5x Bangkok Off the Beaten Path

Bangkok is one of our favourite cities in Asia and we keep coming back to it. There’s so much to see and do in Bangkok. But while most people visit famous places like the Grand Palace, Khao San Road, Wat Pho and Wat Arun, there are so many other great lesser known places to visit. We already discussed the best things to do in Bangkok and all Instagram worthy spots in Bangkok, but we love to tell you about Bangkok off the beaten path! This is our top five hidden gems around Bangkok.

Bangkok’s Hidden Gems

1. Wat Samphran aka Dragon Temple

Wat Samphran is a unique temple you won’t find elsewhere in the world. By accident, we found out about this place and couldn’t believe our eyes. A pink building with a dragon? Why aren’t people talking about this place? It’s not mentioned in the travel books and therefore not many tourists know about it yet. The temple is 17 floors high and you can walk through the body of the dragon to reach the top. The top makes for a great view. Not only the dragon temple itself is worth visiting, but there are also other beautiful structures around the complex. For example a giant bronze Buddha and animal statues like a giant turtle and elephant. We recommend taking at least two hours to explore the complex. Wat Samphran is a temple, so make sure to dress properly.

How to get to Wat Samphran?

Wat Samphran is located about 40 kilometres West of the city centre of Bangkok. It takes you about 50 minutes to get there, without much traffic. You can easily reach Wat Samphran by taxi: show a picture of the temple and nearly every local will know where it is. It’s not easy to reach the temple by public transport. Another option is to go to BTS station Bang Wa and take a taxi from there. We rent a motorbike and go on an adventure ourselves. It’s doable by motorbike, but you need to have some skills to drive in Bangkok traffic. The entrance is FREE, but feel free to leave a donation.

2. Airplane Graveyard

A bunch of abandoned airplanes left on a piece of land in Bangkok. How cool does that sound? Abandoned places are always a bit creepy but are so cool. This is your chance to sit in the cockpit of an airplane and explore every part of the planes! The story tells a businessman bought the airplanes to sell pieces. These days the graveyard isn’t completely abandoned anymore. A Thai family lives in one of the airplanes. And they do smart business, as the airplane graveyard is increasingly popular, they ask an entrance fee. Expect to pay 200 baht (around 6 USD) to enter the graveyard, sometimes they ask less but sometimes also more. The graveyard is definitely a great place to go to if you are looking for an urban and unique experience in Bangkok. And for some original and awesome shots of course!

How to get to the Airplane Graveyard? 

The easiest way to go to the airplane graveyard is by taxi. A cheaper way is to go by river taxi, the Khlong Saen Saep express boat. Go to the last stop, Wat Si Bun Ruang, from there it’s just a short walk to the graveyard. The graveyard is located in the East part of Bangkok.

3. Ancient City Siam

The Ancient City, also known as Ancient Siam and Muang Boran, is a museum park in the South East of Bangkok. It’s one of the biggest open-air museums in the world and weirdly enough, not many people visit Ancient Siam. That’s a pity since you can find some really beautiful structures here! In Ancient Siam, it’s possible to see all of Thailand in just one day. The museum features important Thai buildings and attractions from all over Thailand, located within the park at their exact locations. How’s that possible? The museum is shaped in the form of Thailand! For example, you can find a replica of the Grand Palace in the central area of the park. Some buildings are the same size as existing or formerly existing buildings, while others are made smaller. And some are even transported from the real site and reconstructed. It’s an interesting place where you can discover the Thai culture, architectures and arts! Ancient Siam isn’t cheap to visit, 700 baht per person (around 22 USD), online tickets are 600 baht.

Photos by @christianbetzmann

How to get to the Ancient City? 

Ancient Siam is located in the South of Bangkok, in Samut Prakan. It’s possible to reach Ancient Siam by taxi, by BTS Skytrain, public bus or you can arrange a trip with a tour operator. If you go by BTS, take the BTS to station Kheha, from there it’s a 45-minute walk or a short ride with a taxi. On the website of the museum, they say there’s a free shuttle service between BTS station Kheha and the museum. Buses in Bangkok aren’t always the most reliable ones, but according to the schedule you can take bus numbers 7, 8, 25, 142 and 145 to Samut Prakan.

4. Lhong 1919 Street Art

Lhong 1919 is an old Chinese warehouse complex now open for visitors. Here you can find restaurants, art shops, galleries and our favourite part: street art. Wandering around the complex and you feel the authentic vibes of the warehouse complex with some of its authentic walls. The walls make for beautiful street art opportunities. Next to Lhong 1919 you can find a beautiful Chinese temple: Chee Chin Khor.

How to get to Lhong 1919?

Lhong 1919 is located next to the Chao Phraya River on the Westbank of Bangkok. Online they say there’s a free boat from the Sathorn Pier, we only never found that boat. Instead, we took a boat from the Sawasdee pier, but boats from there they don’t go regularly. Otherwise, you can take a hop on hop off-boat or just ask someone with a private boat to drop you on the other side of the river. Of course, you can always take a taxi!

5. Wat Asokaram

We are a bit biased since we are huge lovers of white temples. But Wat Asokaram is a beautiful white temple with perfect symmetry and is impressive to see! Not only do we like its beauty, but we also like how peaceful Wat Asokaram is. As Wat Asokaram is located in the South of Bangkok, in Samut Prakan, it’s perfect to combine with a trip to Ancient Siam! Take your time to see both of them.

How to get to Wat Asokaram? 

Take a taxi, bus or BTS Skytrain to reach Samut Prakan.

Can’t get enough of Thailand? Check out our other articles!

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