Are there any English-language sites for getting directions in Bangkok? When using Google Maps for Bangkok the places are in Thai of course. Any workarounds?

Are you looking for turn-by-turn directions from point A to point B? A map? Electronic or printed? How large an area, central? Metro? There are some GPS solutions as well.

I mostly use the MapMagic (http://www.thinknet.co.th/product-cd.html#CD_bkk) bi-lingual CD and paper map solution, 250 baht.

I'm not planning on driving, so walking or skytrain directions would be good as well. But mostly looking to see points A and B on a map online so I can figure how walkable it is and whatnot. Only looking for a short-term solution for a few days here and there so not really interested in making a purchase.

Look around hotels, official tourist info. stands, BTS stations etc. for free maps as those should satisfy your requirements.

Hot Map of Bangkok (http://www.hot-maps.de/asia/thailand/bangkok/homeen.html).

Here's another: Bangkok Bob (http://goasia.about.com/gi/dynamic/offsite.htm?zi=1/XJ&sdn=goasia&cdn=travel&tm=60&f=00&su=p531.31.152.ip_p531.29.420.ip_p284.8.150.ip_&tt=2&bt=0&bts=0&zu=http%3A//www.bangkokbob.net/city_map.htm).

And yet another: Sawadee (http://www.bangkok.sawadee.com/map/index.htm).

I'm not planning on driving, so walking or skytrain directions would be good as well. But mostly looking to see points A and B on a map online so I can figure how walkable it is and whatnot. Only looking for a short-term solution for a few days here and there so not really interested in making a purchase.

Bangkok is not a pedestrian friendly city. Most sidewalks are in poor condition and you will be competing with sidewalk vendors, soi dogs, beggars, blind karaoke singers, touts, and mototaxis for space. Sometimes there is NO sidewalk at all!

The BTS has a free map that shows nearby attractions at the stations. You could list the places you want to visit here and folks could suggest how to get to them.@:-)

Check out Nancy Chandler maps

http://http://www.nancychandler.net/product.asp?cId=11&case=b

Bangkok is not a pedestrian friendly city. Most sidewalks are in poor condition and you will be competing with sidewalk vendors, soi dogs, beggars, blind karaoke singers, touts, and mototaxis for space. Sometimes there is NO sidewalk at all!

The BTS has a free map that shows nearby attractions at the stations. You could list the places you want to visit here and folks could suggest how to get to them.@:-)

It depends a lot on the neighborhood, IME... many of the areas of Tourist interest -- downtown by the palace/main temples/museums (although they're a bit far apart, and too many damn touts), Sukhumvit (circus though it is), Silom, Siam Square, and Ratchada -- are all quite easily walkable. I haven't gone by Khao Sarn or Chinatown, which I guess would be two more major tourist ones.

Definitely use the BTS when possible, and the new subway isn't bad either. Taxis are usually pretty cheap, but it's hard to get them to do a metered trip when traffic is bad.

Hot Map of Bangkok (http://www.hot-maps.de/asia/thailand/bangkok/homeen.html).

Thanks everyone! This is the closest to what I was looking for.

Another example is the diddlefinger (http://diddlefinger.com/m/tokyoto/tokyo/384424/) site for Tokyo. You can use English and see the location on the Japanese Google Map.

Bangkok is not a pedestrian friendly city. Most sidewalks are in poor condition and you will be competing with sidewalk vendors, soi dogs, beggars, blind karaoke singers, touts, and mototaxis for space. Sometimes there is NO sidewalk at all!

The BTS has a free map that shows nearby attractions at the stations. You could list the places you want to visit here and folks could suggest how to get to them.@:-)

That is not true at all. I have walked from Sukhumvit Rd, Soi 8 to Hualaphong Station and back. There was a section that was rather boring and sparse, but since it was day time, I felt safe. There were some interesting houses/mansions along the way. Walking is one of the best ways, if not the only way, to get to know a city.

I have had lots of fun walking in BKK. But, I wouldn't call it pedestrian friendly. More like an obstacle course. It's the big cracks and holes in the sidewalks (where there are any) and the evident view of Thai drivers that walkers are an inferior species that should be exterminated that make it problematic. Wonder if the folks who run driver ed in Thailand studied at the Boston School of Driving and Pedestrian Hitting. :eek:

By the way, with rare exceptions, I see no reason to be very concerned with safety (from street crime) in BKK. Getting hit by a car--different story.

Thanks everyone! This is the closest to what I was looking for.

Another example is the diddlefinger (http://diddlefinger.com/m/tokyoto/tokyo/384424/) site for Tokyo. You can use English and see the location on the Japanese Google Map.

