When you plan a trip of a life time to Thailand you should touch down in crazy Bangkok first. There’re 3 reasons, which convinced me right away. Firstly the flights to the capital of Thailand. They’re much cheaper and less time and hustle intense than the ones to any other destination in the country. Secondly it seems, Jet lag doesn’t exist in this city. Bangkok just doesn’t give you the time to even think about it. At last but not least the fact that you’re in the heart of Thailand. Basically you’re at the hub and it’s easy to catch busses, ferries and planes to all parts of the country. Find out why crazy Bangkok is worth more than one visit and it will leave you with your mouth wide open for a loooong time.

Bangkok has us now

I’m sure you watched the film “Hangover- Part II” at least once. The film plays in Bangkok and the sentence “Bangkok has him now.” get said quit a lot. We all may have different ideas about the meaning. After I spent (just) 2 days in the capital I can’t believe how much sense that “saying” actually makes for me now. Funny enough we stayed in the hotel, in which parts of Hangover II were filmed. We watched the movie a while after we booked the hotel and couldn’t believe it’s actually the hotel from the film. Down below I’ll explain the many reasons why we choose the Tower Club at lebua and you should do as well.

What ever you’ll expect crazy Bangkok will excel it

I don’t even know where to start. Bangkok is the biggest city I visited so far. The moment I arrived in this colourful, diverse and crazy city, I completely forgot what my expectations were in the first place. Surely I must have had some kind of expectations or at least some ideas how it could be. But I forgot every single one when I left Suvarnabhumi Airport (the main/ international airport of Bangkok). I felt like Alice in Wonderland. Never before a city had so much to offer.

• 

• 

What ever you expect before arriving here the first time, the ‘City of Angels’ (that’s how the Thai’s are calling their capital) is able to excel all of your expectations in seconds. A 5000 word article still couldn’t describe how diverse and crazy Bangkok is. You definitely need to experience it by yourself!

We would go back there over and over again. And here’s why!

4 Reasons to come back over and over again

SIDE NOTE! Up front there’s just one thing I want to make you aware of! Don’t worry!! It’s just to give you the heads up. I call it the smell of Bangkok!

Not sure about you, but I’m really sensitive when it comes to smells. In Bangkok your smell sense will (need to) change. One moment you smell the most amazing things like Yasmine, sweet coconut pancakes and fresh grilled chicken. The next moment it stinks like hell. Honestly I never smelt something worse in my life. Surprisingly it didn’t bother me after a couple of hours, because I knew around the next corner an incredible smell awaits again.

Colourful, loud and crazy busy is the best description I can give you. Bangkok is the craziest city I ever been to and I have a feeling it will keep that title for quit a while.

1. The views over crazy Bangkok

Do I even need to explain why the views are the first reason on the list?

I mean look at that! Isn’t it absolutely incredible? I will never get enough of it. People, cars, buildings, streets, all like the size of ants. The city definitely never sleeps and you always have these amazing buzzing city vibes in the background.

The two days we spend in Bangkok we barely been inside, but the little time we spent in the hotel we mostly sat on the balcony. It was a tiny bit scary when I first set my foot out there at the 59th floor. But you overcome that feeling in seconds and then the view in combination with the height makes you feel so wonderful alive. Imagine you’re in the cinema but you’re above the screen and looking down on it. It’s a bit like that, just a thousand times better. With no doubt I could spend hours and hours overlooking Bangkok.

2. Crazy 5* luxury for a not so crazy budget

One of the highlights are the hotels all over Bangkok. We stayed in the Tower Club at lebua on Si Lom road in the Bang Rak district. Our choice was based on the perfect location (near Saphan Taksin BTS metro station), the tour meeting points are in walking distance, all rooms are suites and it has one of the highest Sky bars (located on the 63rd floor) in Bangkok. Apart of many many other excellent benefits, two of the hotel restaurants have Michelin stars and you’ll definitely get the VIP treatment you’ll deserve.

