Snorkeling in Phi Phi

To the uninitiated, Phi Phi's snorkelling is like being on a fantasy planet. Even the experienced agree - it's good. Really good. With one of the world's most abundant coral reef systems, the locations and sights are both plentiful and astounding.

When the tide is right, places like Monkey Bay are just about as accessible as physics allows. The coral is just below the surface and brightly coloured fish dart here and there, inches from your mask. Hin Klang is in the middle of the sea, though it isn't nearly as deep as expected; you don't have to impersonate an island native on the hunt to enjoy the views - floating on the surface is fine. Phi Phi Lei has a few more snorkelling locations, as does Phi Phi Don, Bamboo Island, the list goes on.

Tour operators will supply equipment - i.e., fins and a mask - if you book a package trip, or you can rent them from dive operators if you choose to strike out on your own via foot or longtail boat. The serious may want to bring their own gear, or inspect before booking, as quality and available sizes will vary between shops.

Maya Bay Maya Bay has exceptionally clear water, although you can only enter by boat from November to April. I've only been there once and saw an octopus after just 10 minutes, a first for me! Stunning coral and fish are seen by thousands who arrive on various daytrips, so yes it's busy. The side closest to the entrance is best as there are many boats close to the beach. Maya Bay is best visited on an organised tour, and preferably early in the morning or late in the afternoon.

Pi Leh Bay Pi Leh is situated on the opposite side of Phi Phi Leh to Maya Bay. It's a long thin bay with 100m high cliffs on all sides, at the entrance there's a shelf, the top of which is too shallow for anthing other than speedboat or longtail, this stops it from getting too busy.

Flat calm water awaits inside with some excellent snorkeling, bright parrot fish and sergeant majors rush the boats coming in hoping for some bread, pinapple or banana even. High tide is the best time to visit Pi Leh Bay.
Alternatively, at the entrance to the bay there's some great snorkeling to be found, morning is the best time as the area is in the shade in the afternoons.

Bamboo Island Stunning Bamboo Island is 5km from the northern tip of Phi Phi Don. The small island is only 500m across and has beautiful beaches virtually all the way around that give way to coral underwater.
Many daytrips go to Bamboo each day but it's not too crowded. Dive boats also go there too. The reefs are extensive and fairly shallow, but the beach is always there for a rest. Another excellent place to snorkel.

Mosquito Island Mosquito Island is next to Bamboo but it's less visited because there aren't really any beaches. Snorkeling is best along the east side however the majority of the coral is a bit deeper here so it's more of a scuba diving spot.

Hin Klang Hin Klang is an underwater reef, or coral mountain (as some call it) that doesn't break the surface. Located 2km offshore right in front of Laem Tong Beach in the north of Phi Phi, it's 90m long and 60m wide. As you approach you don't know that it's coming but wow, it's there all right.

Crystal-clear water, lots of fish and colourful coral, this is one of the best places to snorkel in Southern Thailand and probably the best place in Phi Phi.

Shark Point & Longbeach The snorkeling from Long Beach is possibly best direct from the beach in Phi Phi. You don't have to go very far to see the colourful fish and underwater habitat. Additionally around 200m from the beach there's a rock that just breaks the surface called Shark Point. No prizes for guessing why, although these are little fellas.

Here you'll find black-tip reef sharks from 40cm to to 1.2m swimming around the reef. During the day when there's lots of boats around they're hard to find but before 9am and after 5pm they're easily spotted.

The swells from May to October can make Shark Point dangerous so you should only go there on very calm days during that time. All year round you should be vigilant as currents can be strong, especially at mid tide. Novice snorkelers would be better to go with an organised tour.

Tonsai Bay West Side There's coral and lots of fish all along the west edge of the bay at the foot of the cliffs. A great way to explore is with a sea kayak, there are several small beaches to leave the kayak on while you snorkel, one of the better known ones is Monkey Beach about 500m out from Tonsai Beach.

Phi Phi Don East Coast There's a good reef that runs the entire length of the east coast of Phi Phi about 100m out from the shore. In the shallower water coral and fish can be seen in clear water, a little further out at the drop off larger fish and coral can be seen in deeper water.

Often the best places to snorkel are at the northern and southern points of the beaches.

Drinking at Phi Phi

Drinks prices are quite high (cocktails 180 baht). Many bars offer similar entertainment, cabarets and striking fire shows - performed by the same people, advertised by posters and flyers apparently drawn by the same person...

