By: Patty M. Vanegas Photo credit: Patty M. Vanegas and Enrique Vanegas Gomez
1. Tuk Tuk Transport
How much? What distance? It is about 100 baht per kilometer, but is negotiable.
We took tuk tuks often during our stay in Bangkok. Tuk tuks were readily available from grocery store runs to mall shopping to tours of Khoasan Road. We met up with our brother and sister in law in Bangkok. They have been to Bangkok before a few times. He advised us to negotiate the rates with the tuk tuk drivers. This is true whether they were parked outside the Big C, or just near our hotel, or for any preplanned tour rides. The Big C store has signage at the entries that provide tuk tuk costs. Generally for shorter runs such as from the hotel in the Nana area to the Big C, or from the Big C back to the hotel in Nana it cost 100 baht each way.
Tuk tuk tour rides may cost a little more as we check out the sites with a guide who explains them to us. A word of advice – check the tuk tuk for cushioned seats. The ride can be quite bumpy and fast, so a tuk tuk with cushioned seats makes a big difference! This is even more the case after over twenty one hours on airplanes without plush seating. Your tush will thank you! One tuk tuk tour provided us with extra pillows to be extra comfy. The owner of the tuk tuk, her drivers, and her seasoned tour guide were very friendly and caring with us. The tour guide knew and imparted much of the Thailand cultural history with us throughout the tour.
2. BTS Train
The BTS Skytrain is a great way to get around the city of Bangkok. We found it easy to navigate. The machines were a challenge at first for us. But, the friendly staff at the kiosk windows were helpful. Once we had our passes in hand, a quick wave over the entry opened the door for us to enter the platform. The stations and lines are clearly marked on the platform. When we were not sure, we simply asked any one of the train staff including security for directions. They gladly assisted us. Although we opted for the one way passes, we had unlimited stops along the line to hop off and snap photos from the train platform and hop back on. This was a great way to see the city while taking advantage of air conditioning on a super hot day.
We witnessed two tourists experiencing heat exhaustion or dehydration along the way. One woman appeared to be more elderly. Her friend was trying to alleviate her discomfort by letting her rest her head on her lap while trying to cool her down. Passers by stopped to offer her water. Meanwhile, other bystanders flagged down the train security who came quickly with a wheelchair and helped her into the elevator. An ambulance arrived shortly after this. A few stations down the line we saw a younger woman also taken down by the heat. These were great reminders to hydrate, hydrate, hydrate. Also, beat the heat and find places with air conditioning to cool down.
We hopped off the train at nearly every station. We walked along the platform taking in the city and snapping photos. Then, hopped back on the train to go to the next stop. We discovered that as long as we stayed on the train platform we were not charged any extra rate. When we left the train platform and fed our passes into the machine, this is when our one way was done. This is a great way to get an overview of the city if you don’t know the area. You can exit the train platform at any stop.
Many of the stops have escalators to assist in going up along with the massive amount of stairs. Also, elevators are available. However, we found that the Siam stop had a massive amount of escalators! We could be on those nearly all day long. We took a daytime self guided tour.
Later, we took an evening excursion. We decided to exit at the Siam mall stop. Beautiful area to browse. We enjoyed watching the traffic and people for a bit. The evening offered a cool breeze reprieve from the day time heat.
Learn more about rates here – https://www.bts.co.th/eng/routemap.html
3. Water Taxi
There are water taxis available in the downtown area. They take the river route throughout Bangkok.
4. Traditional Wooden Water Boats
We enjoyed a day time river ride on a traditional wooden river boat. This boat did not have seat cushions. We know this is mentioned a lot throughout this blog. However, the 40+ plus traveler just travels different. We feel things quite a bit more, so small things like seat cushions make a great difference in our enjoyment of activities. However, the boat skipper took it very easy for us. So, we enjoyed an open air relaxed view of the temples, homes, and buildings along the river.
5. Hotel Tour Driver
The cost to take a tour van varies from 800 baht to 1100 baht to 1500 baht. This depends on whether it is an in city drive from point a to b, such as from the hotel to the fabric factory. Or, it is a drive to individual temple with a few temples. Or, a drive out from Bangkok to the train and water markets. You can shop around for different driver and tour group options. The best place to start is with the hotel staff or someone who has been there before.
Sounds so fancy, right?! While waiting for our driver, Koko, outside one temple, a local man stopped to ask if we were ok. My husband replied, ‘Yes, I am just waiting for my driver.’. The man without skipping a beat laughingly responded that he must be a millionaire. No, not even close. But, it did feel like a more personal touch to have a trusted local person from the hotel drive us around the city. It lent ease to navigating traffic. It gave us an opportunity to connect with another person one on one. We were given a glimpse inside living in Bangkok and an intimate view of the culture.
It felt good to have a trusted person waiting for us at the airport after over twenty two hours of flights with a transfer flight, delays, and several hours in between flights. He took us direct from the airport to our hotel in Nana. It is a good thirty minute drive from the airport to Nana. While we later discovered we could take the BTS train from the airport to Nana using two different lines, as first timers in Bangkok that may not have been the best option for us. Also, it depends on the flight times as BTS runs only during certain times.
We opted for another tour group to take us to another temple. The next day they took us to the train and water markets. It was great to meet Pukky and her mom. Her mom started their company with only one car. Now, she, her daughter, a wonderful mature woman, and a couple more drivers are a part of their tour group. Pukky was fun and all smiles and managed our river cruise nicely. The charming mature woman was knowledgeable about Thai history and negotiating fair prices. She gave us a complete tour full of historical facts. She negotiated local prices with area merchants for us. She was amazing and super helpful. We were happy to support a locally owned woman business as well.
6. Traditional Taxi
There were so many taxis available in Bangkok. You will have no issue finding one to take you to your destinations. Now, you just have to compare prices.
7. Motorcycle/Motorbike/ Moped/Scooter
We saw plenty of motorcycles and mopeds throughout the city. It appeared to be a very popular way to get around town.
8. Walk
While a tuk tuk, or driver, or train may get you to the main areas, once at the main areas there so many places that are within easy walking distance. We say this even as one of us had severe foot pain. Patty experienced a foot injury only a few months before our Bangkok travels. She was still able to walk through the adjacent malls. These were great as they had air conditioning. We were able to literally walk from mall to mall while staying inside.
The train market was compact. This allowed for a shorter walk among the shops and restaurants.
Once the river boat left the dock taking us to the main water market, we enjoyed an easy going walk through the stores and beautiful garden area.
The Jim Thompson museum offered a simple walk around the grounds and within the house and over to the silk store. The living room offered a great view across the river as well.
**Lastly, we would like to note that the temples do allow guests to wear socks and foot coverings such as heel cups for those with foot and leg injuries or special needs. This was greatly appreciated and we were able to fully tour the temples.
As you can see, there are several ways to get around Bangkok. We hope you like our travel tips! Please feel free to comment or ask more questions below. We enjoy replying to comments and questions!!
Here is a bonus video for those of you who read to the end. Live music on a riverboat cruise in Bangkok!
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