Bangkok in 2 Days: everything you need to know
Bangkok is a city full of fun activities and traditions. Although it may seem difficult, it is possible to enjoy most of these things in just two days!
Bangkok, thailand |©Chang Ju Wu
When you travel to Bangkok you will probably not know where to start your tour, especially if you only have two days to enjoy the Thai capital. Don't worry! Following a well-planned itinerary you will be able to see and do the best things this city has to offer.
Among the activities you cannot miss are visits to temples and tours around the city. You can also experience the city from the heights of one of the tallest skyscrapers in Thailand. You can also visit the Chao Phraya River and live an unforgettable night. What are you waiting for to start this adventure?
Day 1: Tour of the temples of Bangkok
To enjoy Bangkok from the first day, it is best to plan in advance everything concerning your arrival. I suggest you book a hotel room or an inn near Thanon Khao Road, as it is itself a tourist attraction. I also recommend hiring a transfer service from the airport so that you can get to your hotel as quickly as possible.
Early in the morning you can get ready to leave leaving your luggage safely and enjoying a good breakfast. Usually hotels include this service in the reservation. If this is not your case, don't worry, in Bangkok you will find food stalls and restaurants everywhere.
Visit Khao San Street
Whether or not you stay near Khao San Street, it is an ideal place to start getting to know the city. You can even leave your hotel early and have breakfast here. This street is characterized for being very active and having a great variety of stores where you can have breakfast or buy curious objects. Take a souvenir and continue touring the street!
To make this visit much more entertaining, I suggest you take a bike tour. In that case you will need to meet with your guide and your group. This way you will receive a bike, a helmet and general directions to start the tour. Some guides include other destinations after this street for you to explore much more.
Details of interest
- Location: Khaosan Rd, Khwaeng Talat Yot, Khet Phra Nakhon, Krung Thep Maha Nakhon 10200, Thailand.
- Price: free or paid tour depending on whether the tour is guided or unguided. In that case the average cost is 50 €.
- Hours: you can go during the day and even at night, as the nightlife is very active.
Visit the Grand Palace
The Grand Palace is one of the most prominent and visited tourist attractions in Bangkok. From Khao San Road you can walk there in 10 minutes. Please note that the average cost of admission to this site is 15 €. When you arrive here, it will probably be 11 am, so you will have time to explore it before lunch.
The Grand Palace is a large complex of buildings including the enigmatic Temple of the Emerald Buddha. This is one of the most important temples in Bangkok and is usually kept closed when the royal family uses it for private ceremonies. Compared to others, this temple is small, so don't be surprised when you see it.
On your tour you will also come across the Royal Thai Coin and Decoration Pavilion and the Chakri Mahat Prasat Palace. Take advantage of all the time to explore all the facilities, take pictures and learn about this wonderful culture.
By the time you finish the entire tour, it will probably be almost two in the afternoon and you will probably be hungry. Get ready for a Thai-style lunch at the Pad Thai Kratong Tong restaurant to recharge your energy to continue exploring Bangkok!
Details of interest
- Location: Phra Borom Maha Ratchawang, Phra Nakhon, Bangkok, Thailand.
- Price: approximately 15 €.
- Hours: Open daily from 8:30 am to 2 pm.
Continue exploring temples: visit Wat Pho and Wat Arun
Bangkok is full of impressive temples worth exploring. One of them is Wat Pho, also known as the temple of the Reclining Buddha. You can get there walking from the Grand Palace, as it is just a few meters away.
In order to enter Wat Pho, you must buy a ticket which has an average cost of 3 €. When you finally enter the temple you will be surprised to see a large statue of 45 meters long and 15 meters high. This figure symbolizes the death of Buddha. I suggest you to observe very well the figure, even his feet, as it has details that are important to appreciate.
At the end of this visit, you can continue with a visit to the Wat Arun temple. Note that you must take a boat to visit it. The average cost of this trip is 1 € or even less. The boat will drop you off right in front of this temple. To enter, you must pay around 2 €.
Inside the Wat Arun temple, also known as the Temple of Dawn, you can admire its impressive architecture. The highlight is its central prang or tower in Khmer style. You can also walk up steep steps leading to two 77-meter-high terraces.
Details of interest
- Location: Wat Pho is located in Phra Nakhon and Wat Arun in Bangkok Yai.
- Price: about 3 € the entrance to the temples.
- Opening hours: from 8 am to about 6 pm.
Dinner cruise on the Chao Phraya River
When you finish your tour of the temples of Bangkok, it will be already six o'clock in the evening. This is the ideal time to take one of the best dinner cruises in Bangkok on the Chao Phraya River. From the boat you will have a beautiful view of the city and see the temples and buildings illuminated, all a postcard worthy landscape!
During the cruise you will enjoy a dinner that may vary depending on the type of cruise you take. It can be an international dinner or just Thai food, you can choose! You can also enjoy the drinks of your choice and toast with your fellow passengers.
Another entertaining activity on these cruises are the cultural shows. You may come across a traditional dance or a concert presented by local artists. The music will be the ideal accompaniment to this quiet ride on the waters of the Chao Phraya River. This way you will end your first day in Bangkok on a high note.
Day 2: walk through Jim Thompson's house, the temple of the Golden Mount, Chinatown and the Golden Buddha
On your second day visiting Bangkok I recommend you to prepare yourself with a good breakfast at your hotel to save some time. This will be a busy day, as you will have to walk long distances, but don't worry, you will have a great time! For this day I suggest visiting the Temple of the Golden Mount, the Jim Thompson House, Chinatown and other attractions.