Apache Bar - a multi-story bar overlooking Ton Sai. And the home of the weekly transvestite shows. Was damaged in a fire in the early parts of 2007 but is now up and running again. Good place for dancing on Saturdays. Get a cheap "bucket" right next to the Apache Bar before entering.

Beach Bar - located right in the tsunami wastelands and a good choice for those looking to have a quiet drink.
Carlitos Bar - relaxed drinks on the beach served by amiable waitresses. During the winter months this place is full of Scandinavian party goers. Most of the service staff this time of year is over on extended holiday from Sweden so expect a lot of beautiful tanned blonds to be walking around.

Hippies Bar - nice but rowdy place at the beach with a lot of fire shows and full/half/quarter moon parties on a weekly basis.

JJ Pub/Café (Quiet Jazz and blues bar)

JP Stairs Bar

Carpe Diem - Similar bar next to Hippies - best avoided as the staff have been known to steal from customers and beat them up when they raise a fuss. Local police don't seem to care.

Reggae Bar - popular place that organizes mock Muay Thai fights most nights. If you are there at the right time you can even join in with the Muay Thai fights. They invite tourist, usually drunk, to get into the ring geared up and to beat on each other for a few rounds for a couple of FREE buckets.

Rolling Stoned Bar - Great rock music with a live band during high season and at other times of the year. They also have four pool tables and is a one of the more popular bars on the island.

Sports Bar

Sunset Bar

Tia and Millie Sunflower Bar - on Lohdalum Bay, a nautically-themed beach bar with 'ark' and longtail-bar, pool table and laid-back beach seating. A great place to watch the often spectacular sunsets.

Tiger Bar - The local expat's hangout. Located next to Papaya Restaurant and Rolling Stoned Bar this small multi level bar is a favorite with the local dive community. The bar typically gives out FREE buckets from 12:00 - 12:15.

Woodys Bar is basically just a walk up liquor store, but they have a few tables out front. Its close to Apache. The staff are funny and the Beatles are always playing. Nice place to get a 180 baht bucket to walk around on the beach with.

Viewpoint Bar

Where To Eat At Phi Phi

In general, Southern Thai food is renowned for its spiciness. Much of the cuisine has its origins in Malay, Indonesian and Indian food. Favourite dishes from the south include Indian-style Muslim curry (massaman), rice noodles in fish curry sauce (Khanom Jeen) and chicken birayani.

Food on Ko Phi Phi is extremely varied, given the diminutive size of the island, but is not as spectacular as it generally is in Thailand, because most ingredients have to be brought in by boat from the mainland. Nevertheless there are some restaurants that manage to serve surprisingly tasty food:

Cosmic - Italian restaurant that deserves the name - has two outlets on the island and serves very good pizza. Aside from the pizza, the Thai food at this restaurant is good and reasonably priced.

CALAMARO RESTO - The usual suspect are served in this simple yet quality restaurant. A wide selection of breakfast, fresh pasta, pizza, thai food, sandwiches and more is complemented by fruit shakes, liqueurs and evening cocktails. And the best "fried ice-cream". All food is clean, good, cheap as reasonably priced.

Hibachi - all you can eat Japanese-style buffet near Carlito's Bar. Excellent sushi selection for the price (200 baht). Two outlets very close together. The grilled selections and Thai food on their buffet is not very good.
Little Britain - If you are looking for a good traditional English breakfast with eggs, Heinz Baked Beans, sausage, bacon, potatoes, mushrooms and black pudding this is the place to go. English tea also comes with your breakfast.

Mr. Tee's - When you come off the ferry, veer slightly left and you find yourself on an alley covered by tarps, with small Thai restaurants. You'll notice a lot of locals eating in this alley. The first booth on your left is Mr. Tee's. They tend to be forgetful but the food is good, cheap, and spicy!

Papaya - one of the first restaurants rebuilt after the tsunami. A small green 'shop' restaurant opposite the Reggae Bar and next door to Tiger Bar, run by the enthusiastic and friendly Mr Nod. Don't let the unprepossessing looks of the restaurant put you off - the food here is incredibly good and very good value. Serves authentic Thai food, hot and spicy as it should be, but the staff helpfully allow you to express the spiciness in percentile terms, with 100% being 'Thai spicy'. Among local expats living on the island, this place is known as the place to get good cheap Thai food. If you are looking for a personal sized portion with rice at a cheaper price ask for your food to be "On Rice".

