered on the second and third floors. Thailand had an absolute monarchy until a coup ended it in 1932.
The district has become a hub for creativity. Warehouse 30 is a collection of shops, workspace and cafes located in a renovated World War II-era building. The mural by street artist Vhils is a collection of faces and eyes carved into the concrete wall of the Portuguese Embassy.
The Wachirabenchathat Park is home to three of the city's best parks. The State Railway of Thailand used to have a golf course here, so it is now known as Suan Rot Fai. After a day of haggling, come back to the weekend market.
After completing a doll-making course in Japan, a Thai woman founded this workshop. The collection includes some 400 dolls from around the world, as well as important pieces from her own workshop, where you can watch the figures being crafted by hand for free.
It's difficult to find the museum, so you can take a taxi and call the museum for directions.
The Erawan Shrine was built in order to end a string of unfortunate events that happened during the construction of the Erawan Hotel. It is consecrated to honor the Hindu god Brahma, creator of the universe, and serves a similar function to the spirit houses found outside most Thai houses. In August 2015, a bomb exploded near the shrine, killing 20 people, but it was quickly repaired and reopened days later.
It is a fascinating story. A priest was consulted after a number of incidents, including the sinking of a ship carrying marble for the hotel. The hotel was supposed to be named after the elephant escort of Indra in Hindu mythology, but the priest decided that Erawan needed a passenger. The misfortunes came to an end when a statue was built. The shrine is free to visit and is an important place of pilgrimage for Thais.
You can go shopping at some of the swankiest shopping malls in Thailand, including CentralwOrld, Siam Paragon and the shopping centers around Siam Square.
The city's largest wet market is where most street vendors and restaurants get their ingredients. The air here is usually thick with the smell of freshly gutted fish or durian. Bring a camera because the sights are better than the smells. Vendors are packing up and leaving by 10am.
You won't find anything like it anywhere else in the city. Bird's-nest soup restaurants, dangling lanterns, gaudy gold and jade shops, and flashing neon signs in Chinese characters can be found in the market alleys off of the road. Half the fun is in getting lost in this busy neighborhood.
You can eat at the street food stalls in the afternoon if you come in the afternoon. The food markets and many Chinatown restaurants are closed on Mondays.
Bht, the distinctive bowls used by monks to receive their morning donations, can be found in the last of the villages established by the king. Take the first right after you turn down Soi Ban Bat to reach the main alleyway.
A bht-making demonstration where eight separate pieces of steel are hammered together to make a single bowl is usually rewarded with a purchase by tourists. You can expect to pay around 300B for a small bowl.
The majority of the Hindus in the city are from South India. The Sri Mariamman temple is free to visit and it is appropriate to leave a donation. A full-color guide to many of the most important Hindu deities can be found in its statues.
While visiting the Sri Mariamman temple, it's a good idea to stop and enjoy some of the vegetarian food in the area. It's a great place to start.
A coffee shop, sort of a gallery, something of a cultural center, but it's hard to classify it. There's food available on weekends, as well as a free traditional Thai puppet show, but the best reason to come is to soak up the canal-side vibe. The easiest way to get to the Artist's House is by crossing the canal at the bridge and taking a left at the 7-Eleven.
A variety of work by both established and emerging local artists can be found in this vast experimental art space. The gallery's reputation as a hub for innovative art was reinforced by the removal of five pieces that were deemed to be threatening to the peace and security of Thailand. Talks and workshops are hosted at an art themed cafe.
In order to clean up the city, the street-side flower market was moved indoors. There are rows of roses and stacks of button carnations in the giant warehouse that houses the resettled stalls.
When fresh blossoms arrive from upcountry, the best time to visit is at night.
Learning is covered in interactive exhibits at the free museum. The Dino Detective Zone allows children to dig in the sand and find dinosaur bones. In a city that isn't always set up for families, it is a fun free detour.
The museum has an outdoor play area and water park where you can cool off after a long trip.
There is a free museum in Thailand dedicated to fakes, which is displayed in a huge array of counterfeit goods. You can get a free tour from an in-house lawyer from the company's intellectual property department.
The article was published in August of 2019.
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