Of course that map does not show the BTS or MRT and the scale is pretty much useless for your stated requirements. (BTW it's really just an old paper map that has been scanned and indexed.) Interestingly the BTS stations are visible on Google Earth!

That's the problem with most of the on-line maps linked in this thread. They either have too little and/or too much scale, and are not particularly portable.

Any free tourist map will likely be much more useful.

Or some pretty good and inexpensive paper maps available widely from Bangkok Guide (http://www.bangkokguide.co.th/P_Publishing.htm).

Any reasonable journey in Bangkok will involve bus/bts/mrt, taxi, motorbike taxi, baht bus, khlong boat, riverboat taxi, mini-van and walking. You just have to mix/match to prioritize time and cost. Personally I walk a lot. There are quite a few dangerous neighborhoods for foreigners and those not from that neighborhood, and many places best avoided after dark if unfamiliar with your surroundings. I have never experienced problems but hear many stories, one or more of which might even be true.

I'm with Yaatri, for the most part. I've walked all over Bangkok, and I do mean all over. Experiencing the pockmarked sidewalks, dodging cabs and tuktuks, shooing away soi dogs (if necessary), shooing away touts of all descriptions (always necessary), browsing endless racks of unneeded t-shirts/trinkets/knockoffs, the SkyTrain rumbling overhead, avoiding the motos belching pollution (fewer, lately), trying to figure out what on earth that vendor is cooking-- it's all part of Bangkok's charm. I wouldn't call it altogether pedestrian-friendly, as compared to, say, Paris, but it's not unwalkable either, unless one is mobility-impaired. Walking a city, sometimes with no particular destination in mind or with a very distant one, is part of getting to know a city, any city. And in this case, it shows you a side of Bangkok that's not to be missed.

Just Jump in an off the Road Meter Cab, avoid the Touts lurking outside your hotel.

You can get almost anywhere in the inner city for under $3..YMMV if caught in Traffic Jam.

We were in Bankok recently and had no trouble getting tourist maps in English. If a site is on or near the river, you can take the Skytrain over to the river and catch one of the Express boats that go up and down the river. Very inexpensive and easy.

We were staying in the Sheraton Royal Orchid, which is on the river, and they ran a free shuttle boat every half hour to one of the Skytrain stations. Several other hotels had boats as well. That made it extremely easy.

We went to the Grand Palace by boat and then walked the 2-3 blocks - very easy and on sidewalks. We also went to the Jim Thompson House by Skytrain. It was about 1 1/2 blocks or so (maybe 2 1/2). There was sidewalk for the 1/2 block, then we had to walk in the street for the last, long block. It was a narrow street though, which meant traffic moved at a slower and safer pace. We still had to be alert though, as the cars often left only a narrow space between us and the buildings.

I just stumbled across this Google map which looks good, albeit in Thai.

http://www.bangkokrecorder.com/google-map/bangkok-map.html.

Of course, 250 Bhat is only about $7.50 in U.S. dollars.

The paper map, Bangkok A to Z from Bangkok Guide (http://www.bangkokguide.co.th/P_Publishing.htm) is 100 baht, is excellent and is widely available in bookshops.

The MapMagic CD, 250 baht, I mentioned in a previous post in this thread does come with a paper map, which is also excellent. I had a quick look at some of the free tourist maps over the past few days and they are good as well.

Walking challenges in Bangkok:

1.) Dogs (and their excrement); can be a bit scary when walking down a dimly lit sub-soi, especially when there is more than one.

2.) Giant woks filled with boiling hot oil, which splashes when the cook adds or removes items.

3.) Shoulder and head-high metal objects attached to signposts and utility poles. Particularly deadly if on a motorbike taxi.

4.) Other people walking with umbrellas.

5.) Motorbikes coming from behind you on the sidewalk; you can't really hear them.

6.) People opening the door of a taxi on the wrong side, and/or while it is still moving. (I saw a youngish boy get whacked with a taxi door 2 days ago, no major injuries but a lot of blood. I have also seen a few accidents involving foreigners exiting taxis on the wrong side and/or while it is moving, perhaps because of some dispute over the fare, and clipping a passing motorbike when opening the door, these can be ugly, and the foreigner can usually spend several thousand baht to extricate themselves from a dicey situation.)

7.) Street vendors, who leave only enough room for a single-file of pedestrians, and then purposefully block the flow of traffic to create an interest in their wares. Thank goodness for Mondays, when sidewalk vending is banned.

8.) General lack of courteousness and respect; stopping in the middle of a sidewalk to talk on the phone rather than moving to one side; walking 2 and 3 abreast rather than yielding to on-coming pedestrians.

9.) Motorbikes and cars parked (longterm) on the sidewalk requiring one to walk in the street to get around them.

