Where to stay in Bangkok: 10 areas, and how each one moves you

Book near a BTS or MRT station or a river pier, and make Siam your base for a first visit. Choose Silom-Sathorn if you want the MRT and a park too.

Bangkok traffic is the real constraint. Where you sleep decides whether a day out is a 15-minute train ride or an hour in a taxi.

Who it’s for: first-timers choosing a base, and repeat visitors who want a change from the usual one. Who can skip it: anyone with one night before a flight. Sleep near the airport.

For the shorter version with the longer-stay rents, see where to stay in Bangkok.

The 10 areas at a glance

Room rates move with the season and the day of the week, so check current rates on the booking site.

Asok and lower Sukhumvit

The verdict: the most connected address on Sukhumvit, and a busy, noisy one. Pick it if you want the interchange and can take the crowds.

Asok is the one place in central Sukhumvit where the BTS (station E4) meets the MRT Blue Line (Sukhumvit station), so one interchange reaches most of the city. West by train is Siam, south is Lumphini Park and Chinatown, north is Chatuchak market. The Airport Rail Link is a short MRT ride away at Phetchaburi.

Terminal 21 has a food court under its mall roof. Benjakitti Park and its forest walkway lie a walk or short ride south, near MRT Queen Sirikit National Convention Centre, good for a morning run or an evening stroll.

The catch: Sukhumvit Road is loud and congested at most hours. Ask for a room on a side soi.

Phrom Phong

The verdict: the calmer Sukhumvit, for malls, parks and an easy walk to the train.

Phrom Phong (E5) is one stop east of Asok. It keeps the BTS link and loses much of the street noise. Benjasiri Park has an outdoor gym, and the EmQuartier, Emporium and Emsphere malls sit around the station.

The catch: there is no MRT, so you change at Asok for the Blue Line.

Thonglor

The verdict: a good place to eat and a poor place to see the sights from.

Thonglor (Sukhumvit Soi 55, BTS Thong Lo, E6) is the cafe-and-restaurant end of Sukhumvit, with a large Japanese community and the food to match. Emsphere and the other malls are a stop or two back toward the city.

The catch: there is no MRT here, so for temples and the old city you take the BTS to Asok, change, and ride on. The sois are long, so book close to the station. It suits a second visit better than a first.

Siam

The verdict: the easiest first base in Bangkok, especially with children.

Siam station is where the two BTS lines cross. You can ride south into Sathorn and across the river into Thonburi, or east along Sukhumvit, with at most one change.

Skywalks join the big malls (Siam Paragon, Siam Center, CentralWorld), and the pavements are wide. Pratunam, a short walk north, has the cheaper indoor markets and mall stalls. The CentralWorld food court is a reliable lunch.

The catch: it is a commercial district, busy from morning to late evening, and you leave it to eat anything more local. Ask for a room away from the main road.

Silom-Sathorn

The verdict: pick this if you want one base with both rail systems and a park.

Silom-Sathorn is the business district. BTS Sala Daeng connects to MRT Si Lom, and MRT Lumphini sits beside Lumphini Park. BTS Chong Nonsi is a short walk from the MahaNakhon tower and its observation deck.

The Silom Line runs west to Saphan Taksin for river boats, and on across the Chao Phraya to Thonburi. Charoen Krung Road runs through the old end with long-running Thai restaurants.

The catch: the district is quiet at weekends and after office hours. Book near Sala Daeng or Charoen Krung, not deep among the towers.

The riverside

The verdict: the calmest part of the city, if you accept travelling by boat.

BTS Saphan Taksin has a river pier at its foot, so the station and the ferry are one transfer. From there boats serve Asiatique, ICONSIAM, Chinatown, the Grand Palace, Wat Arun and the Phra Arthit pier near Khao San. Hotels on this stretch have river views and often their own shuttle boats.

Check fares and hours on the operator’s timetable or in getting around Bangkok.

The catch: boats thin out in the evening and the cheapest ones run at set times. After dark you are back to taxis and apps.

Thonburi

The verdict: quiet and walkable, with the river a short ride away.

Thonburi means local streets, small restaurants and food stalls with few tourists.

Take the BTS Silom Line to Krung Thon Buri, then the Gold Line to Charoen Nakhon, the station that serves ICONSIAM, where you can also catch a river boat. The Gold Line is a separate service from the main BTS network, so you tap in again.

The catch: there are few sights on your doorstep, and the Gold Line adds a change to every trip across town.

Chinatown

The verdict: go for a day, and sleep elsewhere unless food is the whole reason you came.

Yaowarat Road is the backbone of the district and one of the city’s oldest streets. MRT Wat Mangkon puts you at the temples, the dim sum shops and the street-food stalls, and the Ratchawong river pier is a short walk away.

The lanes of Talat Noi lead to galleries and street art. Yaowarat’s street food is at its best from late afternoon.

The catch: the heat and the crowds. Many visitors stay in Silom or on the river and come in for lunch.

Khao San Road

The verdict: cheap, simple and well placed for the temples, and worth two or three nights at most.

Khao San sits in Bang Lamphu, about 15 to 20 minutes’ walk from the Grand Palace. By day it is a pedestrian street of small restaurants and cheap Thai food. Phra Arthit pier, a short walk away, takes you up and down the river.

The catch: no BTS or MRT station is close. MRT Sam Yot and Sanam Chai are the nearest, each a long walk, so you rely on boats, taxis and ride apps. If you stay, book a lane a block or two back from the main street.

Rama 9

The verdict: the budget pick if you want a residential neighbourhood on the MRT.

MRT Phra Ram 9 is two stops from Sukhumvit (via Phetchaburi), so you are at Asok in a few minutes. A mall connects to the station by underground tunnel, and there are night markets and local restaurants in the surrounding streets.

Rooms generally cost less than in Sukhumvit or Siam, and the street-level hassle of the main tourist districts is largely absent.

The catch: it is not near the temples, the river or the sightseeing districts, and the roads are busy.

How to choose

• First visit, four or five nights: Siam.
• Both rail systems and a park: Silom-Sathorn.
• Sukhumvit’s connections: Asok. Sukhumvit’s malls and a calmer street: Phrom Phong.
• Quiet and river views: Saphan Taksin or the Thonburi side.
• Tight budget, short stay: Khao San (two or three nights) or Rama 9, but check the walk to your station.
• A month or more: see rents from real tours.

Before you book, open a map and measure the walk to the station or pier. “Near the BTS” in a listing can mean 15 minutes along a road with no pavement.