Bangkok's helter-skelter, diesel-fed affluence orbits around a serene traditional core. Step outside the sleek hotels and chilly malls and you'll find the hallmarks of a typical Siamese village: doorstep shrines, taxi drivers knocking back energy drinks, chicken grilling on a street-side barbecue.
Maximize your trip with this Lonely Planet Bangkok Travel Guide: Want more bang for your baht? This city won't disappoint. Forget the tourist-brochure Bangkok of sedate floating markets and sterile shopping malls – you're in for a wild ride. Bangkok is bursting at the seams with cosmopolitan cool and cultural prosperity: think hip bars, scrumptious Thai cuisine, international fashion houses and stunning wats. This insider's guide is your ticket to the best that Bangkok has to offer. LET THE EXPERTS DO THE WORK, with tips on the best shopping deals, hotels and guesthouses and city tours BE TEMPTED by the world's tastiest food; we show you Bangkok's finest eating, from streetside stalls to top-class restaurants BEAT YOUR OWN PATH using our detailed maps and walking tours GET OUT OF TOWN and explore nearby beaches, a Unesco World Heritage site and glorious national parks SPEAK UP using our handy language guide, packed with useful phrases
|