Bangkok on $25, $100 or $400 a day

Wat Phra Kaew + Grand Palace (฿500 — the only expensive must-do in Bangkok, non-negotiable). Dress code: shoulders and knees covered. Arrive at 8:30am when it opens. Walk to Wat Pho (฿200) for the giant reclining Buddha and a traditional Thai massage (฿260/hour — the cheapest and most authentic in the city).

Chao Phraya Express Boat to Wat Arun (฿100 return). The wat is stunning from across the river and from inside. Walk back along the riverside promenade. Stop at Pak Khlong Talat (flower market, free) on the way.

Dinner in Banglamphu: khao man gai (poached chicken rice) at a street stall for ฿60. Chang beer from a 7-Eleven for ฿50. Walk Khao San Road once for the experience (you don't have to stay).

Chatuchak Weekend Market (Saturday/Sunday only — 15,000 stalls, the largest market in the world, free entry). Vintage clothes, plants, street food, ceramics, and things you didn't know you needed. Arrive at 10am before it gets unbearably hot.

If not a weekend: Jim Thompson House (~฿200) — the teak mansion and Thai silk business of the American who disappeared in Malaysia in 1967. Then MBK Center for cheap electronics or Siam Square for street food.

Chinatown at night: walk Yaowarat Road from 7pm. Grilled prawns at a seafood restaurant (฿150–250/dish). Kuay teow reua (boat noodles, ฿30 per bowl) from a street cart. A fresh coconut for ฿40.

Long-tail boat from Banglamphu pier to the Khlong Bang Luang floating market (฿50 each way by canal boat). Less touristy than Damnoen Saduak, genuinely atmospheric, free to wander. Artists and galleries have colonized the old riverside houses.

Return to the city. Lumpini Park (free) for an afternoon rest and watching monitor lizards in the lake. Traditional Thai massage in the Silom area (฿250–350/hour at a proper parlor, not a "massage" parlor).

Final dinner on the Chao Phraya river: Yok Yor Marina restaurant for seafood with a view (฿400–600 for a full meal). Or back to Yaowarat for mango sticky rice (฿80) and a final Chang.

Grand Palace and Wat Phra Kaew (฿500, worth every baht). Then Wat Pho (฿200) for the reclining Buddha and a proper 60-minute traditional massage (฿420). Cross the river to Wat Arun by ferry (฿5).

Lunch at Supanniga Eating Room in the riverside area — refined Thai classics in a beautiful old house, ฿400–600. Jim Thompson House tour (฿200) in the afternoon. Walk the National Museum if time allows.

Rooftop at Arun Residence (opposite Wat Arun — the view of the illuminated temple from river level is the best in Bangkok). Dinner at the same property's restaurant (฿600–1,000). Grab back to hotel.

MOCA Bangkok (Museum of Contemporary Art, ฿250) — excellent collection of Thai modern art. Then Chatuchak or the Or Tor Kor market (the premium food market next to Chatuchak — the best fruits, spices, and prepared foods in Thailand).

BTS to Thonglor: Bangkok's most stylish street. Lunch at a Thai restaurant in the area (฿350–500). Browse the boutiques and concept stores. Massage at one of the upscale spas (฿700–1,200 for 90 minutes).

Khao San Road for a beer at sunset (the chaos is entertaining when you're not sleeping there). Then Grab to the Asiatique riverfront night market — restaurants, shops, a Ferris wheel, river views. Dinner here at ฿500–700.

Minivan from Victory Monument to Ayutthaya (฿80 each way, 90 minutes). The ancient capital of Siam: ruined temples with Buddha heads entwined in tree roots, giant prangs, and almost no crowds if you arrive before 10am. Rent a bicycle (฿60/day) to cover the park.

Lunch at a riverside Ayutthaya restaurant (฿250–400). Return via the train (฿20 — the slowest but most atmospheric option, 2 hours). The countryside view from the windows is unexpectedly beautiful.

Back in Bangkok: dinner in Silom or Sathorn — Eat Me restaurant for creative international food (฿600–900), or a classic Thai at Baan Khanitha.

Private long-tail boat tour of the Bangkok klongs (canals) at 7am — before the heat, before the groups. The canals behind Rattanakosin reveal wooden stilt houses, spirit house shrines, and a Bangkok that hasn't changed in 50 years. Private guide explains the temple architecture.

Lunch at Nahm (David Thompson's landmark Thai restaurant — genuine royal Thai cooking, ฿2,000–3,000). Afternoon private Thai cooking class at a riverside house: markets visit, lesson, sit-down lunch.

Lebua Sky Bar at sunset (Condom-Dome bar is the same building, cheaper). Dinner at Mezzaluna (2 Michelin stars, 65th floor, panoramic Bangkok) or Sorn (southern Thai cuisine, 2 Michelin stars). ฿5,000–8,000 with wine.

Sunrise cruise on a private rice barge with breakfast — the Chao Phraya in morning light, with monks receiving alms at riverside temples, is one of Southeast Asia's great travel experiences. The Mandarin Oriental organizes these.

The Artist's House in Thonburi (by longtail) — a traditional Thai puppet theater in a 200-year-old canal house. Then the Museum of Siam (฿300) for the best English-language presentation of Thai history. Lunch at Supanniga Eating Room.

Dinner at Le Normandie (Mandarin Oriental Bangkok, 2 Michelin stars) or Elements (Okura Bangkok) — French cuisine in the city that does French cooking better than expected. Traditional massage at the Oriental Spa after dinner.

Full morning at the Mandarin Oriental or Peninsula Bangkok spa: Thai herbal compress massage, scrub, and facial — a 3-hour ritual. Late breakfast on the terrace overlooking the Chao Phraya.

Shopping at Emporium and EmQuartier luxury malls (connected by sky bridge). Or a chauffeured trip to the Chatuchak premium section for unique Thai antiques and silk. Lunch at one of the EmQuartier rooftop restaurants.

Farewell dinner at Bo.lan (sustainable Thai, beloved by chefs worldwide) or Paste (refined Royal Thai court cuisine, 1 Michelin star). The last Thai meal should be the most considered.