Bangkok Guide
Thanon Sukhumvit
ThanonSukhumvit is Bangkok's longest road – it keeps going east all the way to Cambodia – but for such an important artery it's way too narrow for the volume of traffic that needs to use it, and is further hemmed in by the overhead Skytrain line. Packed with high-rise hotels and office blocks, an impressive array of specialist restaurants (from Lebanese to Laotian), tailors, bookstores and stall after stall selling cheap souvenirs and T-shirts, it's a lively part of town that also attracts a high proportion of single male tourists to its enclaves of girlie bars on Soi Nana Tai, Soi Cowboy and the Clinton Entertainment Plaza. But for the most part it's not a seedy area, and is home to many expats and middle-class Thais.
Shops, restaurants and bars are Sukhumvit's main attractions, especially the burgeoning number of high-concept "destination bars", where the decor is as important as the drinks menu. But the museum-like northern Thai house Ban Kamthieng offers a refreshing alternative to the area's pervasive consumer culture, while the Thailand Creative and Design Centre aims to give you an insight into the nation's style and aesthetic.
The majority of overnighters are business travellers but Sukhumvit also has a couple of exceptional mid-priced guest houses. The most central accommodation is between and along sois 1 to 21; hotels further east are quite convenient for Suvarnabhumi Airport but far from the main shopping and eating hubs.
Sukhumvit is well served by the Skytrain, the subway and the Khlong Saen Saen canal boat service, but travelling across town to the sights of Ratanakosin by taxi or bus can take an age.
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