All in all we paid for two nights including breakfast £315.28!! That’s £78.82 per person per night. There’s no way you come even close to a night in a 5- star hotel in London Central for that price! And by far you won’t get the same celebrity treatment.

TIPP! Keep an eye out for the suites with Lounge Access. It’s a great opportunity to treat yourself with snacks, afternoon tea and drinks between 6am and 6pm.

We didn’t spend much time inside, but we absolutely loved our suite with the especially stunning view and the bathroom, which was bigger than some flats in London. Like I mentioned before, all “rooms” in the hotel are suites. YES all of them!

On arrival we mentioned that we’re celebrating our anniversary during the trip and when we checked into the suite they had prepared the cutest complimentary cake for us. Yummy!

TIPP! Where ever you’re staying, it’s always worth mentioning up front (during the booking process) that you’ll celebrate a special occasion. The most hotels will surprise you with a treat on the house (and so they should).

Sky bar

On the 63rd floor of the Tower Club at lebua hotel you’ll find the legendary Sky bar, which is also accessible for the public. There’s several things you need to know before you’ll go there, for example the dress code. Check out the entrance requirement here.

May I introduce you the Mango Glacier, the most expensive cocktail I ever drunk and will ever drink…

£26! EACH! If you decide to get yourself up there make sure you’ll take your piggy bank with you!

3. The residents in the mega city

There’s a reason Thailand is called the country of smiles. Even in the capital the people are super cool and offer help as soon they assume it’s needed. I find it really uncommon for the residents of a mega city to have a friendly appeal to tourists or people in general. Mostly they just mind their own business and seemed to be really stressed and lonely to me. This absolutly isn’t the case in Bangkok!! And that was so wonderful refreshing. But don’t you worry, just because the people are so nice and friendly, you’ll never forget you’re in a mega city! What makes it even more crazy.

On our first day we wanted to do a bit of sightseeing by a traditional long- tail boat. While wondering around and trying to take as much in as possible, we met an older Thai.

The older Thai man stood next to us at a traffic lights and asked: “Could I be of any help?” Us: “Uuuuuh… Thank you and why not!”

And believe it or not after a really nice 5 minutes chat we knew exactly where to go to get our boat tour. He also explained why the weekend we choose is even busier than others and he sent us of with a couple of handy tips to get around. I call that a warm and lovely welcome to a city, which has a 10 million population!

Sky line

Another thing I want to send you off with is the Sky line system in Bangkok. It’s such a clever way to avoid the never ending traffic and get a seat with the best views over the buzzing city. You just need to love a good infrastructure.

What’s also fascinating is the habit the Thai’s have while using any kind of transport. They not just giving up their seats for older people and pregnant women, like we’re used to at home. They also stand up for the children. That’s so adorable!

TIPP! Book a hotel near a sky line station. That gives you the opportunity to use Bangkok’s cheapest transport to get around. All main attractions are connected to the sky line route and also the airport is reachable with it in the best way possible.

Find the Sky line map here.

4. An endless offer of activities

If you decide to stay in the City of Angels you definitely should plan at least 4 days and even they’ll fly by in no time. We spent 2 days there and made the absolute best out of it, but 4 days out of my next Thailand itinerary are already reserved for crazy Bangkok. You see where I’m coming from! Crazy Bangkok worth much more than just one visit.

TIPP! If you arrive early in the morning, don’t waste your precious time while waiting around for your hotel room to be ready! Always check before you book, if there’s a luggage storage available. That will save you potential disappointment on- site, if there shouldn’t be one. Have some cloths handy to get changed and start exploring straight away. Make your time worth! That’s what it’s all about.

The traditional Long- tail boat tour

A sightseeing tour with a long- tail boat is the perfect opportunity to get a first impression of the city. There are lots of piers along the river Chao Phraya, for example the Sathorn Bridge Pier just around the corner of the hotel we stayed. The boat companies are offering several tours and will sell you the tickets right there at the pier. Check out your options here.

