Ultimate Guide to Bangkok
By Pete | Jan 2022
After many visits to Bangkok, i thought id love to share my Ultimate Guide to Bangkok with you. For a long time Bangkok has been my favourite city in the world and on this trip I thought I would document my top photography locations in Bangkok for you guys to easily find on your adventures.
I first visited this vibrant fast paced city around 10 years ago and my first impressions I wasn’t so keen. Growing up in a small village in the south east of England I wasn’t used to the fast paced city life that Bangkok emmerces you in.
With more visitors than any other city in the world, Bangkok markets itself as the back packing hub of southeast Asia, it has such a diverse feel to it and has a little something for everyone.
I think this was my sixth time in Bangkok and it is one of my favourite places to get lost in.
It doesn’t matter how long your visit is, there never is quite enough time to see everything on that ever growing list. I always find myself saying “I’ll do that next time”.
So the moral of the story is don’t judge a book by its cover!
In this post i will be showing you my 7 best photography spots in bangkok listed below.
- China Town
- Trains of Bangkok
- Hua Lamphong Train Station
- Lebua State Tower & King Power
- Wat Paknam Phasi Charoen
- Wat Arun
- Ancient City & Wat Sampran
WHEN TO VISIT BANGKOK:
Bangkok is a city that is busy all year round. I’ve visited mainly in the months Dec-Feb and also July-Aug and there is nothing that quite prepares you for the humidity in BKK, especially when coming from a chilly place like the U.K.
Thailand is such a vast country that the weather can change quite dramatically from one side to the other, my best advice is to check the best time to visit all areas in Thailand that you want to visit on your trip.
GETTING AROUND:
Bangkok has so many affordable ways to get around depending on your preferences. From my fav Tuk Tuk to a metered taxi, or booking a GRAB which is really easy if you are fed up of haggling for everything that you do.
The trains in BKK are also so cheap and easy. The BTS skytrain/ SRT and Airport Rail Link are simple to navigate and connect the city effortlessly.
We also try to use the water taxi to navigate through the rush hour traffic which can be pretty bad here.
PRO TIP:
Until recently I never used to buy a new sim card on my travels and only rely on wifi. This can be quite limiting as you will always need to stop in a cafe or coffee shop to plan the rest of your day or find out some info on your next destination. My tip would be bring a smartphone with 4G/5G,
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CHINATOWN
Bangkok’s Chinatown is the largest Chinatown in the world, and is a great place to explore for the afternoon.
The maze of small streets and alleyways are great locations for street photography, and there are plenty of small markets and street food stands to take photographs of too.
HOW TO GET THERE :
There’s no skytrain near Chinatown but there is the MRT at Wat Mangkon, and it’s so cheap! Or you can get a Grab/taxi.
BEST TIME TO VISIT:
Anytime.
COST:
Free
PHOTO TIP:
Best time of day to shoot in Chinatown for me is in the evening, all the lights make it come alive, it’s far busier too creating more opportunities for those street photography shots.
TRAINS OF BKK
Photographing the trains in Bangkok has been very popular for quite a while, with photographers like Jord Hammond catching some cool perspectives that were relatively unseen before on social media.
Try to find interesting photo opportunities other than just the train as there is always plenty going on.
HOW TO GET THERE?:
The easiest way to get here for us was a grab taxi. We were based in Chinatown so it made more sense for us. Ask the driver to drop you off in one of the alleys besides Wat Sai station and have your camera at the ready.
There is a BTS line so make sure to check alternative transport if you’re on a budget.
When you get to the rail line we just walked to Chom Throng Station taking photos of everything in between.
BEST TIME TO VISIT:
We turned up late as normal and the sun was very hot so try and make sure you get there early enough so you don’t melt!
COST:
Free.
PRO TIP:
If you have a 4g enabled phone (data) go to Google Maps and click the station at the time you plan to visit, it’ll give you an idea of when the trains are due, which were only a few minutes out for us.
Then all you need to do is just work out which direction they’ll be going in. Pay attention to this as you don’t want to be looking the wrong direction or in the way!
HUA LAMPHONG TRAIN STATION
The Hua Lamphong train station is the oldest train stations in Bangkok and during my visit in February I learnt that the station was due to be closed at anytime.
Our hotel in Chinatown was a 20 minute walk away and I got up for a sunrise stroll to catch that morning light with the hope that the station was still in working order. Luckily although service was very limited, there were still some trains running.
HOW TO GET THERE:
As mentioned above if you are in Chinatown it’s just a short walk away. The station is connected to the MRT underground so there are plenty of options, if you are travelling by road round there, be warned it can get pretty congested.
