Bangkok Shopping

Thailand and Bangkok have developed into one of the best and most popular shopping locations in Asia, and with good reason. Prices are low, quality generally high and the range and variety is pretty amazing - silks, gemstones, tailor-made clothes and traditional handicrafts are all highlights of Bangkok shopping. Most shops seem to be open 10.00am to 10.00pm everyday of the week, and nightmarkets carry on even after this time - all very convenient in being able to go shopping at basically any time you want. Buying a shopping map is very useful in order to get the most out of shopping in Bangkok - despite the garish colours, the 'Nancy Chandler' map is actually very useful and probably the best.

Silks, nielloware, lacquerware, silverware, bronzeware, pewterware, pottery, gemstones and jewelry and all types of handicrafts are particularly good souvenirs of a trip to Thailand, while clothes and tailor-made clothes are widely available and inexpensive. Fake goods of all types abound and can be bought at a fraction of a cost of originals. There are different manufacturers of fake goods, so the 'Rolex' watch costing 6000B will be better than the 2000B one, which in turn is superior to the one at 500B.

Most vendors and staff at stores speak good enough English, though non-fixed prices are often bargained by you and the vendor taking turns in typing numbers into a calculator. It's worth learning how to say the numbers in Thai - this is easy, will save the calculator routine and may well get you cheaper prices too.

Street stalls and shops on the street will generally have lower prices for the same product than those paying premium rents in hotel shopping arcades and some higher end shopping centers and department stores. The price difference can also reflect on the quality of the product though.

Duty Free shopping can be done at the Thailand Duty Free Shops Company branch in the World Trade Center on Ratchadamri road. Goods can be pre-ordered here and then picked up at the airport - you have to show your passport and airline ticket in order to make a purchase. It's not really worth it unless you are particularly short of time at the airport.

Many of the larger and more specialized shops now offer shipping abroad, and they will sort out the necessary documents and permits for this. Insurance should also be included. If you don't feel comfortable with this, there are specialized companies that will do it and sort out the arrangements for a fee. The GPO also has a parcel-wrapping service, and smaller items can be mailed from here. Another option is to go Thai Airways office on 485 Silom road and, for a fee, they will ship them and sort out documentation for you

Main Shopping Areas

Rama I road, Ploenchit road, Ratchadamri road, Siam Square area

This area, east from the top of Sukhumvit road, is a modern and fashionable shopping district with several large shopping centers. This includes the 8 storey World Trade Center, which houses the Zen and Isetan department stores, Central Chidlom department store, a branch of Bangkok largest chain of department stores, Tokyu department store, Sogo, Narayana Phand store for Thai handicrafts, and the expensive and very upmarket Gaysorn Plaza, Peninsula Plaza, Promenda Decor and Amarin Plaza.

Siam Square is a large modern shopping area, consisting of interlocked sois, and is not really a square at all. It has a collection of cheap to mid-price fashionable clothes shops, a lot of which cater to teenagers. Also around here are book shops, internet cafes, fast food restaurants etc...Not far from here - next to the Tokyu department store - is the massive and very popular MBK (standing for mah boon krong) shopping center. This has a huge range of goods and many varied, inexpensive shops and facilities (including restaurants, cinemas, games arcade and a bowling alley). Nearby shopping centers include Siam Center, also with fairly inexpensive clothes shops, and Siam Discovery, which has more upmarket clothes shops, restaurants and various other shops, including a branch of Asia Books.

Silom road, Surawong road, Rama IV road

This is Bangkok's main business and commercial district, but it's really only an average shopping area. Patpong night market is popular with tourists but is crowded and overpriced - you have to bargain very hard here to get a good deal. The larger hotels, such as the Dusit Thani, Narai and the Montien, have shopping arcades, but these are expensive for what they offer. Also in this area there is the Silom Complex department store, a branch of Central next door to it, another branch of Central not far away, Robinson's Department Store, the Charn Issara tower, the upscale Thaniya Plaza shopping center and many very good silk, antique, and clothes shops.

