For many visitors to Bangkok, Thailand, while they love to see as much as they can of what this amazing city has to offer, money is sometimes tight. That means, on a vacation to Thailand in 2012, seeing or doing the best cheap things in Bangkok is often a priority.
As a long-time resident of Bangkok, I'm here to tell you not only is that possible, there are so many you'll be spoiled for choice. However, start with these top three cheap things to see and do, and you'll be on the right track.
Talad Lot Fai (Train Market) - Bangkok's newest night market, the Train Market (in Thai Talad Lot Fai) is one of the most popular cheap things to do on a Saturday or Sunday night, and it's massive.
Want a t shirt for 75 baht ($2.50), a dress for 100 baht (just over $3) or one of thousands of Thai flea market finds or antiques for just a few dollars? Then the Train Market is the place to go.
It's located next to Bangkok's old northern train station, hence the name, and is an enormous flea market. But not just any flea market - it's hip, cool, trendy and, with fashionable coffee shops, cafes and antique stores set up in the old train building, as well as around 2,000 stalls on the parking lot, you can spend all night here.
To get to the Train Market, take the underground train to Khampaeng Phet station and ask for directions at the ticket window. It's just a five minute walk, and opens at 6pm every Saturday and Sunday and runs until 1am.
Take a Boat on the Chao Praya River - Still one of the cheapest ways to get around Bangkok, as well as the most authentic and fun, hopping on a ferry boat on the Chao Praya River is amazing.
For only a 12 baht fare (39 cents) you can spend up to an hour on the boat, going as far north as it will go, before it turns around and heads back into Bangkok. Or, you can get off at one of the many piers and wander the city streets if you like to sightsee.
Boats run all day and every 10-15 minutes, so you can hop on and off them as many times as you want.
Catch a Chao Praya ferry boat at the pier next to Saphan Thaksin BTS sky train station, and head north (that means boats that are heading to the right). Get on and off where you like or, if you want to do the whole trip, stay put. The boat will eventually turn around and come back, and you'll pay another 12 baht on the return trip.
Take Photos, Eat and Shop in Chinatown (Yaowarat) - Chinatown, or as the Thais call it 'Yaowarat', is a phenomenal place to take photos, eat and, of course, to shop.
Spend the day photographing old Chinese temples, hundreds of food stalls selling birds nest soup, strange fried insects, or scorpions on sticks. Eat the city's freshest seafood (and the cheapest) at one of Chinatown's seafood street stalls, and shop in the thousands of tiny independent shops.
The easy way to Chinatown is to take a boat on the Chao Praya River from Saphan Thaksin pier, and get off at Si Phraya Pier. You'll know you're in Chinatown from all the Chinese-Thai people around (yes, Chinese-Thais do have usually different facial features than ethnic Thais) and from all the Chinese-style shops.
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