Thailand : Discover Bangkok

On arrival in Bangkok you will be welcomed by your guide and transferred to your hotel to check-in. In the afternoon, we offer you the choice between two discoveries. One is a step back in time at Suan Pakkad, the other is a 21st century experience at MOCA. Little known to the public and tourists Suan Pakkad is a former prince’s residence that is now a museum. Within the 4 historic traditional houses various collections of objects d’art, antiques, and a superb collection from the prehistoric civilization of Ban Chiang jewelry and pottery are displayed. The beautiful garden is also home to a rare Ayutthaya period pavilion (17th century) and features beautiful lacquer panels amid an oasis of greenery.
Bangkok’s Museum of Contemporary Art is a ‘must see’ for all art lovers. There are more than 800pieces of art including paintings and sculpture all expertly displayed within a purpose built gallery. Opened in 2012 it features works from all of Thailand’s national artists and both as a gallery and collection MOCA truly is world class. Return to your hotel.

This morning, after breakfast, a chance to discover markets and traditional Bangkok lifestyles unchanged for 100s of years. Starting with a tour through one of the oldest parts of Bangkok, the markets have been trading here for over 100years. This area is Bangkok at its most traditional and unchanged, home to small houses and low-lying buildings, the food markets here are also an opportunity to see and taste some specialties that we do not always see elsewhere.
You will continue in a tuk tuk to Rachadamoen Avenue to enjoy the character of the streets here with their traditional houses and shops, passing by the famous Phor Suea temple with its feverish activity along the way. You will get the chance to stop by a shop where ice is still made in the traditional way before continuing on to see the famed landmark, the giant Sao Chin Cha swing. From here we will take lunch in a typical local restaurant. After lunch, we will take a tuk tuk to the pier near the Royal Palace.
In the middle of this hive of market activity lies the amulet market, where charms (and hopes and dreams) change hands for astronomical sums. Here the fortune tellers work too, and we will invite you to have your fortune told while enjoying a cool drink or a coffee. Refreshed and looking at a bright future you will then take the waterbus on the Chao Praya to Taksin Bridge where your driver will be waiting to take you back to your hotel.

After an early breakfast our team will collect you between 7:30-8am in a minivan to drive you a short way to meet your bicycle and start your discovery of a different side of Bangkok. You will then take a motorized canoe across the Chao Praya River to Bang Krachao. It is from this pontoon that your ride begins in what is considered the green lung of Bangkok. Almost a stone’s throw away from the megalopolis that is Bangkok you suddenly find yourself immersed in another world. You will cycle sometimes on lanes and along small roads shaded by palm trees and lush vegetation, passing gardens, plantations and traditional wooden houses along the way. During the visit you will stop in a small restaurant for a simple meal (fried noodles or fried rice) before returning to your hotel around 1-1:30pm. The afternoon and dinner at leisure.

Free day, depending on your flight time, with airport transfers to your next destination.

To end this trip smoothly, we suggest you to relax on a quiet beach at one of our seaside hotels on Koh Chang, Phuket, Krabi or around Samui (Spa Koh Chang, Le Passe-Temps, Koh Jum Beach Villas, Paresa Resort, Aava Resort, The Andamani, Baba Eco Lodge).
Ask Secret Retreats concierge for advice.