Dragon Boat Festival Overseas Trip~Grand Palace, Bangkok, Thailand
by Alyssa Keir
Jun 1, 2025
### **📍8-day tour guide to Bangkok**
**🏨 Accommodation recommendation**: Stay at "Ibis Styles Bangkok Silom" throughout the trip (convenient transportation, close to BTS Chong Nonsi Station)
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### **👉Day 1: First visit to Bangkok's classic landmarks**
**🧭Route**: Grand Palace→Temple of the Emerald Buddha→Wat Pho→Wat Arun→Khao San Road Night Market
**✈️Transportation**: BTS+ferry (take a boat from the Grand Palace to Wat Arun)
**🏖️Must Play**:
- The Grand Palace (the pinnacle of Thai architecture)
- Sunset at Wat Arun (a great photo spot)
**🥘Food**:
- Lunch: Tha Maharaj restaurant near the Grand Palace
- Dinner: Mango sticky rice + Thai fried rice noodles from Khao San Road Night Market
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### **👉Day 2: Culture + Shopping Day**
**🧭Route**: Bangkok National Museum → ICONSIAM → Asiatique Riverside Night Market
**✈️Transportation**: BTS+free shuttle boat (to ICONSIAM)
**🏖️Must Play**:
- ICONSIAM Indoor Floating Market (air-conditioned version of traditional market)
- Asiatique Ferris Wheel Night View
**🥘Food**:
- Lunch: ICONSIAM "Kub Kao Kub Pla" (Internet-famous Thai food)
- Dinner: Night Market Volcano Spare Ribs
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### **👉Day 3: Damnoen Saduak Floating Market + Maeklong Railway Market**
**🧭Route**: Half-day tour with a group (recommended departure at 6:00) → Return to Bangkok in the afternoon → Pixel Tower Observation Deck
**✈️Transportation**: Chartered car/group tour (about 2 hours drive)
**🏖️Must Play**:
- The spectacle of the Maeklong train passing through the city
- MahaNakhon 78th floor glass observation deck
**🥘Food**:
- Lunch: Coconut ice cream at the floating market + boat noodles
- Dinner: T&K Seafood in Chinatown
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### **👉Day 4: Modern Art + Night Market Carnival**
**🧭Route**: Bangkok Art and Culture Center → Chatuchak Weekend Market (open only on weekends) → Ratchada Train Night Market
**✈️Transportation**: BTS to Mo Chit Station
**🏖️Must Play**:
- Chatuchak Taobao (handicrafts, clothing)
- Night market panoramic photo (The Esplanade shopping mall parking lot)
**🥘Food**:
- Lunch: Coconut ice + Thai milk tea in the market
- Dinner: Ratchada Volcano Spareribs
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### **👉Day 5: Suburban Adventure, Kanchanaburi**
**🧭Route**: Death Railway → Bridge over the River Kwai → Erawan Waterfall (optional)
**✈️Transportation**: Chartered car round trip (about 3 hours drive)
**🏖️Must Play**:
- Death Railway Bamboo Rafting
- World War II Historical Sites on the River Kwai
**🥘Food**:
- Lunch: Grilled fish at a riverside restaurant
- Dinner: Authentic Thai food at "Baan Ice" near the hotel
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### **👉Day 6: Healing experience**
**🧭Route**: Khlong Lat Mayom Floating Market → Massage Experience → King Power Genting Tower Night View
**✈️Transportation**: Taxi/Grab
**🏖️Must Play**:
- Locals’ favorite floating market (more authentic than Damnoen Saduak)
- "Let's Relax" Thai Massage
**🥘Food**:
- Lunch: Grilled shrimp + durian at the market
- Dinner: Buffet on the 76th floor of Genting Tower
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### **👉Day 7: Ayutthaya Day Tour**
**🧭Route**: Wat Mahathat (Buddha in a tree) → Wat Chaiwatthanaram → Bang Pa-In Palace
**✈️Transportation**: Train/charter car (about 1.5 hours)
**🏖️Must Play**:
- Classic photo of holding a Buddha in a tree
- Summer Palace European Garden
**🥘Food**:
- Lunch: Ayutthaya riverside restaurant
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### **👉Day 8: Free shopping + return trip**
**🧭Route**: Terminal 21 shopping → Big C shopping → airport
**✈️Transportation**: BTS direct to Airport Express
**🛍️Must buy**:
- Supermarket: Xiao Lao Ban seaweed, Thai seasoning
- Drugstore: Herbal cream, nasal decongestant
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### **💡Tips**:
1. **Transportation**: BTS+Moovit APP to check routes; avoid taking taxis during peak hours (17:00-19:00)
2. **Tickets**: Grand Palace 500 baht (including the Temple of the Emerald Buddha), Wat Arun 100 baht
3. **Wear**: Long pants/skirts below the knee are required for temples, and bring sun protection clothes with you
4. **Cash**: Night markets/stalls only accept cash, 500-1000 baht per person per day as a backup
**🌶️Hidden ways to play**: Take a night cruise on the Chao Phraya River "Wonderland Cruise" or experience a Muay Thai match!
Post by RoyBoy | Mar 26, 2025























