Mid-range · 6-hour walk · Bangkok
Rattanakosin and the river in six hours
The Grand Palace and the reclining Buddha, the ferry across to Wat Arun, then the flower market and Chinatown.
The royal island is where Bangkok started and almost everything on it is within twenty minutes on foot, which matters because walking anywhere else in this city is unpleasant. Dress for the palace or you will be turned away: covered shoulders, covered knees, no exceptions and no sympathy. Start at eight; by eleven the courtyards are forty degrees with no shade.
The route, stop by stop
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Grand Palace
Covered shoulders and knees, enforced at the gate. The Emerald Buddha in the temple inside is the most revered object in Thailand.
90 min here Walk here → -
Wat Pho
The 46 m reclining Buddha, and the country's first university. The massage school inside still teaches and still takes walk-ins.
60 min here Walk here → -
Wat Arun
Arrive by ferry from the previous stop
The cross-river ferry from Tha Tien pier costs a few baht and takes four minutes. Climb the central prang for the view back.
45 min here Walk here → -
Pak Khlong Talat
Arrive by ferry from the previous stop
Bangkok's flower market, busiest between midnight and dawn but never actually closed. Marigold garlands by the thousand.
30 min here Walk here → -
Yaowarat
Chinatown, and the best street food in the city after dark. Gold shops by day, grills on the pavement by night.
45 min here Walk here →
More in Bangkok
Every walking route in Bangkok, or the full Bangkok guide for where to stay and what a day costs.