Bangkok’s Chinatown stretches south of the Grand Palace, bordered by the Chao Phraya River and Charoen Krung Road.
It’s a fascinating cultural enclave that we make sure to visit on each of our (many) trips to Bangkok. We even have our favorite tea and spice shops and a few go-to restaurants there.
Chinatown was originally located on the site of the current Grand Palace. When Rama I decided to build his palace there, the Chinese merchants moved to the southeast, where they still remain.
Chinatown is a chaotic place, with cars, motorbikes, and pedestrians all congesting. The sidewalks are lined with shops, and red and gold are the dominant colors. Don’t be put off by this apparent chaos, though. You can reach it by river (Tha Ratchawong Pier) or, more reliably, by the MRT Blue Line. This line used to terminate at Hua Lamphong, Bangkok’s former main train station, but it has been extended westward by about ten stations. The best place to get off is at the next station, Wat Wangkon. It’s one of the city’s prettiest metro stations, housed in an old building and decorated with Chinese paintings.
About a hundred meters to the left, you’ll find a long, narrow alley (Soi Yaowarat 6) lined on both sides with charming shops. Roughly in the middle, at the back of a courtyard, you can visit a typical Chinese temple. Walking along this normally pedestrian street, but crisscrossed by overloaded motorbikes weaving through the pedestrians, is initially quite surreal. Your gaze is constantly drawn to the stalls (pig heads, chickens, ducks, dried shrimp, flattened octopuses, wriggling fish, machetes slashing at cuts of meat, etc.), and your nose wanders from one pungent smell to another! You have to make your way through a dense crowd, mostly Chinese.
In recent years, however, we noticed that several shops on the street have modernized to cater to a more touristy clientele. But don’t worry, the picturesque charm still reigns supreme!
Sampheng Market is a maze of narrow streets where you can find just about anything. Talat Kao, or the “Old Market,” is a covered food market worth seeing (Soi Itsaranuphap).
Chinatown is also home to the “Golden Buddha” at Wat Traimit and Wat Mangkon Kamalawat, the spiritual heart of the district.
At night, the district is illuminated by hundreds of neon signs.
A Chinese restaurant to recommend: Hua Seng Hong on Yaowarat Road.
