Shopping in Bangkok. Unique, fun & cheap
New York has Fifth Avenue. Paris has the Champs Elysees. London has Piccadilly. Ratchadamri represents Bangkok as a local version of the world’s glitziest shopping streets. Lose yourself in the ease of air-conditioned department stores lining both sides of the road, and indulge your shopping fantasies with luxury goods from the four corners of the globe.
Over the fast few years, international designers have turned Bangkok’s prominent shopping plazas, World Trade Centre, Gaysorn Plaza, Joyce, Amarin Plaza and Peninsula Plaza, into their new fashion runway. At the same time, local stylists proudly proclaim their own exclusive designs at the same venues.
Thailand Downtown Duty Free Shop:
Located on the 7th floor of World Trade Centre in the heart of Bangkok, the shop showcases branded clothes, leather goods, watches, cosmetics and other accessories. Across the street, a specialised department store - Narayana Phand Pavilion- rounds up an enormous and enticing range of fine handicrafts from all around the country, under one extensive roof. Ratchadamri and Ploenchit roads can give you a breathtaking abundance of choices. Open daily from 11 a.m. -8:30 p.m.
Silom Road: A main artery of Bangkok’s commercial heart, Silom Road also presents great shopping opportunities. At its lower end, close to the Chao Phraya River, dozens of gem and jewellery stores line the footpaths while temporary stalls offer an array of souvenirs from T-shirts to handicrafts. Major department stores led by Central and Robinson dominate the upper section. The colourful night market of Patpong, which links Silom and Surawongse roads, is thronged with avid bargain-hunters until late into the night.
Soi Lalai Sup: Office chic on the chaotic Silom Road infused the boom of Soi Lalai Sup market years ago. Now it seems as if every Bangkok woman has set their shopping compasses to this famous alley, renowned for its comprehensive collections of ready-to-wear clothing. Other attributes of typical Thai markets- food stalls sweet sellers and cheerful congestion-add to the vitality of this emerging shopping street.
Chinatown and Ban Mor: All that glitters is real gold at Yaowarat, Bangkok’s Chinatown, which accommodates the largest concentration of gold shops in Thailand. Traditional stores in the area will also excite the imagination of intrepid browsers. A few blocks away, you’ll find the equally sparkling strip of Ban Mor, where quality jewellery stores teem on the footpaths.
Sukhumvit: Like Silom Road, Sukhumvit is one of Bangkok’s major thoroughfares, with shops, boutiques, stalls and modern shopping plazas, not to mention hotels, bars and restaurants along both sides. Sukhumvit is known for its abundance of tailor-made garment shops, which offer custom-tailoring as affordable and as easy as buying off the peg. Antique cognoscenti flock to the section of Sukhumvit which houses a number of antique shops specialising in Thai period furniture’s, genuinely old or reproduction, and exquisite wood-carvings.
Bang Lamphu: Bangkok’s oldest one-stop shopping market, Bang Lamphu is like a huge single-storey department store. From basic necessities to exotic extravagance, you can find it all here. The nearby area of Khao Sarn Road is a gathering place of foreign backpackers. Stores and boutiques catering to budget-conscious shoppers are plentiful there.
Chatuchak Weekend Market: They say that if you can’t find it at Chatuchak, you won’t find it anywhere in Thailand. Nowhere else can portray the spirit of the informal market more vividly than the maze of Chatuchak. It’s impossible to resist the urge to spend money, to try on the garment, to taste the food, to own the painting, to stroke this pet or talk to that plant. Bargainers can demonstrate their skill to the limit, no matter how low the price tag.
Above all, the bustling atmosphere in which the transaction is made is what makes the market a matchless shopping experience.
Khlong Thom Market: Always congested but ever popular, Khlong Thom’s charm is unrefined, yet undeniably worthwhile. Second-hand goods are always valued at this old-fashioned flea market, regardless of their condition. Hardware and electrical appliances new or used, broken or functional, guaranteed or buy-at-your-own-risk are Khlong Thom’s major commodities. It seems everything can be put on sale here. No need to spend your money, a stroll around Khlong Thom could be an experience in itself.
thank. http://www.bangkokthailand.com/newhtm/shop.htm
Bangkok Shopping