TIPP! Make sure the boat will drop you back to your starting point, if that’s what you want. We didn’t double check it and ended up on the other side of the city. But even that wasn’t too bad, because you’ll find the sky line stations everywhere to bring you back. There’s not a wrong way to go in Bangkok, because you will pick- up so much more adventures on a D- tour.

We attended a boat trip to the Song Klong Floating Market, which gave us the chance to at least see the temples and sights from the outside. The tour took around 2 hours and we were very happy to have used our limited time that way.

Damnoen Saduak Floating Market and Maeklong Railway Market

That’s the tour everyone is talking about. The day trip (6 hours) to the Damnoen Saduak Floating Market we booked up front and left early in the morning at 6:15am.

TIPP! The most day trips from Bangkok start really early in the morning. Therefore I would think twice if you want to book breakfast with your hotel room, because you’ll miss it on the days you’ll leave early for your tour. Best practice would be to find a hotel where the breakfast is included in the price. So you’re not loosing out!

Our tour guide from GetYourGuide was Sara, who made us remember her name very easily. S for sweet, A for apple, R for rice and A for angel. And she’s such a sweet angel! I would class myself as a morning person, but being so happy and ready to entertain at 6am in the morning was even for me mind- blowing. Never have I met a morning person, like sweet Sara before. She made our experience even more special.

It will take just over an hour to reach the train station, where you hop on a local train, which drives directly into the Maeklong Railway Market. Visiting the market itself is amazing, but driving with the train into it, gives you the one time opportunity to see the locals packing up their stands, when the train comes through.

• 

• 

Everyone has a different understanding of busy and we travelled through Thailand in November, which is the start of the high season. For us it was the perfect time to visit. Still crowded at times but not in comparison to the following months. You shouldn’t underestimate how packed Thailand gets during the main season (November till February)! The Damnoen Saduak Floating Market was an eye opener for some of the travellers. During our long tail ride I heard someone saying: “I expected it to be busy, BUT NOT THAT BUSY!”. So you’re probably better off expecting it busier than you think in the first place.

The tour will offer you enough time to explore the markets by yourself, but is also well organised and very informative. A speedy “James Bond” boat will bring you from the Railway Market to the Floating Market. Be prepared to get a bit wet during the ride and enjoy the beautiful scenery of local houses along the river.

Definitely taste the coconut pancakes and the sticky rice at one of the street food stands. The delicious food was one of my highlands while on the markets. Book your trip to the Damnoen Saduak Floating Market with GetYourGuide and you’ll have the delicious snakes already included in the price.

The markets are still very traditional and the hub for a lot of locals to buy fresh food. But it’s also a huge tourist hub, what means that a lot of stuff is over priced. What doesn’t mean you can’t get a bargain at all. If you’re not (yet) an experienced haggler don’t worry! Your guide will be more than happy to give you some advice or even get a great deal for you.

We followed Sara’s advice, not to pay more than 60 Baht for a beer and 50 Baht for a coconut ice cream. After many attends we managed to pay exactly that for our beers and got some ice cream for our long tail boat companions. Stay calm, friendly and try it with different approaches. I promise it will work.

TIPP! Keep in mind don’t ever pay the first asking price! The Thai’s love a good haggle and you’ll quickly get used to their friendly way to make business.

We will be back my crazy amazing Bangkok

Like I mentioned before we just spent 2 days in Bangkok and didn’t even do 1/4 of the things we want to experience in the mega city. Things, like visiting a strip club, attending a traditional Thai boxing event, seeing the Golden Temple from the inside and doing a day trip to Ayutthaya are just a few things on our next Bangkok itinerary.

Personally, I can’t wait to go back to my favourite mega city and I don’t need to wait much longer. I’m planning to be back there in less than 12 months and that makes my heart melt already. Stay tuned for my next Thailand adventure.