Side Trips

There are plenty of easy day trips from Bangkok. Favorites include various cruises along the Chao Phraya to the more distant klongs and to the ancient capital of Ayutthaya, north of Bangkok, with a stop at the Bang Pa-in Summer Palace. Kids will enjoy most of these listed below.

Easy 1-Day Excursions

Rose Garden

Besides its delightful rose garden, this attractive theme park and resort is known for its all-in-one show of Thai culture that includes Thai classical and folk dancing, Thai boxing, sword fighting, and cock fighting. It's hardly authentic, but it is a convenient way for visitors with limited time to digest some canned Thai culture. It is located 32km (20 miles) west of Bangkok on the way to Nakhon Pathom on Highway 4 (tel. 03432-2588; www.thaiculturalshow.com). Surprisingly, the resort's restaurant is very appealing and not expensive. Admission is 840B (US$24/£13) adults, 420B (US$12/£6.45) for kids. It is open daily from 8am to 6pm; the cultural show is at 2:45pm.

The Ancient City (Mueang Boran)

This remarkable museum is a giant scale model of Thailand spread over 81 hectares (200 acres), with models of the country's major landmarks either life-size or in miniature. It was built over the last 30 years by a local millionaire who has played out his obsession with Thai history on a grand scale. Because it is far from the heart of Bangkok, the Ancient City is best visited by organized tour, though you can certainly go on your own. It is at kilometer 33 on the old Sukhumvit Highway in Samut Prakan Province. All travel agents offer package tours that combine the Rose Garden with other attractions in the area, such as the Crocodile Farm or the huge Buddhist chedi in nearby Nakhon Pathom. Admission to the Ancient City is 300B (US$8.60/£4.60). Additional fees apply for a car and guide, but it's also possible to rent bikes or hop on a tram to ride around the sites. Mueang Boran is open daily from 8am to 5pm. Contact tel. 02709-1644 or visit www.ancientcity.com for info.

Crocodile Farm

Only 3km (2 miles) from the Ancient City, you'll find the Samutprakarn Crocodile Farm and Zoo, at kilometer 30 on the Old Sukhumvit Highway (tel. 02703-4891-5). Supposedly the world's largest, it has more than 40,000 crocs, both fresh and saltwater. In the hourly show, handlers wrestle the crocs in murky ponds -- enough to scare the living daylights out of junior. Admission is 300B (US$8.60/£4.60). It's open daily from 7am to 6pm, and feedings take place every hour.

Samphran Elephant Grounds & Zoo

Located 1 km (6/10 mile) north of the Rose Garden in Yannowa (30km/18 1/2 miles from the city), the Samphran Elephant Grounds and Zoo (tel. 02284-1873) is a lush 9-hectare (22-acre) garden complex offering an entertaining elephant show, plus thousands of crocodiles, including what is claimed to be the world's largest white crocodile. Admission is 350B (US$10/£5.40) for adults, 200B (US$6/£3.10) for children. The zoo is open daily from 9am to 6pm. Crocodile wrestling shows are at 12:45 and 2:20pm; elephant show times are at 1:45 and 3:30pm, with additional shows on Saturday, Sunday, and holidays at 10:30am.

Activity Parks

If the heat and the kids have got to you, splash out (literally) with a trip to Siam Water Park, in Minburi (tel. 02919-7200-19), a large complex of water slides, enormous swimming pools with artificial surf, waterfalls, playgrounds, and a beer garden. It's 30-minute drive east of town, (or 1 hr. by bus no. 26 or 27, from Victory Monument). Admission is 200B (US$6/£3.10), including rides. Siam Park is open weekdays 10am to 6pm and weekends 9am to 7pm. Also on the bus no. 26 route is the nearby Safari World & Marine Park, an outdoor zoo tailormade for restless kids, with restaurants and shows.