Sports Bar - For some great English-style meat pies Sports Bar is the place to go. It is also the only place on the island where you can buy a Pint of Chang and get Pitchers of beer.

Tuk's BBQ - Located next to apache, its basically a street vendor, but it has the absolute best BBQ on the island, with most items costing 30 baht.

As for Ko Phi Phi, reasonable priced and tasty seafood is obviously what most tourists long for when visiting a coastal province like Krabi. In this connection, the wing shell (หอยชักตีน) is Krabi’s famous cuisine and is eaten with a spicy dip. In addition, stirred fried Spotted Babylon (หอยหวาน), which is found in mangrove forests, with chilies and basil is also famous. This cuisine is common in Krabi’s restaurants. Another great Krabi taste is, of course, seafood.

What To See In Phi Phi Island

Viewpoint - walk up to the Viewpoint, 186 metres above sea level (a very steep walk of between 10-25 minutes, depending on fitness), to get a breathtaking view of the entire island - particularly at dawn or sunset (bring a flashlight). You will be surprised at how narrow the sand strip is between the two main parts of the island.

Monkey Beach - accessible on foot or by renting a canoe, or be lazy and charter a longtail boat. Don't forget to take some bananas for the monkeys! Be careful as they can sometimes be aggressive.

Fireshow - there are several highly skilled and entertaining fireshows held nightly in several venues on the island, including at Carlito's, Apache Bar, Hippies, Carpe Diem, and The Tia and Millie Sunflower Bar on Lohdalum.

Tsunami Memorial Garden - by the Tia and Millie Sunflower Bar; a beautiful place for quiet contemplation and paying one's respects to the victims of the recent tragedy.

Phi Phi Don This island is the largest of the 6 Phi Phi islands and consists of two main sections. It is on Ton Sai where the original inhabitants settled and is now the home of the main accommodation area. Phi Phi Don is quite stunning and has earned the title of one of the most fantastic islands in the world. Nowadays though, with development, the beaches have had to pay a cost and so they’re not quite as spectacular as they were in the days of yesteryear. The landscape however, can never be ruined.

Phi Phi Le The second largest of the Phi Phi Islands is extremely beautiful, and pristine, but authorities in charge do not allow visitors to stay overnight. Besides the beach, other attractions include the Phaya Naak Cave with its prehistoric paintings and edible-nest swiftlets.

Yao Beach - Phi Phi Don Yao Beach, just south of Ton Sai, offers visitors some fantastic views, scenery and coral reefs for snorkeling and scuba diving. This small place is packed out however, with places to stay and so some people do complain that the vicinity has been rather over developed. You can get there either by walking from Ton Sai or taking a long-tail boat.

Lanti Beach - Phi Phi Don Next door to Yao Beach, Lanti Beach is very similar in many regards with its great scenery and coral reefs. You can get there on foot.

Hin Khao Beach - Phi Phi Don This beach is extremely quiet and can only be reached on foot.

Ton Sai Bay - Phi Phi Don Ao Ton Sai is where most of the action is; be it restaurants, bars, hotels or guesthouses. Most tourists stay at Ton Sai Bay because of the convenience. Even though it isn’t the most beautiful place on Phi Phi, it is still impressive.

Laem Tong, Phi Phi Don Laem Thong, located at the very north of the island offers visitors and lovely quite beach with exhilarating scenery. Accommodation on Laem Thong is aimed at higher spending tourists.
Yung Island This island just north of Phi Phi Don has a rocky beach and some coral.

Pai Island Not far from Yung Island is Pai Island. On the northern and eastern sides of the island are sandy beaches.

Other Attractions

Ko Pida Nok Besides an abundance of pretty coral, this island is home to plentiful marine life including: leopard sharks, turtles and moray eels. This island is popular with divers.

Ko Pida Nai Just up from Pida Nok is Pida Nai. Like its sister island, it is a good place for diving.

Shark Point (Hin Bida) Shark Point is a marine sanctuary with a reef that comprises of three pinnacles. The largest of which actually breaks the surface appearing as a barren rock outcropping. The reef is home to a delightful abundance of tropical, colorful soft corals and vibrant sea fans that decorate the limestone pinnacles.

Garang Heng - Garang Heng is a small submerged reef just east of Phi Phi Le. It offers healthy reef with anemones, soft corals and even sharks.

