Bangkok is a huge city that is best explored for at least 3 days—but if you’re only stopping by for a layover or just keen on getting a feel before deciding to come back, it’s worth looking around even if it means you’ll just end up regretting not staying longer. Upon landing at the airport and settling in at your hotel, throw on your comfiest shirt and shoes and check out the vibrant city scene.
It’s true that Bangkok traffic can turn to mammoth proportions, so if you only have a whole day to see the city, make sure you have everything carefully planned—especially if you want to cover a lot. In my recent trip, I have partnered with KKDay Thailand to show you guys what fun things you can do in 24 hours. Whether you want a jam-packed day to maximize your trip or you simply want it relaxed and easy, you can easily tweak this 1-day itinerary to fit your preferences!
I’m the type of traveler who is (still, thankfully) energetic and who wants to do a lot in a day, so my friend and I booked KKDay’s Bangkok Private Car Service to help us tick off everything in our list. As you know, I love discovering delicious food in my travels so most of the places here are restaurants, haha! I believe that food tripping is the best activity for a short Bangkok trip, don’t you agree? We managed to squeeze in a bit of sightseeing as well—so if you want to check out some temples, don’t worry, they’re here.
The Bangkok Private Car Service is good for 10 hours and you get to have your own driver. It’s good for 4 persons as well, so if you’re traveling with friends or family, it’s ideal since you can share the costs!
You know what I loved most about this KKDay package? It’s the fact that I don’t have to walk too much to get to the train stations or deal with waiting for Grab or taxis in the busy streets of Bangkok. It really saved us a lot of time and helped us accomplish our plans!
So, if you’re planning to have a taste of Bangkok soon, check out this 1-day itinerary! Enjoy!
9AM: Coffee at Roots at The Commons
Bangkok’s coffee scene is thriving, so make sure you try one of the city’s beautiful cafes. One such place is Roots, a mainstay in all “Best Bangkok Cafes” listicles and a personal recommendation of my favorite Thailand-based photographer, Sean Dalton (who also happens to be a huge coffee junkie).
As promised, the coffee is superb. I had some of the P’Chatree coffee (from Chiang Mai) which was slightly acidic and fruity—I love it. You MUST (and I say this with emphasis) pair it with any of Roots’ breads; a croissant or a Danish will do because both are incredibly good, delicate, and delightfully flaky! You can have your breakfast here like we did since our Airbnb doesn’t include meals, but if you’re staying in a hotel, you might still want to drop by for their amazing offerings.
11AM: Early Lunch at Supanigga Eating Room
If you want to taste regional, home-style Thai cuisine, a meal at Supanigga Eating Room is a must. Never mind the weird name—their food is unbelievable. The cozy restaurant serves long-lost, home-cooked heirloom recipes. We tried the juicy Isaan-style Pork Steak served with a spicy sauce and sticky rice shaped like corndogs; the spicy Panang Beef Shark Curry; the Mojithai (mojito); some mango sticky rice; and my personal favorite, the Crispy Leaf Fish Salad which was simple but mindblowing.
I didn’t even know that this was a Michelin-recommended restaurant before we went—even though I had this in my Bangkok bucket list. Moreover, they have 4 branches and we went to the Michelin-listed one by pure accident—yay! When you go, go to the Thonglor branch—this is also a short drive away from Roots.
Don’t order too much as you still have a lot to eat in this itinerary—but honestly, I can’t blame you if you do!
1PM: Chinatown
Ready for more food? At Chinatown—also known as Yaowarat—there’s an endless array of selections to satisfy your hunger. Whether you like seafood, noodles, or dessert, this district’s numerous stalls and alleys can surely fill you up.
Below are 3 of my recommendations as part of this short Bangkok adventure. You can pick one—or pick all if you’re up for it! After all, each one of these is super cheap but really tasty. In addition, they are close to one another so you can definitely hit up all of them.
#1: Nai Ek Roll Noodles
I’ll be straight with you—if you were to pick only one from the three, pick this. This bustling eatery right in Yaowarat Road serves the most delicious egg noodles rolled like pasta, swimming in a delicious peppery broth that just demands to be slurped, drank, devoured! To make things even more insane, it comes topped with the crispiest yet lightest deep-fried pork. OMG. This was the most heavenly 50 baht I’ve ever spent.
#2: Deksomboon Soy Sauce Ice Cream
Do you like salted caramel? Then you are going to love this soy sauce ice cream by Deksomboon, Thailand’s biggest sauce company. Right in their store (a few steps away from Nai Ek), they sell a smorgasbord of their sauces along with soy sauce soft-serve! They top it with their sweet soy sauce that makes it even more ridiculously good.
#3: Michelin-recommended Donuts
From Deksomboon, cross the street and turn right until you find a 7-Eleven at the corner. Right in front of that is a stall serving Michelin-recommended donuts. That’s right! These small, deep-fried things were recognized by one of the most prestigious food organizations. And when you taste them, you will understand why.
Want to explore more of Chinatown? Check out my blog post on A Chef’s Tour in Bangkok.
3PM: Wat Pho
From Chinatown, drive to the Old City to check out some temples. The one I was really keen on seeing was Wat Pho, which houses the enormous reclining Buddha. I never realized how big it really was until I saw it with my own eyes. And every detail of the statue and of the architecture was just incredible.
Wat Pho entrance fee: 100 baht
4:30PM: Wat Arun
After exploring the premises of Wat Pho, walk towards the Chao Praya river and cross it by ferry to get to Wat Arun, also known as the Temple of Dawn. It’s definitely one of the most stunning temples in Thailand—even more beautiful at night (I was able to take the night photo on a different day). If you want, you can adjust this itinerary such that you would end up at Wat Arun by sunset time. Tip: there are a couple of cafes by the river where you can hang out and let time pass if you want to see the sunset and the temple at night. One good find we had was Black Bear Bake, along the perimeter of Wat Pho.
Alternatively, you can check out the Grand Palace first before you head to Wat Arun. It’s just across Wat Pho. We chose not to go here because the entrance fee was 500 baht, and we thought that money would be better spent on food (and drinks). LOL.
Wat Arun entrance fee: 100 baht
7PM: Khao San Road
Yeah, I know what you’re thinking. But if you’re only spending a day in Bangkok and you want to do some souvenir shopping, you can do that in Khao San night market and at the same time grab dinner there. From shirts and accessories to pad thai and coconut ice cream, this strip has something for every need. You know what’s lovely after a long day? A good massage—and at Khao San Road, there’s a lot of spas to choose from. We had the best massage at a placed called Charlie Beauty Salon and Spa—it’s right beside a jewelry center.
Note: at this point, if you strictly followed the itinerary, you have reached your 10-hour limit for the private car and thus you have to go back to your hotel by yourself, like we did. Otherwise, adjust your pace so that the driver can still take you back to your place before 7PM. Or, you can just pay 300 baht for every hour in excess!
9PM: Above Eleven
Still got some energy? If that massage didn’t make you want to curl up in bed, then make your way to Sukhumvit and check out Above Eleven, a beautiful and classy rooftop bar serving amazing cocktails and Nikkei food. Take in the view of Bangkok while winding down with a drink—I highly recommend the Akiko Fernandez, made of Japanese whisky, Pisco Acholado, elderflower, Angostura bitters, and shiso leaf. Yes, the perfect way to ending a day in Asia’s City of Angels.
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Book your Bangkok Private Car Service here.
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**Special thanks to Manila Eat Up for photos of me.
Have you been to Bangkok? What's your favorite thing to do in this city?
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