Floating Market at Damnoen

The Floating Market at Damnoen Saduak, Ratchaburi, is about 40 minutes south of Nakhon Pathom. This market is still popular for photographers, though it's gotten quite touristy and crowded over the years. Some tours combine the Floating Market with a visit to the Rose Garden. If you choose to go via organized tour, such as World Travel Service (tel. 02233-5900), expect to pay about 1,500B (US$37£22) for the 1-day trip combo with the Rose Garden.

Sites Farther Afield

Kanchanaburi

139 kilometers (86 miles) NW of Bangkok

Kanchanaburi lies on the River Kwae (Mae Nam Kwae in Thai) better known to the West as the River Kwai. The city became famous for a single-track rail bridge, built under the Japanese occupation in WWII by Allied prisoners of war (POWs), linking Myanmar and Thailand. Due to the thousands of servicemen and women who lost their lives in this project, and in the notoriously inhumane Japanese internment camps, it became known popularly as the Death Railway. The city, and the dark passage of time associated with it, came to fame following the hugely successful British film The Bridge over the River Kwai (which was shot in Sri Lanka). The original wooden bridge no longer exists, so today visitors, pilgrims, and former POWs head to a similar, but now heavily commercialized, iron bridge, built around the same time spanning a tributary.

Every year, in the last days of November, the city hosts several evenings of light shows to commemorate the town's past. Many former Allied prisoners, as well as local Thai tourists, fill the city and hotels are booked out. There are, however, lots of other good excursions in the area, including golf courses, bike trails, caves, and waterfalls in the surrounding hills. There are also a few nice hotels and riverside guesthouses, making this a popular escape from the heat of Bangkok.

Getting to Kanchanaburi -- You can connect by railway from Bangkok's Hua Lamphong Station (tel. 1690) on regular weekend junkets starting in the early morning, or go by slow daily trains from Thonburi's Bangkok Noi Station (tel. 02411-3102) to Kanchanaburi Station (tel. 03456-1052); rail trips here are quite scenic and cost next to nothing (about 25B/70¢/35p each way). They're a great experience -- just be prepared for no air-conditioning for 3 long hours. There are also frequent regular buses from the Southern Bus Terminal (tel. 02434-5557).

Accommodations -- It's a bit stuck in the 1980s and worn in parts, but the immense Felix River Kwai Resort (9/1 Moo 3 Tambon, Kanchanaburi; tel. 03451-5061; www.felixhotels.com) is still the best place to stay in town. Expect room rates around 3,500B (US$100/£51) and know that the grounds make up for the chunky decor. Or try the Bamboo House (3-5 Soi Vietnam; tel. 03462-4470), which is basic but well located.

On Mae Nam Khwae Road, , the pretty Inchantree Resort (tel. 03462-4914) at number 443 and the friendly Ploy Guesthouse at number 79/2 (tel. 03451-5804) are good midrange (more atmospheric) choices near the bridge. See www.kanchanburi-info.com for more tips on accommodations.

Attractions -- The town's sites focus on the World War II history of the area. Start any tour of Kanchanaburi at the so-called Bridge over the River Kwai, emulating its more famous predecessor, built by World War II prisoners, and the main backdrop to the suspenseful 1957 film of the same name, directed by David Lean, which won seven Oscars. The bridge is about 5km (3 miles) north of the Kanchanaburi city center.

The Allied War Cemetery is where many of the 16,000 POWs who died building the railway are laid to rest; graves are organized country by country. It is a sobering thought to realize that perhaps up to 100,000 people died in the construction project, mostly conscripted laborers and prisoners. It's a 10-minute walk from the train station on Saengchto Road. It's open daily 8:30am to 6pm, and charges no entry fee.

Adjacent to the cemetery is the Thailand-Burma Railway Center (tel. 03451-0067; www.tbrconline.com), which displays a well-organized collection of photos and memorabilia with ample English descriptions, maps with detailed historical background, and good audio-visual presentations recounting the terrifying fate of the Allied POWs during World War II. Nearby (just south of the cemetery along the river) find the mustier, but no less moving JEATH War Museum (Wat Chaichumpol, Bantai, Kanchanaburi; tel. 03451-5203; daily 8:30am-6pm; 30B/86¢/45p). JEATH is an acronym for Japan, England, Australia/America, Thailand, and Holland. Here you'll see haunting photos and artifacts in a rustic bamboo museum adjacent to Wat Chaichumpol. Most poignant are the letters and faded photos of the many GIs who've returned since the end of the war.