Maya Bay Maya Bay has arguably Phi Phi’s most fantastic beach and was the location for the movie The Beach (Leonardo DiCaprio) in 1998. The bay also has superb marine life and is a favourite spot for experienced divers.

Wang Long This site is well known for its underwater cave systems and is only recommended for experienced divers. The caves tunnel into the rock face in two places and open out into a larger cave where surfacing is possible.

King Cruiser Wreck A popular and perhaps the best dive site off Ko Phi Phi is King Cruiser which claim remnants of a passenger ship which sunk in 1997 after it hit the Anemone reef. The Anemone reef is in itself a unique dive site with a massive limestone pinnacle which soars 30 meters from the seabed to just 4 meters beneath the surface. The site is well-known for its abundance of sea anemones that cling to every surface while attracting enormous schools of fish. Different types of fish to be seen include: tropicals, snappers, groupers and colorful clown fish, along with larger game-fish like tuna and barracuda as well as the occasional leopard shark.

Hin Dot These submerged pinnacles, often called Chimney Rock, are located just to the south of Phi Phi Don. The formation drops to a depth of 30 meters and has several coral shelves for exploration upon your gradual ascent. Nurse sharks can occasionally be found here.

Lohsamah Bay The bay is popular for night-time divers. It has a sandy bottom with oysters and clams and patches of brain coral for nocturnal reef critters to hide amongst.. There is a spectacular 15 meter deep canyon just wide enough for single file swimming on the eastern side.

Hin Pae This is a relatively shallow dive site - 10 to 15 meters deep. Its shallow depth offers excellent snorkeling. Its soft and hard coral provide shelter for a rich variety of coral fish. Crabs, lobsters, angelfish, groupers, snappers and surgeonfish are also residents of this area.

Places To Eat In Sukhumvit Road

There is a huge selection of places to eat in and around Sukhumvit and its side sois, although prices tend to be on the high side by Thai standards. With practically every cuisine in the world represented, this is the place to break your phad thai diet and sample some of the best Japanese, Lebanese, or Indian food you will ever eat.

Budget Eateries

Took Lae Dee, inside the Foodland Supermarket, Sukhumvit Soi 5 (Nana BTS Station) is a Bangkok institution. Imagine a long bar counter, only with chefs and food instead of bartenders and drinks, and a colorful cast of characters thanks to Nana Plaza across the street. The name literally means Cheap and Good and indeed basic fried rice starts at 40 baht, but the cheap Western dishes, many less than 100 baht, are what makes this place popular. The American breakfast (two eggs, ham, bacon or sausage, juice, toast, coffee) in particular is a steal at 47 baht between 06:00-09:00, or 58 baht at any other time.

Hong Kong Noodle, Soi 10 Siam Square. Serves up cheap and tasty wonton noodles (30 baht), a selection of dim sum (20-30 baht) and more Cantonese favorites in modern if utilitarian surroundings complete with air con, table service, etc. Excellent value. Open 10:00-22:00.

Soi 38. Under Thong Lo BTS Station, opposite Sukhumvit Soi 55. Not a restaurant in itself, but you'll get the best street food in Bangkok. Just sit at a table and order whatever you like from the numerous foodstalls (they'll figure out the bill for you). You can find the most delicious mango & sticky rice (khao niow ma muang) in town.

Between Soi 1 and Soi 3. A set of street food stalls with the best one furthest from the street. Good things to order include "Crispy fish in Chili Sauce", Tom Yum Soup and any of their Thai salads (such as mixed seafood salad). Also any Chinese-style fried vegetables is also delicious.

Food Courts

If you want cheap food and air-conditioning, head into the upper-floor food court of any department store. Most food courts use some variation of a coupon system; unused coupons are always refunded. Some of the better ones include:

Big C, Ratchadamri, next to Narayana Phand, 5th floor. New, bright, airy and very cheap with mostly Thai dishes as low as 20 baht. Payment with a stored-value card.

MBK, spacious fifth floor "The Fifth" food court was recently refurbished, has an assortment of Western, Asian, halal, and vegetarian dishes from 50 baht (electronic card system, pay as you leave). The sixth floor food court is cheap (less than 50 baht per serving) and popular but noisy, and serves mostly Thai food (pay by coupon).

