Best reasons to visit Bangkok
bangkok khao san road
Should You Visit Bangkok?
Absolutely! Since visiting this vibrant city, many people have asked us what are the best reasons to visit Bangkok? Our Instagram and Facebook posts of our time in Bangkok quickly got people interested in this South East Asian travel hub. We created this blog on a night bus from Bangkok to Chiang Mai to answer the question on all of your lips…What are the best reasons to visit Bangkok?
Are you ready?
Having spent 3 days in Bangkok, it was my (Kerry’s) first introduction to Thailand. I never knew what to expect. To be honest I had assumed Bangkok to be merely a stop over for travellers either arriving into Thailand to go elsewhere, or to wait and go home. A small part of my assumption was right. It is a stop over for most people. However our time in Bangkok taught me that the Thai capital is more than just a stop over. Bangkok acts as a gateway to the rest of South East Asia and this city is guaranteed to give an experience that will stay with you forever!
Downtown Bangkok
We stayed near the famous Khao San road. A colorful and vibrant travellers hub best known for its nightlife. The road itself is complete mayhem lined with bars in the evening and market stalls during the daytime. The mayhem on Khao San Road never stops. It could be described as the street that never sleeps. Every traveller must experience this manic road at least once. Khao San Road was too hectic for us to stay on so we stayed in a brilliant guesthouse one street down called the Khao San Green House Hotel. Jack Whitehall featured the hotel in a Netflix documentary about travelling Thailand with his dad. The location was perfect. The guesthouse was on a fabulous street full of restaurants, bars and street vendors. This street is slightly more calmer in nature than the neighboring street of Khao San road, but vibrant with loads on offer. This made it our most favorite street in the downtown area. From the moment we stepped out onto the street we were welcomed with a vibe that is impossible to fully express to people who have never been.
Our Location
The street is a mass of hustle and bustle with vendors cooking the most fantastic Thai dishes for a very cheap price. A favorite for most is Pad Thai, a delicious noodle dish that is must try for everyone visiting Thailand. In fact I could safely say that the Pad Thai in Bangkok rates high on the best reasons to visit Bangkok list. Among the stalls of the Thai street cuisine are locals trying to tempt travellers into trying one of Bangkok’s rights of passage, the fried scorpions and spiders. Whist immersing ourselves in this vibrant street scene we could hear live music from the bars that line the sides of the street. The vibe is simply phenomenal. Everywhere you turn there are people completely different to you. Everywhere someone has a story to tell of their travels or where they are heading to next. The most magical thing about Bangkok for me is that despite all the different walks of life and the fact that each person will soon be heading off in different directions, for that one night we are all sharing that same moment together.
first pad Thai
Be Yourself
The thing that really struck me with Bangkok is that you can be yourself. Whoever that may be, no one judges. There many different walks of life immersing themselves in Bangkok’s madness and everyone gets to do so with no prejudice or judgmental eyes. Its a beautiful thing to be a part of and a riveting thing to know that you can completely let yourself go confidently and for us is one of the best reasons to visit Bangkok. People watching is a fantastic thing to do in this city. It really makes you realize that their are so many interesting people in the world who are completely different to the other interesting person two steps behind them. Bangkok introduces you to so many different wonderful traits and personalities you never even knew existed.
The Fried Scorpions
fried bug buffet
At first I couldn’t even look at the so called delicacy never mind attempt to try one. Becca having been to Thailand before was taking it all in her stride, but for a newbie this was a strange thing to get your head around. The first vendor I saw had a whole bug buffet stall going on. The menu was spiders, scorpions, cockroaches and other little bugs. The spiders were the first to horrify me. They were huge, tarantula huge! I couldn’t and still can’t believe anyone would ever chose that. The part that really got me was that the spiders had to be alive at some point. This shocking realization made me realize the live ones could be crawling around near us!!
Right of passage
The fried insect snacks are supposed to be a delicacy in Thailand. However we haven’t yet seen a Thai eat anything of the sort. The only people I saw buying into the bug snacks was travellers after a few too many beers, myself included. My experience was quick and short and not the most enjoyable, but in some strange way this felt like a right of passage in Bangkok. Where else can you experience this so casually? This is why the fried bug experience is up there with the best reasons to visit Bangkok.
bush tucker trial
The whole situation reminded me of a very famous British television show called ‘I’m a celebrity get me out of here’, famous for its bush tucker trials. My prize for completion was feeling like I had conquered Bangkok! Stupidly I bit off the toughest part of a scorpion, the claw! I have no idea why I was expecting it to be like a wafer in my mouth. My poor judgment was most probably down to too many chiang’s (Thai beer). My encounter was a hard cracking shell and not the soft wafer feeling I imagined. That was game over for me and I quickly spat it back out. So I didn’t swallow it, but my attempt still counts. However, Becca my hero, took that claw and with mind over matter accomplished the Bangkok right of passage!