Some 45km (28 miles) north of Kanchanaburi, you'll find Wat Pha Luangta Bua Yannasampanno Forest Monastery, better known as the Tiger Temple, (www.walkingwithtigers.org). Featured in dozens of TV shows and magazines, this huge nature preserve is home to deer, wild boar, and various jungle animals, as well as a famous clutch of large tigers, most rescued from poachers as cubs. As the media has shown, the monks here have a remarkable understanding with these man-eating beasts. It's easiest to grab a tour offered by a local hotel rather than attempting it without transport. The temple is open to visitors daily from 8:30am to 5pm, but it is best to go between 1:30 and 5pm to see the tigers close up. The monastery accepts volunteers and donations from visitors to help with the steep costs of feeding the animals.

Other sites farther afield from Kanchanaburi include the Hellfire Pass, which can be visited by train, as well as the Erawan National Park, north of town.

Khao Yai National Park

Located 3 hours from the big smoke near Nakhon Ratchasima (known as Khorat) on the edge of Thailand's rural northeast, the park is home to some high peaks and therefore boasts cooler temperatures year-round. It's a good place to spot local wildlife, such as golden gibbon, barking deer, and any number of bird species, as well as the chance to see wild elephants congregated around roadside salt-licks.

Ayutthaya & 1-Day Riverboat Trips

76km (47 miles) NW of Bangkok

The temple town of Ayutthaya and the nearby Summer Palace compound of Bang Pa-in are both popular day trips from Bangkok. Ayutthaya was the capital of Thailand from 1350 until it was sacked in 1767 by the Burmese; thereafter, the capital moved to Thonburi, close to present-day Bangkok. Ayutthaya's temples are magnificent -- both Khmer and Thai-style ruins lie along the rivers here, in what was once Thailand's greatest city. It's also an excellent place to rent a bicycle (the terrain is flat) and worth an overnight, in conjunction with an enjoyable 1-day boat trip. Nearby Bang Pa-in is home to some wonderfully whimsical mid-19th century royal palaces, set amid splendid gardens with topiary elephants.

Most people get to Ayutthaya and Bang Pa-In by river cruise. Most travel agents or hotels can arrange this for you, including the early morning transfer from your hotel to the boat pier, or coach. Usually at least one leg of the journey is undertaken by luxury coach, with a guide. It's an early rise and an all-day trip: Tour buses can leave as early as 6:30am in order to pick up from a number of Bangkok hotels (which itself can take hours). Sometimes, there's an option to travel by coach both ways. Departure points are close to the River City pier, and tickets cost in the range of 1,800B (US$51/£28) per person (bus and boat) or slightly more if you choose to travel both ways by bus. Contact River Sun Cruises (tel. 02266-9125) for more details, but check websites (such as www.thairivercruise.com) for the full range of cruise options.

For an optimum river experience (without the coach travel), the Chao Phraya Express Co. (tel. 02222-5330) runs high-season tours on Sundays throughout December that go both ways by river. Tours depart Maharaj Pier at 7am (999B/US$28/£15), returning around 7pm. For a super-luxury cruise option, the Marriott Resort & Spa operates Manohra Cruises (tel. 02477-0770; www.manohracruises.com), offering a variety of day and evening cruises, including overnight trips to Ayutthaya and Bang Pa-in. Sometimes they also run trips to Koh Kret, a small river island just north of Bangkok, famed for its terracotta ware, crafted by descendants of the country's Mon people. These trips use fully renovated, traditional rice barges. Though they usually cost hundreds of dollars, special packages are available online or through travel agents.