Boutique Hotels in Bangkok

The city divides, usefully, into two halves for a visitor: the old riverside core and the modern commercial districts east of it. Which you pick shapes the whole trip.

The historic heart, around the Grand Palace, Wat Pho and the river, is where Bangkok's history is stacked most densely: gilded temples, the flower market, the shophouses of Banglamphu, and Khao San Road, still the backpacker artery, now flanked by good bars. Staying here means temples on foot and river boats at the bottom of the road, though you will trade Skytrain access for a longer haul east. Chillax Resort sits just off Samsen in the old town, a small romantic hotel where every room has its own whirlpool tub and the sixth-floor infinity pool looks out over the low rooftops.

East of the centre, Bangkok turns modern and green. Phrom Phong and neighbouring Thonglor are the city's best districts for eating and drinking, with a serious Japanese quarter, independent cafés, mall food halls that put most restaurants to shame, and Benjasiri Park for a morning walk. The Skytrain runs overhead, which makes everything easy. 137 Pillars Suites occupies the upper floors of a tower here, an all-suite hotel with 24-hour butlers, a heritage story borrowed from its sister teak house in Chiang Mai, and a rooftop infinity pool reserved for suite guests.

Do the Grand Palace and Wat Pho early, before the heat and the coach parties, then cross the river to Wat Arun. Ride a longtail through the Thonburi canals, or take the public boat up to Nonthaburi and back for a fraction of the price. Chinatown, around Yaowarat, is best after dark, when the street kitchens fire up. For contemporary Bangkok, spend an afternoon in the galleries around Soi 39, an evening at the night markets, and a morning cycling the green lung of Bang Krachao, a loop of jungle and stilted paths across the river.

This is the point of Bangkok. Street food is not a novelty here but the foundation of the city's cooking, and the best of it, at Yaowarat, Or Tor Kor market, the stalls of Bang Rak, costs a pound or two. Above that sits a fine-dining scene that has become one of Asia's strongest, much of it built on regional Thai rather than borrowed French technique. Eat both, on the same day.

Bangkok is a year-round city, but it has moods. November to February is the cool, dry season and by some distance the most comfortable, with warm days and bearable evenings. March to May is punishing, with April the hottest month of the Thai year. The rains arrive around June and run into October, usually as heavy late-afternoon downpours rather than all-day grey, and the city empties a little. Come in the cool season if you can, and if you cannot, plan your temples for early morning.