Thonburi, on the west bank of the Chao Phraya River, offers a quieter side of Bangkok with canals, local neighbourhoods, and historic sites.
Thonburi area
One highlight is the Princess Mother Memorial Park, a calm garden and museum space dedicated to Princess Srinagarindra, with shaded paths and small exhibition houses. Thonburi is also a good area for canal boat trips and exploring less touristy districts while still being close to the old town’s main attractions.
Taling Chan Floating Market is a small and modest market just 14 kilometres outside Bangkok. Built on the riverside at the intersection of the river and the railway’s bridge, it used to feature more than a dozen boats used as floating kitchens to cook fish, meat skewers and prawns for the guests of their restaurants.
Wat Arun, also known as the temple of Dawn, is a significant landmark of Bangkok, built before 1656. It’s much more modest than Wat Phra Kaew and the Grand Palace or Wat Pho and the Giant Reclining Buddha, but its iconic shape is better known in many ways.
The Three Sixty Rooftop Bar at Millennium Hilton Bangkok is superb but under-appreciated. This might be because, seen for far, the bar seems to be inside an indoor panoramic cupola.
Bangkok Forensic Museum is not on people’s top 10 list of things to see in Bangkok, at least not on a first trip, but it seems to rank high on people’s ‘Off the beaten track travel guide’.
Seen Rooftop Bar at Avani Hotel has an interesting location on the Thonburi side of the Chao Phraya River, just opposite the famous Asiatique night market. In case you are not familiar with the Thonburi side of Bangkok, most people only visit when they go to Wat Arun.