Silom Village, near soi 24, is a complex of small shops selling antiques and traditional handicrafts. Prices aren't as expensive as in River City (see below) but are still expensive when compared to, say, Chatuchak market.

Charoen Krung road (New Road), Si Phraya road, Mahesak road, western end of Silom road

On Si Phraya road, near the Royal Orchid Sheraton hotel, is the 4 storey River City Shopping complex. This is home to a large number of prestigious art and antiques shops and prices are, not surprisingly, very high. It has several good restaurants which are reasonably priced though, and give impressive views over the Chao Phraya river. Oriental Plaza, part of thee Oriental Hotel, is another very upmarket shopping arcade and the shops here mostly sell art, antiques, handicrafts and clothes. Also around here is a street market, selling fake and cheap clothes, cheap handicrafts etc...It's pretty similar to the stalls on Sukhumvit road.

There are many bronzeware shops along Charoen Krung road (New Road) and the western end of Silom road. Quality is generally high, as are the prices - many shops here also have stalls at Chatuchak weekend market, and it is much cheaper to buy there.

Sukhumvit Road Area

Though the western end of Sukhumvit road (between soi 1 and 33) has a lot of foreigners, both tourists and residents, it is not an especially great place for shopping. There are quite a few tourist shops (cheap tailors, camera shops etc...) and up to around soi 11 there are street stalls selling fake clothes, handicrafts and other similar merchandise. On soi 5 is a popular branch of the Foodland supemarkets, a branch of the Robinson's Department Store chain is attached to the Delta Grand Pacific hotel (between soi 17 and 19), and Times Square shopping plaza is just opposite it across the street. There is also the Ploenchit center, near soi 2, and the Ambassador and Landmark hotels shopping arcades, but none are particulary inspiring compared to elsewhere in the city. The new and very upmarket Emporium shopping center (right) on soi 24 has many quality designer labels, but it's not a cheap place to shop by any means. Further along Sukhumvit road, in the Phrakhanong district around soi 71, is a better shopping area but it's not much visited by tourists. There are a few shopping centers and a market, and prices are cheap. The Bangna branch of the Central department stores is located all the way down near soi 103.

Chinatown (Yaowarat road / Charoen Krung road area)

Chinatown is best visited for it's huge number of gold and jewelry shops, identifable by the gold and red that they all seem to be adorned with. Other than this, the best reason to visit is to wander round some of the markets here, such as the one on Sampeng lane, Pahurat cloth market, Nakhon Kasem/Thieves market etc...There's a branch of Central on Pahurat road, just south of Charoen Krung road.

Ratchadaphisek Road

This is quite a large commercial district, with many shops including branches of Robinsons department store, Tokyu, Jusco, Yaohan and others. It also has the showroom of the Department of Export Promotion for business interested in exporting Thai products.

Seacon Square

At 500 000 sq km, the Seacon Square shopping center claims to be the biggest in Asia and the fifth biggest anywhere in the world. There are hundreds of shops and just about every type of good is available here including clothes, furniture, stereos and TV's, computers, cars, jewelry, food etc...Also on the premises are 14 THX cinemas, a bowling alley, ice skating rink, many restaurants, a huge football-field-sized branch of DK Books with close to 1 million books (not that many English language though), a special 'simulator' virtual reality cinema, mini-golf course, Lotus Supercenter (a supermarket), Robinson's department store, "Yoyo Land" a massive indoor theme park with rollercoasters, ferris wheel, boat rides, flumes and many more. Nearby is the Seri Center, a good place for buying anything computer related.

The biggest disadvantage with this area for most people is it's remote location, way out on Srinakharin road. It will take at least a couple of hours to get here from, say, Ko Rattanakosin, though less from Sukhumvit. It's not even shown on most maps of Bangkok as it's too far out the way, located a long way south-east of Sukhumvit road. Truth be told, there's not that really that much reason to make the long journey as the malls around Siam Square and Silom sell pretty much the same things and, for most people, are much more convenient.