Not Just A Party
Bangkok isn’t just a big party. It has culture and is the gates to the rest of Thailand. Once you have tired of partying or seen enough of the temples, you can easily arrange day trips and tours to sample Thai life in all its glory. You can also arrange transport to take you further into your Thai adventure, which makes yet another factor on the best reasons to visit Bangkok list. Transport to the sought after islands are also easily arranged from the city. We decided it was time to move on from the hustle and bustle of city life after three amazing days. To be honest we were craving the feeling of sand on our feet. At 10 pm one evening we walked into a travel agent and booked our bus and boat for 8 am the next day to take us to the island of Koh Samet. It cost 450 baht, approximately £10.50. Not a bad price for 5 hours travel, with most of the journey on an air conditioned bus. The boat however, well that is a story for for another blog.
Tours
Our time in Bangkok wasn’t all socializing and partying. We also spent time visiting Thailand’s crazy train market and wonderful floating market. A tour that is definitely one of the best reasons to visit Bangkok for us. Our guesthouse arranged the tour costing 900 baht for us both. Normally we don’t book tours directly with our accommodation because we find it more expensive, but the ease of this made it impossible not to. If you shop around you are guaranteed to get cheaper prices. Everyone in Bangkok wants to sell you a tour, so there will be some within your budget.
The Crazy Train Market
the train market Thailand
We got picked up in a mini bus outside our guesthouse and taken to the train market first. The market is set up along the train tracks and a few times a day an alarm sounds to inform vendors and would be buyers that the train is approaching. Within seconds the vendors move their small stalls out the way of the tracks and buyers move off the tracks to let the train pass through. What got me was the space between the stalls at the side of the track and the space left for you to get out the way of the train is absolutely tiny. Since this is becoming an increasingly popular tourist attraction it is difficult to find a safe space, but hey it is Thailand after all and safety is way down the list of importance. This was when we were instantly regretting the last 8 months in Italy living off enormous amounts of pasta!!
slightly irritating
The most irritating thing about the market is that the vendors won’t let you on their patch when the train is approaching. Instead they shoo you away onto the tracks to protect their patch. They don’t care that you might get squashed by a train. It really angered me how aggressive their manner was. I was completely taken aback as Thais are mostly sweet and polite. The feeling I got is that they didn’t want a mass of tourists there. It was almost like tourism had ruined a special place in Thai culture. It was a phenomenal experience, but completely nuts.
The Floating Market
our favorite lady at the floating market
The next part of our 900 baht tour was visiting the floating market. For me this had a lot to live up to following on from the nutty train market. The floating market did not disappoint. It was spectacular and is exactly what the name suggests. You can get on a boat for 150 baht per person to travel round a river of stalls and other passing boats selling their produce.
Imagining traditional Thailand
The only disappointing factor was with the floating market is that it seems very set up for tourism. Unlike the train market, this one was very happy for tourists to keep coming. The produce is mainly souvenirs of Thailand. To be more specific, carved wooden elephants, Thai pants, novelty items. We were expecting this market to have locals paddling their way around buying fresh fruits, fish and vegetables from stalls floating past. Sadly this did not happen and it seems that the true traditional Thai culture is becoming more difficult to find. What we really loved about this market, despite it being mainly now set up for tourism, is that it allowed you to imagine traditional Thai life before the tourism influx. This must have been a beautiful place in its original form. This is an experience worth considering if you have the time whilst visiting Bangkok.
Should You Visit Bangkok?
Completely with no doubts. For my introduction to Thailand, Bangkok really did make it one I will never forget. The smells, the emotions, the things I saw were like nothing else I had ever experienced anywhere else on this planet. It really is a place that you need to visit for yourself. There are no words which could ever fully do it justice. So when you ask yourself the question, should you visit Bangkok? the answer should be undoubtedly YES! And when you ask the question, what are the best reasons to visit Bangkok? Our answer is simple, go and find out for yourself!
For my first visit, and Beccas third visit to this hectic but amazing city, we would like to finish with thank you Bangkok and I’m very sure we will see you again SOON!
Written by Our World Our Life Our Way on a bus from Bangkok to Chiang Mai