FoodLoft, 7F Central Chidlom (connected to Chidlom BTS Station) [18]. Large and popular, a wide selection of food (Thai, Japanese, Chinese, Italian, Indian, Vietnamese) but fairly expensive with most dishes closer to 100 baht. You receive a 1000 baht token on entry and pay for what you've used on exiting.

Garden Kitchen, 1F Central Chidlom. Hidden behind the TOPS Supermarket in the same building as the FoodLoft, offers Thai fare (and English menus) at much cheaper prices (20-30 baht).

Emporium, 5F. Comparatively small and hidden behind the other restaurants, but cheap and often packed - at peak hours it's difficult to get a seat if you're alone. Pay by coupon, but the prices have been increasing over the past year.

Thai Restaurants

Kinnaree located in Sukhumvit Soi 8, about 150 meters inside the soi on the left. Short walk from Skytrain BTS Nana station. Very nice Thai ambience and decoration, great in the evening. Lounge bar and private rooms upstairs. A la carte main courses in the 200-400 Baht range. Different set lunch menus reasonably priced. Food excellent including items difficult to find in other places. Some dishes could be more spicy by Thai standards.

Once Upon A Time, 32 Petchaburi Soi 17, 02-252-8629. In a dubious-looking alley opposite Pantip Plaza, but worth hunting down despite the unlikely location. The restaurant is in an old Thai house with a garden, filled with photos of classical Thai film stars, and serves very good Thai food. Check out the special rooms upstairs on your way to the bathroom. Mains 100-200 baht.

Lan Som Tam Nua, also known as Som Tam Paradise, Siam Square Soi 4. If Thai food isn't spicy enough or you have yet to sample som tam (raw papaya salad), check out this trendy yet very friendly and very Thai restaurant specializing in northern Isaan food. For the full-on Isaan experience, order raw mango salad (ตำมะม่วง tam ma-muang), spicy pork salad (ลาบหมู laap muu), grilled chicken (ไก่ทอด kai thot) and sticky rice (ข้าวเหนียว khao nio) - which will cost less than 150 baht per head. No English menu, but the staff are glad to help. Warning: This is real Isaan food and thus very spicy!

Baan Khanitha, at 36/1 Sukhumvit Soi 23 (Asoke BTS Station). Well-known if mildly touristy restaurant in an old Thai house, the primary concession to Western tastes being the lack of chili. On the expensive side with most mains (esp. seafood) in the 200-400 baht range, but the food is generally excellent and the presentation spot-on. Best known for their pomelo salad and red curry with duck.

Cabbages and Condoms, 6 Sukhumvit Soi 12 (between Nana & Asoke BTS Stations). Run by Thailand's Population and Community Development Association, the odd name referring to the founder's belief that condoms should be as cheap as veggies; and no prizes for guessing what you'll get after dinner instead of an after-dinner mint. The food is competent but toned down for the foreign palate. Mains 150-300 Baht

Lemongrass, 5 Sukhumvit Soi 24. A very good if slightly expat-oriented Thai restaurant. Pomelo salad and tom yam kung (ต้มยำกุ้ง) are both excellent.

Food Centre Soi 5 (Nana BTS Station). Simple, well visited restaurant serving Thai and Western food. Thai dishes are reasonably original, with little concession to the Western taste. Rapid service. Main dishes around 100 baht.

Ruen Mallika, 189 Sukhumvit Soi 22. A very good in an "antique" Thai house with a leafy outdoor section. The menu is a huge picture book which should help in ordering. One thing to watch out is that it is actually not on Soi 22, it is in a little street off 22, take a right at the 7/11 when you are heading from Sukhumvit towards Rama IV and it is about 200-300m on your right. The staff are very friendly and wear traditional Thai outfits to complete the ambiance.

Fusion Restaurants

For Thai food with a twist, the hip districts of Siam Square and the H1 complex on Thong Lo (Sukhumvit Soi 55) are the best places to go hunting.

Bed Supperclub, 26 Soi 11 Sukhumvit, tel. 2651 3537. One of Bangkok's trendiest bar/club/restaurants with a sparsely minimalistic yet jaw-dropping decor. Visiting on weekends is recommended, as you'll be treated to a 4-course surprise meal and a weekly-changing floor show. Reservations are essential (by telephone or online), as only a single serving is served nightly at 21:00; be sure to request a bed and arrive at least 30 minutes early. Dietary restrictions can be catered for if informed in advance. But the bill for all this is steep: the 4-course meal will set you back 1750 baht plus drinks at around 200 baht a pop.