10.) Treacherous walking surfaces; uneven, outright holes, loose paving stones. Avoid the sewer (manhole) covers (rectangular, every 50 feet or so), I see what people pour into the sewer system every day, and I've seen the crews when they clean them out. If one cover gave way and you fell in you're done for, although I did hear of one foreigner who managed to climb out.

11.) Your sub-soi after a hard rain; walking through 12 inch deep water (more or less sewage) is challenging. Some walk barefoot, I would not.

I have easy access to a great walking/running/biking path and two huge parks so am able to get exercise in a reasonably safe manner. If running on the sidewalks you have to be very alert or you will easily turn/break an ankle.

I agree with your 11 point walking warning. I would add,

12) The touts that tell you the Wat/Market/Palace is closed (Buddhist Holiday), but knows of another one that is open. :D

I am thinking about taking a massage course in Wat Po and staying at the JW Marriott (Nana on BTS). I don't know BKK at all. Classes would start 9AM. I wonder what would be the fastest way to get to Wat Po.

1 - if I take a taxi, would it get stuck in traffic?
2 - it seems I can take the Skytrain to the river and take the river boat. That is a little out of the way but I guess it might be faster - if the transfer/waiting time is not too long?
3 - or, take the BTS and then a taxi? Not sure how long the walk is from the nearest station (and not sure what the nearest station is)?
4 - is weekend traffic significantly better than weekday?

Thanks.

I am thinking about taking a massage course in Wat Po and staying at the JW Marriott (Nana on BTS). I don't know BKK at all. Classes would start 9AM. I wonder what would be the fastest way to get to Wat Po.
Your chosen points are pretty far apart, and there's no obviously superior option -- do you have to stay at the JW? If you need to get from there to Wat Po by 9 AM on a weekday, a taxi will very probably get stuck in traffic at some point, but it's definitely the easiest option. Skytrain to Saphan Taksin and Chao Phraya express boat from there is the most scenic route and immune to delays, but you'll need to transfer twice. One funky option would be Skytrain to Ratchathewi and connecting to the Saen Saep canal boat to the Golden Mount, from where it's a short (and jam-free) hop by taxi to Wat Po, but the canal boats are a little... intense... if you haven't tried them before.

A hotel on the river, and near a pier, would be ideal for a daily commute to Wat Pho. Also I am sure there are decent (clean, safe, aircon) accommodations within walking distance of Wat Pho. If you have to stay at the Marriott then take a taxi, plan to depart by 06:30, 06:00 if inclement weather. Some days you'll get to Wat Pho by 07:45, but there are worse places to hang out.

If using the canal boat, there are piers at Wireless Road (Wittayu) and Sukhumvit Soi 3 (Nana Nua). (Avoid the Wittayu pier after dark, which is now 18:15 local time.) For a return trip from Wat Pho I'd suggest going to Nana Nua pier (left-hand side) and then a motorbike taxi to the Marriott (3 min/10~20 baht). The walk between the Marriott and the Nana Nua pier would be ~ 10 minutes. As mentioned, the city terminal for the Khlong San Saeb canal boats is at Phan Fah Leelart (near Phu Kao Tong aka The Golden Mount and the Democracy Monument). You have to make a boat change at the Pratunam Pier. Cost for the boat is ~ 13 baht.

The route by BTS and Chao Phraya Express Boat will be reliable. I would allow 90 minutes for this trip, until you get the routine down. Maybe consider the Ploen Chit BTS stop as it may be a bit closer to the Marriott than the Nana BTS stop, then on to Siam (aim for door #2 on either the first or last cars as these open right at the escalators), exit at Siam, proceed down one level and to opposite platform and take the train to the end, Saphan Taksin, follow the signs to the boat pier (this part of the trip will take 15 ~ 20 min). You are going to Thai Tien Pier (No. 8) which I believe is only serviced by the Orange-flagged boat. So you may have up to a 20 minute wait for a boat. There may be a local service, stops at every pier, available during rush hour so just ask. You pay your fare on board to an attendant, which should be ~ 13 baht. You'll see Wat Arun on your left, a distinctive temple, and know that the next pier is Tha Tien. Work your way up to the boarding deck (try not to use the space there reserved for monks) and be ready to jump off the boat. It is a 1 min. walk to Wat Pho from here.

Thanks. I am using my Marriott points and am Plat. I know I can stay at a local hotel for much less but I have worked hard all year and want to do something nice for myself ;) Also, the fear that point could be devalued if I let them sit there.

I am concerned with the distance, thus asking now. I think if I make sure the course goes over a weekend, at least 2 out of the 5 days would be easy. Or, it is not better on weekends?

Thanks!

A hotel on the river, and near a pier, would be ideal for a daily commute to Wat Pho.
On Marriott points, the Marriott Resort would thus be the obvious option.

