UNISEX SALON CREATE YOUR STYLE WITH US

Shopping in Bangkok

 

Siam Paragon Department Store

Location: Siam Paragon
Expect to find: The glamorous, the rich, the beautiful and the curious. Painfully beautiful things too, with an emphasis on fashionable, luxury living.
Value: Everything comes with a price tag. Some price tags are just considerably larger, so remember to take your credit card along. Bargains on some things abound during end-of-season sales, which happens to be once a month at least.
Verdict: You can't boast of your shopping experience in Bangkok without stopping by here.

 

Central Department Store Bangkok

Locations: Silom Centre, Central Chidlom, Central Pink Lao, Central City Bangna, various other locations
Expect to find: Sherlock Holmes look-alikes, moleskin journals and fountain pens.
Value: A good place to find a quality gift for someone. Or reasonably-priced clothing, shoes and apparel.
Verdict: Excellent for flash-shopping

The Emporium Department Store

Location: The Emporium
Expect to find: Top local and international brands, local and visiting celebs, Arabian princesses, 'katoey' (ladyboy) beauty consultants and hi-society shoppers.
Value: Supreme fashions don't come cheap. Often, you can pick up a good deal though if you keep your eyes peeled for promotions and discounts.
Verdict: If you come to Bangkok for shopping, it's not to be missed.

 

Chatuchak Market (Weekend market)

Covering 70 rai (35 acres) of land with over 15,000 stalls and more than 200,000 visitors every Saturday and Sunday, Chatuchak Weekend Market in Bangkok is the mother of all markets - and possibly one of the biggest and most famous markets in the world.

If bargain-hunting gives you an adrenalin rush, get ready for a head-spinning, earth-moving experience. Conquering this massive market is no easy feat though. The reward for taking a lot of patience along - together with a bottle of water - is that you can find pretty much anything here.

 

Sampeng Lane & Pahurat Textile Market

Making your way through one of these alleys and towards the other side of the block, shops selling posters of Hindu Gods alongside various Indian paraphernalia slowly begin to appear. A few cafes filled with Indian men chatting away, not to mention mouth-watering smells of Indian cuisine, confirm you're in 'Little India'. On the other side of the block more gastronomical delights await as cafes and a few food hawkers along Soi ATM provide delicious north Indian cuisine.

How to get there: Take the subway to MRT Hualompong station. From there, bus number 40 passes through Pahurat and Chinatown. Several taxis and tuk-tuks are also available for hire (35-40 baht).
What to buy: At Sampeng Lane, wholesale goods such as rubber items (flip-flops, baskets, etc) and herbs; at Pahurat, textiles, Indian foods and gifts.
Open: Around 09:00 - 18:00 weekdays (every day)

Platinum Fashion Mall

This massive wholesale mall is a source for retail shops all around Bangkok, from Khao San Road to Siam Square. You'll find many of the same brands at Chatuchak. Bargain hunters can still pay wholesale prices by purchasing a minimum of three pieces from the same store. If you are lucky you can pay the wholesale price for just two pieces. With more than 1,300 shops, you'll need at least four hours to get through the mall.

The five-story mall offers everything to make shopping easier: 1,500-car parking facility, washrooms on every floor, a colossal food court, air-conditioninig and spacious aisles.Platinum Fashion Mall

MBK Shopping Center

The multi-storey MBK, or Mah Boon Krong, is probably Bangkok's most legendary shopping mall, popular with both tourists and locals. Eight floors packed with 2,000 shops that sell everything from clothing, fashion accessories, handbags, leather products and luggage to furniture, mobile phones, electric appliances, cameras, stationery and DVD's (and then some). MBK (launched in 1986) is a beehive of activity, especially on weekends, when half of Bangkok converges to shop for bargains. And plenty of bargains are to be found here!

Open: 11:00 - 22:00
Location: Phayathai Road, Pathumwan
BTS: National Stadium

Central world

There are hundreds of shops, scores of restaurants, cinemas, and an ice skating rink.
In front, there are often open-air concerts by popular Thai bands, open-air restaurants, and beer gardens, but these seem to come and go depending on the seasons. There used to be a replica of a pirate ship serving Carlsberg beer, but it disappeared overnight!
Central World Plaza is on Rajdamri Road, go up Sukhumvit, past the railway crossing, the road changes its name to Ploenchit, When you get to the Intercontinental Hotel and Amarin Plaza, World Trade is on the right just over the traffic lights at the junction of both roads and sky train. It’s so big you can’t miss it! Just get in a taxi and say "World Trade", the old name sticks.

December 2006 saw the opening of the new and improved Central World Plaza (above), now almost twice the size, and totally refurbished and clad in giant glass panels. The dismal and boring former building is re-born!

Enter from the Sky Walk into the newly built extension, and you will find many upmarket shops and on the 7th floor is the largest supermarket I have seen in Thailand, truly international brands not previously available.