Greyhound Cafe, Emporium 2F (Phrom Phong BTS Station) and also Central Chidlom 2F (Chid Lom BTS Station). An extremely modern restaurant of concrete and brushed steel, offering a fusionesque menu of food ranging from authentic Thai to Italian pasta to Elvis burgers. Mains usually 100 baht+, although lunch sets are quite cheap.

Holy Pizza, Soi 7 Siam Square, 2654 6373. Siam Square at its best: hip, irreverent and innovative, with Thai pop art on the walls and thin-crust Italian pizza married to ingredients that would make the Pope blanch. Try the fairly conservative Vatican's Choice (mozzarella, Parma ham, rocket leaves; 240 baht), or get more experimental with chicken larb pizza.

Indian Restaurants

Indian Host, 30 Soi Sukhumvit 22 (Next to Grande Mercure Hotel), ☎ 02 2601115. Open 11:30 am to 11:30 pm. Contemporary North Indian Cuisine and Indo-Chinese Fusion. The tender lamb Raan is their signature dish.

Rang Mahal, 26F Rembrandt Hotel, 19 Sukhumvit Soi 18 +66 2-261-7100. Bangkok's best Indian restaurant, offering world-class Mughal (North Indian) food in surroundings fit for a maharaja. Fairly expensive (well over 500 baht per head), but the all-you-can-eat Sunday champagne brunch buffet at 499 baht is a steal. This 26th floor restaurant also offers great views of Bangkok, call ahead for reservations and request a window view.

Akhbar's, Soi 3 Indian and Pakistani food

INDUS, Soi 26 Indian Cusine "http://www.indusbangkok.com" A spectacular view as you enter the candle lit path into the restaraunt. You would feel like you are in a real Indian Palace of the Indus Valley. Get seated in the room with exceptional decorations. The food is mainly Indian and a wide range of spicy Indian tastes. An impressive list of vegetarian menu as also available. Relax and dine with some famous wines around the world as you chill out in the indus bar with cool music. Go outside, experiencing an amazing world of your own, not even noticing it is right here in downtown bangkok. Recommemded to reserve first through phone. Come check it out as you wouldn't want to miss this unique place.

Middle Eastern Restaurants

Soi 3 and Soi 3/1, a short walk from Nana BTS Station, is known as Soi Arab for the heavy concentration of Middle Eastern businesses in the area; in some spots you will see more signs in Arabic than in Thai! Thanks to a demanding clientele and heavy competition, the food here is some of the best this side of Lebanon.

Al Ferdoss, 1F Schiller's Inn, 77/1-3 Sukhumvit Soi 3/1. It may have the ambience of a motel lobby (which it pretty much is), but the food here is amazing. Dips and salads (hummus, tabbouleh, falafel, etc) 80 baht a pop, kebabs 130 baht and up, and best of all is the excellent oven-fresh naan. Air-con indoors, but move outside for mint tea and some puffs of the shisha (water pipe).

Beirut Restaurant, Ploenchit Center B1F, Soi 2 Sukhumvit. In an unlikely location next to a supermarket in an otherwise nearly desolate shopping mall, Beirut gets negative points for ambience but serves up very good Middle Eastern fare. Basic shwarma in a pita less than 100 baht, set meals 220 baht and up.

Shahrazad, 6/8 Sukhumvit Road Soi 3/1 (Phone 02251 3666) Great Middle Eastern, Malaysian and Indian food.

Sukhumvit Road

Sukhumvit road is the center of modern day Bangkok, and this is where all the action is. From the most modern and huge shopping malls, to the most fashionable restaurants and street food joints, to sleazy message parlours, plenty of hotels, internet parlors and much more, Sukhumvit is evrything for everyone.

Sukhumvit is also among the longest roads not only in Thailand, but anywhere in the world. Towards the west end you have Ploenchit Road and Rama I Road, but to the east it runs most of the way to the Cambodian border.

What to see:

Siam Square (Siam BTS Station) would like to be the Times Square of Bangkok, and it does a pretty good job. Despite the name, this is in fact a warren of small sois filled with tiny shops and restaurants, mostly catering to upper class Thais, shopping-spree Malaysians, and working ex-pats. If you're not up for a trip to the Gap or a pink martini, it's still worth a visit just to see Bangkok-of-the-Future. The four movie theaters in the area are a good night out. You get a few hours in a plush theatre house - complete with air-con and assigned seats (170/190 baht). Hollywood and Asian blockbusters are featured nightly, all with the mandatory standing ovation to the King.

