Top 10's of Bangkok
An exhilarating cocktail of mesmeric sights, intoxicating aromas and cosmopolitan pleasures, Bangkok's flavours are at first intense. Once you acquire a taste however, you’re hooked! To help you on your way, this Top 10 section compiles countdowns of Bangkok's very finest ingredients: among them, the finest luxury, budget and Skytrain-friendly hotels, the locales that inspire the wildest of romances, the malls and markets that most resemble shopping heaven, and the most happening nights out among the city's hedonists. Each only scratches the surface of this eclectic city (and is by no means definitive) yet they're the perfect way to begin savouring...
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If you have a penchant for lush and plush, enjoy the pampering that comes with silver service, and absolutely insist on the finest things life has to offer while you’re away from home – from the origin of the marble to the thread-count of linen – the Thai capital will not disappoint. All ten of these five-star sanctuaries hold their own against the best in the world. |
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Boutique hotels in Bangkok follow the latest global design trends with snazzy interiors and imported fittings, often in an over-the-top, theatrical style. What binds them all together is a conviction to dazzle guests with a visual feast of design aesthetics and originality – the very things that make them stand out from run-of-the-mill hotels. Take a peek at our top ten contenders for something decidedly different… |
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Doing business in Bangkok is no longer the white-knuckle ride it once was. Lightening the workload are the Skytrain, expressways, underground, new Suvarnabhumi airport – and the business hotels. The best of these feature in the following Top 10. Each one is smart, sophisticated, well-mannered and technologically astute – just like the high-flyers who use them. |
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At best they’re cheap, cheerful and clean; at worst musty, dirty and unfriendly. If that’s what you’ve come to expect from the budget hotel, prepare to be pleasantly shocked by the following Top 10, each costing a little more or less than US$ 50 a night. With everything from swimming pools to thoughtfully-styled interiors, each proves that small luxuries aren’t always expensive. |
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Before 1999, Bangkok was synonymous with traffic and its byproduct, stress. But then something called the Skytrain – a raised, blissfully air-conditioned monorail snaking its way around the city – whizzed on to the transport scene. The traffic didn’t disappear – but it got better, much better. The following Top 10 hotels are the pick of those lucky enough or wealthy enough to be close to it. |
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Our Tours section offers visitors perfectly palatable doses of culture, history or back-to-nature. Each and every excursion offers insight into what makes Bangkok so enticing. In this Top 10 you have the chance to learn about, and experience the best of them. When you've found the tour that you think most captures and reveals the glories of Bangkok, please be so kind as to vote for it. |
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"One Night in Bangkok can make a hard man humble". It’s the old cliché, from the old musical ‘Chess’. What this slogan ignores is the diversity, the fact that Bangkok now registers a strong blip on the global nightlife radar. Raucous, refined or raunchy? Culture, carousing or some clubbing? Forget what you’ve heard, one night in Bangkok can make you not just humble – but happy. |
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Pessimists have long been declaring that romance is dead. A quick glance at our interactive Top 10 Romantic Experiences — Bangkok’s finest love rousing locales — proves them very wrong indeed. From candlelit venues and champagne picnics in Lumpini Park to an overnight cruise on a converted rice barge, these are the perfect places to find cupid’s arrow. |
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Rich with contrasts and contradictions, Bangkok is fertile ground for the strangely beautiful and beautifully strange. Some of these unusual sights like blind street singers, baby elephants and fortune tellers you encounter without even trying. Others are a little harder to find but all the more rewarding for it. With this Top 10 Unusual Sights track down the best of Bangkok's weird and wacky. |
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The shopping experiences available in Bangkok go far beyond a stroll in a mall or a morning spent browsing a market. It’s a day-and-night activity that rivals the best of the West, while giving you a flavour of the cultural uniqueness of the East. Work your way through these ten entirely different experiences, and you'll come to realize why Bangkok is such a famous shopping hub. |
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Bangkok has something to wow every breed of child, be they bookworm, arcade aficionado or the full-of-energy kind. There is just as much fun and adventure to be had for little people, from chasing butterflies and exploring underwater life, to an exciting boat trip on the Chao Phraya River and shrieks at a water park. Parents needn’t despair either: most will also satisfy the child in you. |
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Bangkok began as a small trading centre and port community on the west bank of the Chao Phraya River some 200 years ago. Today, while the city is up to speed with modern times, the grandeur and glory of its illustrious past prevails. Be it the temples, spectacular palaces, world-famous floating market or Chinatown, each of these famous places has an intriguing story to tell. |
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Some are spoken of only in whispers, others take years to discover, a few are outrageously underrated. But one thing unites these Top 10 secrets: all will enhance your enjoyment of this exciting city. Most are door-openers – i.e. places you should visit – but we’ve thrown in a few eye-openers – i.e. curious facts – for good measure. Seize these before the masses do. |
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Touted as Southeast Asia’s gay hub, Bangkok boasts the best – be it fabulous bars and clubs, world-class saunas or inventive go-go boy shows – when it comes to catering to the rainbow crowd. Prepare to be blown away by a variety of fun and decadent delights tailored to all the kings, queens and everything in between in this ‘City of Angels’. |
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You know the sort. “Don’t talk to strangers”, “look both ways when crossing the road”, “always wear clean underwear”. When you’re starting out in life – or a new city – there are a whole heap of tips it pays to remember. Written in a manner that aims to enlighten, not spoon feed, here are our top 10 useful tips for mastering this exciting, but potentially aggravating metropolis. |
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It may be a little bit boisterous and have its share of squalor, but part of Bangkok's charm is its ability to also do glitz and glam. It's not quite up there with Paris or Milan for decadence or numbers of debonair, but the city today bristles with posh, must-be-seen-at venues where you can mingle with the upper echelons of Thai society - the best of which feature in this Top 10. |
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Since Bangkok is choc'a'bloc of places to see and things to do, choosing an activity to fill your day can be a daunting task. Handpicked by the city’s connoisseurs, here are our Bangkok Top Ten Leisure Activities to get you started. From a picnic at Dusit Zoo to people watching at Khao San Road, and decadent afternoon tea, this list encompasses every definition of leisure… |
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Thai food’s profusion of exotic flavours makes it among the most coveted of cuisines. As a walk through Bangkok forcefully reminds, these flavours and fragrances are seemingly inexhaustible. However, we all have to start somewhere. And what better place than this carefully selected Top 10 of Thai Food, spanning everything from staple backpacker favourites to Thai classics. |
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