On Marriott points, the Marriott Resort would thus be the obvious option.

Yes, and I think the Si Phraya Pier (N3) is nearly on the property, and all boats stop at this pier. BTW, Thai Tien pier is N8.

I'd likely taxi it.

You can BUS It all the way. ^^^
Make your way by taxi (or walk) one major street back to New Petchburi Road. Bus # 16 or 23 (I forget) Wait for the Air Con bus. Takes you to Thewet, north of Khao San on Samsen. At that point you're a block away from the ferry boat (Thewez), but the river boat runs very infrequently on the weekends. Therefore your best opotion from here (only a few km away) is a Taxi or Tuk Tuk south on Samsen road to Wat Pho.

If you want to sky-train, Ratchetewi or Phaya Thai are the stops.

I would hop a motorcycle taxi from Ratchetewi, or a metered taxi from Phaya Thai.

Ratchetewi a bit closer, but involves a major 5 way intersection combined with a train crossing, and a toll way entrance. Not great for busses or taxis with the congestion at that intersection.

Phaya Thai is a bit north, but it will take you to Sri Ayhutaya road where a bus towards the river will let you off at Thewet/Thewez, then a taxi southbound down Samsen will get you down to Wat Pho without inflated prices. A taxi on Sri Ayhuttaya would likely be quicker in the AM too.


The CANAL BOAT as transpac poined out:
Sukhumvit Soi 3 (change boats mid way) to Golden Mount Temple (the last stop). At this point you're still a good 1.5 km away, so could take a tuk-tuk or taxi, but both will offer inflated prices.

TAXI
This routing when not high traffic period is neither far nor long with a good taxi.
They'll likely take Rama I, (Sukhumvit if you go the other way) all the way down past Siam/MBK, left under the raised highway (Rama #??) or at Siam Tesco/Lotus, to Petchburi, that big intersection, and likely Pitsanulok or up Ratchnadamneun Klang towards that end of town.

On Marriott points, the Marriott Resort would thus be the obvious option.

Thanks for everyone's reply. I will look over the map I got and ask more questions in a few days.

As far as JW vs. Marriott Resort. It seems the JW is in the middle of the city while the Resort is down the river. I figure it would be easier to go shopping and walk around from the JW. Comments?

Also, I can get a lower rate for additional rooms at the JW if my family joins me.

As far as JW vs. Marriott Resort. It seems the JW is in the middle of the city while the Resort is down the river. I figure it would be easier to go shopping and walk around from the JW. Comments?
Yes, the JW's location is more central if you're into flashy shopping malls (or flashier bargirls, as it's right around the corner from the rather infamous Nana Plaza). But Bangkok is a big city and the Marriott Resort is still firmly within the sprawl -- and it's only a few minutes by Skytrain to the bright lights of Silom/Sukhumvit. You could always hedge your bets and try both!

I just stumbled across this Google map which looks good, albeit in Thai.

http://www.bangkokrecorder.com/google-map/bangkok-map.html.

FWIW, Google Maps for Bangkok & Thailand now available in English!^

Example: Asoke BTS Station (http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&geocode=&q=asok+bts+station&sll=13.732256,100.554171&sspn=0.017301,0.029182&ie=UTF8&t=h&z=15)

FWIW, Google Maps for Bangkok & Thailand now available in English!^
Wow, nice find. I really like how they're taking advantage of all the placemarking work (http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&geocode=&q=pantip+plaza&sll=13.74791,100.544182&sspn=0.004815,0.008669&ie=UTF8&t=h&z=16) (query: Pantip Plaza) done by other users. I wonder how many other countries / cities also have English maps live...

FWIW, Google Maps for Bangkok & Thailand now available in English!^

Example: Asoke BTS Station (http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&geocode=&q=asok+bts+station&sll=13.732256,100.554171&sspn=0.017301,0.029182&ie=UTF8&t=h&z=15)

Very cool. Thanks for updating the thread!

Via Michelin (http://www.viamichelin.fr/viamichelin/int/dyn/controller/Cartes-plans?mapId=-tute3oaw6pl8er&initialMap=mapid&dx=804&dy=389&empriseW=1608&empriseH=779) has a nice zoomable, scrollable map.

The resort is on Thonburi side of BKK. You will have to cross Chao Phraya river to most places that you want to see. JW is, as you pointed out, in the middle of BKK which will make things easier for you to get around (bts and underground train).

However, you can easily get to Wat Po and grand palace very easily from the resort via the riverboats. How many days will you be in BKK? Is it possible to split your stays at both places?

If you're staying at JW and need to go to Wat Po on the wknd, I would recommend taking taxi since the traffic wont be bad that early in the morning. Thus, sleeping in a little more and enjoy your vacation.

drew