Bangkok Floating Market Tour, Thailand

Damnoen Saduak Floating Market 

Bangkok city tour will not be complete without a floating market experience. We've arranged a package tour that will take us to Damnoen Saduak Floating Market, located in the province of Ratchaburi. It is considered to be the most famous tourist destination among the floating markets in Thailand. We just had an exciting and exhausting temple tour in the enormous Grand Palace of Thailand, so we decided to have a break in the morning and resume the temple run in the afternoon. Good thing a travel agency was offering packages for the floating market tours.  Let's go!

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Travel Tips

If you're still looking for plane tickets check out Skyscanner, it's a great platform that our family used to compare flight tickets and we always get the best deals there.

Places To Stay Around Bangkok

Our family trusts booking.com when it comes to hotels with great deals. Try to find accommodation in the city center as that will save you time traveling and makes the most of your vacation days.

Promo Package : 700 BAHT (inclusive pick-up transfer-back from hotel) 
Travel time: 2 hours away from Bangkok

As early as 6:45 am we were picked up from our place. There are actually buses going there but I wouldn't advise about it because I've heard that without a package tour they will charge you more for the boat ride. By 7:46 am we went to Khao San area to meet the other tourist and waited for quite some time for the latecomers. 

You're in the land of smiles, so what you do is smile. Share the love. Share the positivity. 

There is beautiful chaos as we go around the market. People taking pictures -present! , vendors continuously buzzing for customers, bidding customers and waters splashing in every corner.

What made me frown is that the market was overcrowded and some boats on the tour kept on bumping each other, and what made it worst was the motorized boats. I wasn't expecting this, now, I feel bad for the locals.

The smoke that came out from these boats combine with the heat was suffocating. It would be nice if they do it the old school way, like maybe using a normal paddle. I know it will take longer but most tourist want's a relaxing day and be able to see what's in the market, locals see the market every day and take everything just an ordinary day. It wasn't the case for me, it was all new and I wanted to take my time especially with the boat tour. 

Our paddler was a very kind looking lady she can't speak English so she just continuously smile and slows down every time I snap some shots. A simple gesture can mean a lot to somebody, so let's do any daily type of kindness to people we don't know. She was like this lotus candles, just floating in the river of Bangkok.

While roaming around the market I've stopped by in shops to the artist doing some handmade creative designs on elephant figurines and soap selections. 

A lot of refreshment was sold, a few of them I knew: Thailand's coconut juice and my friend's favorite drink Chang, a beer I've tried in Singapore at an affordable price and taste good too.

First on the list was to try the famous " Pad Thai " of Thailand. It's a mixture of ground pork, carrots, noodles, sprinkles of peanuts, sweet and sour sauce and with my favorite bean sprout. It tastes good and even better because I have the floating market insight. Food Prices range from 50 BAHT - 100 BAHT. More about that here: Food Tour in Bangkok

Damnoen Saduak Residence, Bangkok Thailand

The other side of Damnoen Saduak Floating Market

After we had our Damnoen Saduak Floating Market tour, an unexpected ride to another side of the river took my breath away. We headed to a place where the river takes us to the residential areas. There we were no vendors in this part of the river. 

This route was more relaxing compared to the first boat ride we had in the public market. The simple lifestyle the people face day to day in this area made the place more captivating.

I was seated near the paddler and the water was sprinkling everywhere, in spite of water lilies beauty to conceal what's below I'm not confident the water is clean. I guess he thought I was having fun and didn't mind being showered. I did not complain yet except the part where my camera was almost drenched. I thought I was going to be mad yet I was not feeling a slight worry at all, what I did laugh and the scared paddler joined me too. Hence, he started talking to me in simple English and he pointed out interesting things for me to see. In return, I translated it into English for the other passengers to see what I'm looking at. 

Sometimes he pats me hard in the shoulder to catch my attention, for I was busy taking some shots. It was funny and irritating at the same time, so I decided to drop my camera in my lap and let the boatman show me the wonders of the river - no regrets. We saw birds fly and hop around the sides, wooden houses and children waved at us as we passed by. 

I thought it was still part of the tour and then we were invited to see a cobra show or have lunch in the restaurant. The boat ride was supposed to be for the people who have thrown activities in one package. We only took one activity so it only means we had a free boat ride - not bad! I've always thought that the river was just for a market place, now I know that it's more than that and significantly the best way to see Thailand.

I just found Bumblebee's long lost grandfather and I'm still wondering how it got there. It felt like anytime it would transform to some kind of giant robot to back-up the transformers when they're in need, unfortunately, it stayed that way until I've lost my sight on it.

After we had our visit to the floating market, we headed to Wat Pho Temple or Wat Phra Chetuphon, famously known as the temple of the reclining Buddha and the Temple of the Dawn or Wat Arun located at the west side of Chao Phraya River. Wear proper dress code when you visit this temple, the same goes for Grand Palace to avoid renting clothes that are unnecessary for your budget list. We took the river ferry at Tha Tien Pier which is just a walking distance from Wat Pho Temple. 

On our way home, we also passed by a temple where you can hang some cute bells, have your name printed on it. My cousin told me you can pray or make a wish with your bell. I find it really interesting that night and the next following days got even better.

Have fun and be safe ^__^

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Do you want more adventure?

If you still have more days to spare then have an exciting day checking out these places :

1. Bangkok, Thailand Itinerary, 2.Temples of Bangkok, 3. Pasalubong from Bangkok 4. Must-try foods in Bangkok

Where am I going next?
My next adventure is a Backpacking Trip in Cambodia and seeing the ruins of Angkor Wat.