BEST TIME TO VISIT:
I would recommend visiting earlier in the morning to catch some nice light coming through the big windows.
COST:
None.
PHOTO TIP:
Bring a few lenses as there is plenty of options here. I’d recommend a wide lense like a 24mm or 35mm, 50mm and maybe a zoom for that compressed feel. I took my 70-200 lense.
LEBUA STATE TOWER & KING POWER
The Lebua State Tower, made famous as a film location is the Hangover 2 is a must see if you are visiting bangkok.
On previous visits we’ve popped up for a cocktail or 2 ( Bring smart clothes and shoes) but the best views of the tower itself are across the river at the Icon Siam Mall.
Catch one of the river boats (Free when we visited) and head up to the Starbucks on the 7th floor, grab yourself an iced coffee and check out that amazing skyline view on the terrace.
We had every weather in the hour or so that we were there. You can see the Lebua State Tower and the King Power from here too.
HOW TO GET HERE? :
You could take the river boat like we did from Sathon pier, which requires you to stop at the Saphan Taksin stop. I like to cruise the river as it gives a different vibe to trains and taxis! A far more peaceful experience.
BEST TIME TO VISIT:
If you go to the mall or somewhere to shoot the tower, anytime of day would be good, but late afternoon will get you the best results.
If you go up the tower then go for sunset where you can enjoy nice expensive drinks with some amazing views of the city.
PHOTO TIP:
Bring the longest lense that you own, or borrow one.
WAT PAKNAM PHASI CHAROEN
The newest spot on my list is the giant Buddha.
Set on the east side of the Menam River, I have never visited this location before. It’s Locally known as Wat Paknam Phasi Charoen.
It is 69m tall and construction finished in 2021. It’s visible from a lot of viewpoints across Bangkok.
HOW TO GET THERE?:
The best way to enter the area, is by taking the MRT to Tha Phra. This station has multiple levels and will give you interesting views with the condo’s behind it. Make sure you bring your longest zoom lens! The site is also open for visitors so make sure you go for a closer look.
PRO TIP:
WAT ARUN
We loved visiting the temple and I highly recommend it. But if you want to bag the shots you’ve seen on social media make sure you head to the other side of the river.
There are also some alleyways giving you wonderful street shots with the beautiful Wat Arun temple in the background.
Make sure you arrive late afternoon/early evening to capture the sun setting behind the temple.
HOW TO GET THERE?
We arrived by tuk-tuk, it wasn’t expensive from Chinatown and only took 20-30 mins. You can also get a Grab or a boat from many other places such as the reclining Buddha.
BEST TIME TO VISIT:
COST:
100THB per person.
PRO TIP:
Bring a tripod for some nice long exposure or sharp photos if shooting from across the river in the evening.
Also we arrived a little later to have some food at the Arun View restaurants and as a foodie we were pretty disappointed with the overpriced food on offer, so bag your shots and find somewhere better to eat.
ANCIENT CITY & WAT SAMPRAN
If i’m being honest I had never heard of these places until they popped up on Instagram a few years ago.
The Ancient City is a Thailand shaped park where you can walk through the cultural highlights of the country within a day. Wat Sampran is the temple with the dragon wrapped around it, these make for some spectacular images.
Ultimate Guide to Bangkok
HOW TO GET THERE :
As always there are a couple of ways to get to these locations but for convenience and time restraints I used grab. It wasn’t overly expensive, just make sure to have a lift home as when i got to Wat Sampran there were no Grab drivers in the area so i had to wait a while to jump in a normal taxi.
You can also get the BTS and the Songtaew (pickup taxi/bus) which are cheap as chips and easy to use!
PRO TIP :
For Wat Sampran Head over for sunrise and leave plenty of time to find your spots. I arrived just on time but realised the temple was closed due to the thing that prevented travel for so long.
Ask your driver to wait an hour or so for you as you may struggle getting back.
For the Ancient City I didn’t have time to go in as it was my last day so I got dropped off outside before opening (sunrise) and walked up the road parallel to get some drone shots.
Make sure you get as close as possible as the signal isn’t great around there. I highly recommend making more time for the visit though as i’ve heard only good things.
Disclaimer
Some of the links on this Blog post are affiliate links and i may earn when you click on them. This is at no extra cost to yourself. We hope you find the info helpful, and thanks for reading,
Do you guys have any other photography spots? If you have any to add to my 7 best photography spots in bangkok let me know in the comments.
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