Itineraries
Bangkok Itineraries
Pick the itinerary that matches your trip length, or build your own with the planner. All of them are built from the same tested day plans, in the order that works best with crowds, heat and opening days.
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Bangkok itineraries go wrong in the same ways: too many sights in one day, too much zigzagging across the city by road, and no allowance for the afternoon heat. Ours avoid that by grouping each day around one area and using the river and the rail lines to connect them.
All of the itineraries below are built from the same day plans, so you can mix and match.
Choose your trip length
- Bangkok 3-Day ItineraryThree days is enough for Bangkok's essentials if you group sights by area and use the river and the MRT rather than taxis. Here is the plan, slot by slot.
- Bangkok 5-Day ItineraryFive days lets you slow down. The first two days match the three-day plan; the extra time goes to modern Bangkok, the weekend market and the ruins of Ayutthaya.
- Bangkok 7-Day ItineraryA week in Bangkok is a different trip from a long weekend: you can afford a slow day after the day trip and still see more than most visitors do.
Or build your own
The planner uses the same day plans and arranges them around your interests, pace and dates. It moves the weekend market to a Saturday or Sunday, keeps day trips off your first day and tells you how far each day's starting point is from where you're staying.
Rules that make any Bangkok itinerary work
- One area per half-day. The Old Town, Chinatown, Siam and Sukhumvit are each a world of their own. Crossing between them by road at rush hour can take an hour.
- Outdoors in the morning, indoors at midday. Temples and markets before noon; museums, malls, massages or the pool in the early afternoon; out again after 4pm.
- Plan around the weekend. Chatuchak's full market only runs on Saturday and Sunday.
- Use the river. The express boat links the Old Town, Chinatown and the Riverside faster than a taxi.
- Leave one gap. By day three, the heat catches up with most people.
Where to stay for these itineraries
The itineraries work from any area near a BTS or MRT station. Siam and Silom are the most central; the Riverside is best if you want to use boats. See where to stay in Bangkok.
where to next?
- Bangkok 3-Day ItineraryThree days is enough for Bangkok's essentials if you group sights by area and use the river and the MRT rather than taxis. Here is the plan, slot by slot.
- Bangkok 5-Day ItineraryFive days lets you slow down. The first two days match the three-day plan; the extra time goes to modern Bangkok, the weekend market and the ruins of Ayutthaya.
- Bangkok 7-Day ItineraryA week in Bangkok is a different trip from a long weekend: you can afford a slow day after the day trip and still see more than most visitors do.