Malls

Central World Plaza corner of Rama I and Ratchaprarop (Chidlom BTS Station). Formerly the World Trade Center, this reopened in 2006 after a massive expansion and renovation, and is now the only mall in Bangkok that can give the Paragon a run for the money in both swank and size. Ice skating rink and a multiplex on the top floor, and contains large Isetan and Zen department stores.

Emporium Shopping Center, Sukhumvit Soi 24 (Phrom Phong BTS Station) is the top competitor to Gaysorn Plaza, with lower floors dedicated to brands like Louis Vuitton and Rolex, but (unlike Gaysorn) it has more affordably priced goods on the upper levels. Emporium also has a popular food court and a good selection of restaurants on the 5th floor. Go to the cinema on the top floor and you will find an amazing private library centered around design. You can get a free day pass. Spend the day reading amazing books, or just using the internet. Bring your passport.

Mahboonkrong, or just MBK (National Stadium BTS Station) is a vast and always packed mall full of tiny stalls (2500 of them, to be exact) selling, well, everything. There's a heavy emphasis on clothing, especially the cheap and trendy teen type, but the floor devoted to electronics is Bangkok's best place to buy a mobile phone, MP3/4 player, digital camera and much much more. Gold, furniture and Thai, Asian & Western food and a section of the 6th floor has been dedicated to handicrafts and souvenirs. Don't miss the dried fruits and Chinese-style snacks like pork floss at Champ on the 4th floor, near the central escalator. The top floor has movie theatres and restaurants, and there's a large Tokyu department store bolted on the north side facing the BTS station. MBK is just across the street from Siam Square and has a connecting walkway through the perennially crowded Bonanza Center, which offers more of the same.

Narayana Phand, President Tower Arcade (next to Intercontinental Hotel), 973 Ploenchit Road, A Thai handicraft center run by the government, offering a wide array of traditional crafts. Prices are fairly high and not negotiable, but clearly marked, so this is a good place to see what's on offer and find out baseline prices before hitting the markets. Open daily 10 AM-9 PM. Note: Narayana Phand's flagship store on Ratchadamri Rd was unceremoniously demolished in 2008, and it has now relocated to a smaller location in a shopping mall.

Siam Paragon (Siam BTS Station). Incredibly massive shopping mall right at the heart of Bangkok, anchored by the Paragon department store and also featuring the Siam Ocean World Siam Ocean World aquarium, the largest in South-East Asia. The fourth floor has a very good (if pricey) selection of modern Thai arts and crafts, as well as a large Kinokuniya bookstore. Great eating options in the basement, including a gourmet supermarket, two food courts and a canal-lined strip of fancy restaurants.

Street market on Sukhumvit, between Sois 1 and 20, offers many of the same items as the Patpong night market (although usually at somewhat better prices). Haggling is generally expected. Many tailor shops can be found here.

Chatuchak Weekend Market

Although many go to Singapore, but the fact is that Bangkok is a great place for shopping as well. In fact the Chatuchak weekend market in the city is the biggest market in the world. Also known as JJ, Chatuchak is huge (more than 35 acres or 1.13 km²) and there are in excess of 15,000 stalls. According to estimates, anywhere between 200,000 to 300,000 visitors visit the market daily during the weekend. The published opening hours for the market are from 9.00am to 6.00pm on Saturday and Sunday, though many of the stalls actually open sometime between 9.00am and 10.00am and close around sunset.

If bargain-hunting gives you an adrenalin rush, get ready for a head-spinning, earth-moving experience. Conquering this massive market is no easy feat though. The reward for taking a lot of patience along - together with a bottle of water is that you can find pretty much anything here. The range of products on sale is extensive, and includes household accessories, handicrafts, religious artifacts, art, antiques, live animals (which unfortunately are frequently caged in cruel conditions), books, music, clothes, food, plants and flowers and much more. Get a free map from one of the information kiosks and (try to) plan your adventure through the never-ending maze of crowded, narrow alleys.

How to reach the market: Take the skytrain (BTS) to Mo Chit station and exit down the right-hand stairs, follow the crowd for a five-minute walk, and you're there.