Note that on the first day it was not necessary to take public transportation, but on the second day you will need it. I suggest that you take certain precautions in this regard, such as having cash on hand and a map to help you find your way around more easily. This way you will be able to get to the stops more quickly and make the most of your time.
Visit the Temple of the Golden Mount and the Jim Thompson House
The Golden Mount temple is located on top of a hill that allows you to have a beautiful and wide view of the whole of Bangkok. The entrance to the temple has an average cost of 2 €. In order to get there, you have to walk a long way - don't forget to wear comfortable shoes and bring a bottle of water!
Please note that there are about 300 steps that wind around the hill. You will be able to climb in about 15 minutes or less. On your way up, you will be able to play the gongs along the way to attract good luck. You will also see beautiful waterfalls and beautifully manicured vegetation, so take your pictures!
After spending most of the morning on the Golden Mountain, you can head to the Jim Thompson House around 11 am. To get there, in case you want to take public transportation, you will have to walk to the Democracy Monument stop (Opposite Suksapan). There you will take bus 15 AC: The Mall Thapra - Banglamphu.
This trip will take you about 40 minutes. You should get off at the Bangkok Art And Culture Centre stop and then walk five minutes or more to the Jim Thompson House. Please note that the entrance fee to this site is approximately €5. If you are an art lover, you will love to see this great collection of art collected by the American Jim Thompson.
Details of interest
- Location: the Temple of the Golden Mount is located at Pom Prap Sattru Phai. The Jim Thompson House is located in Pathum Wan.
- Price: between the two tourist attractions the cost is 7 €.
- Opening hours: the Temple of the Golden Mount is open from 9 am to 5 pm. The Jim Thompson House is open from 10 am to 6 pm.
Bangkok Chinatown
When you travel to Bangkok you can not only enjoy Thai culture, but also other Asian cultures. One of them is the Chinese culture, and the best place where you can experience it is the Chinatown of Bangkok. To get there from Jim Thompson House you will have to walk to the Opposite Mbk stop.
When bus 21 REG: Wat Khu Sang - Chulalongkorn University arrives, you will have to get on and travel 10 minutes to the Soi Makham stop. From there you will only have to walk about five minutes until you reach the Chinatown entrance. At this point of the journey you will probably be very hungry! Don't worry, the Tang Jai Yoo restaurant will be waiting for you to order one of their best dishes.
After lunch you can continue with a tour of Bangkok's Chinatown. You will find a variety of curious stores and if you travel during Chinese New Year, you will see red and gold lantern decorations, it's beautiful!
Visit the Golden Buddha
When it's about four o'clock in the afternoon, you can head to the Temple of the Golden Buddha. This site is located just a few minutes from Chinatown, so you'll get there very quickly. To enter you will need to buy an entrance fee of about 2 €. This way you can admire the most famous and important solid gold statue in the world.
When you enter the temple where this statue is located, you will appreciate its three meters high. The history of this sculpture is very particular, since during the invasion of the Burmese it was covered with stucco. In this way it went unnoticed, thus avoiding its theft or destruction. It took many years before its nature was discovered.
Details of interest
- Location: Samphanthawong, Bangkok 10100, Thailand.
- Price: about 2 €.
- Hours: from 8 am to 5 pm.
Visit a skyscraper and admire Bangkok's night from above
After your visit to the Golden Buddha, night will have fallen, but the fun continues! The last stop will be at one of the best skyscrapers in Bangkok, the famous King Power MahaNakhon. To get there you must go to the Kwong Siew Hospital stop, Chalerm Buri and take the bus to Neilson Hays Library. From there you will have to walk about 15 minutes to the building.
You will be able to identify this building by its great height. Measuring around 314 meters and 79 floors, it is the tallest building in Thailand! In addition, it has a square shape and an iconic spiral of cubic surfaces that is impressive. During your visit, the first destination will be the 74th floor, where you will find an observation deck where you can have a 360 ° view.
The next stop may be on the 78th floor where there is a glass walkway 310 meters above the ground, do you dare to walk on it? It will certainly be a challenge if you are afraid of heights. You can enjoy all this if you buy a ticket of 20 €. If you travel with children to Bangkok the entrance for them will have an average price of 10 €.
In this skyscraper the fun is not only its incredible viewpoint, but the other stores it has. On this site is the Bangkok Edition Boutique Hotel. You can choose to stay there or just enjoy the other attractions such as its luxury bar and restaurant.
Details of interest
- Price: about 20 € for adult tickets and 10 € for children's tickets.
- Hours: from 10 a.m. to 12 a.m.
- Location: Narathiwat Ratchanakharin Road, Bang Rak, Bangkok, Thailand.
How to get around Bangkok?
In Bangkok you can use public transport to move around easily. The company that provides this service is Bangkok Mass Transit Authority. This system offers 65 lines distributed all over the city.
Please note that the approximate cost of a trip is 1 €. If the bus offers more amenities, the price may increase. Some trips may have an approximate cost of 5 €. You can pay for your trip each time you get on the bus.
If you want to travel long distances or you are traveling to the outskirts of Bangkok, it is best to ask for a cab or a tuk tuk. Another very good option is to travel in a private car driven by a professional local guide. This way you can quickly get to the places you prefer without worrying about finding the right address.
Tips during a visit to Bangkok
Before traveling to the capital of Thailand, I recommend you to check what activities you want to do. If these depend a lot on the weather or the month, I suggest you to choose according to the best weather to travel to Bangkok according to your preferences. Besides the temperature, you can be guided by the festivals and celebrations of the season.
On the other hand, I suggest you always dress modestly when visiting a temple. It is not allowed to wear shorts or sleeveless shirts. Also, I recommend you always wear sunscreen during your tours.