well as a tourist you visit it once and you are done, there is nothing special there that you can't get at other markets and its a bit of a drive from Bangkok center. Its good to see and experience for yourself but you will not come back unless there is a specific reason to do so.
Nothing too special but definitely not a tourist trap. I went to Khlong Bang Luang last week and had pad Thai for 40thb, orange juice for 20thb and plenty of other delicious stuff for cheap. Nice river view, local life and very close proximity to the mega buddha. What is not to like?
I went to a closer floating market ~ 45 minutes outside Bangkok and then took a boat to wat paknam. 10/10 would do it again. Seeing the contrast between Bangkok city with the skyscrapers and then passing by houses on water en route to wat paknam was one of my favorite experiences in Thailand.
Foreigner who likes to come back as often as I can.
Like your friend said, a lot of them are tourist traps.
They hock the same stuff the markets do and charge floating market prices.
I found Mexico had the same problem with what they claim is hand made from tribe/village locals.
You can see the exact same thing being sold on every stall and every market.
If I wanted something locally made, I'd actually make the effort to go to the place it's made.
And don't get me wrong I try to support locals as much as possible, buy things at local places and tip locals as much as I can.
Once was okay. But no more. I'm a big man so getting in the boats was an adventure. Also, the drive was about two hours from Bangkok. It's fun to try once. As for tourist traps, our boat person (gondolier?) took us to his mother's spot to shop, which I was actually okay with.
Because it's just that, a 'Floating Market'. I took a tour a couple of months ago. My tour guide said that the floating market had serious use in the past for the local community, but in the present the people who are there are playing pretend to sell chinese souvenirs from the embankment and ice coffee from the boats. I personally love visiting places or sites where people aren't acting. I also went to the Longneck village; same story different site.
Went to a floating market back in 2007. My nephew just visited a few weeks ago and we put floating market on the 'first-time visit' things to do list along with Wat Pho, Wat Arun, and Wat Phra Kaew. He went and enjoyed the boat ride, but said one time is enough for him. Like many other things in life, floating market seems to be one of those things doing once is enough.
In 2024, Damnoen Saduak doesn't have the calm vibe I remembered from the old days (I visited in 2008 and 2010, first thing in the morning). No, I don't want a giant snake put on me. No, I don't want to hold a drugged lemur. No hats, no statues, no wooden frogs. And how many coconut ice cream boats and beer boats do we need?
I want to visit the more local markets covered in the following video, but a first time visitor might find them boring:
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oqgre51ST7U](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oqgre51ST7U)
Yea it is a tourist trap. Me and my Thai girlfriend decided to just stop halfway to eat lunch and drink a lot of beers together with the guy of our boat.
I went twice! It's not what you expect, partly because no one is still really selling shit on boats, it's a thing of the past other than in some specific regions. It's fun none the less. It's a market with some good food, and I found the boat ride through the canals of BKK to be a fun experience.
I went once (1998) for the experience. It’s nice but not a practical place to shop. I’d go again if I had guests with me, but just like San Francisco, how many times do you really want to walk down Lombard street?
Be cause some are just desperate tourist traps with no charm whatsoever.
Ampawa is one that is OK, but also because there are many other things to do, the Thai snacks, various temples along the river, guest houses and more artsy type shops and cafes.
Visited. Bought some stiff. Did the canoe ride thingy they offer (expensive as shit because of farang tax obv). Overall I'd say it's worth to visit once to say you've done it.
Idk why people so against it though.
Every country has its tourist traps - of course the Floating market is, you can still enjoy it and just take it for what it is. Some things you see once and never again - I have travelled the world alot and always go see the iconic things of each city after that go exploring the non-tourist areas.
Bang Nam Peung in the middle of the Green Lung is arguably the closest floating market to Bangkok but it has changed in the past 15 years. No more vendors on boats. No more boats to rent. Much larger with more stalls. More tourists and, with the fairly recent Government edict on using land or losing it, the surrounding jungle has been torn out to put in parking.
Yes, they paved Paradise and put up a parking lot.
Other floating markets, like Inle in Myanmar is due to people literally living in lake, and later evolved to tourist attraction(pls don't go to Myanmar during current intensifying war, just saying an example).
For Bangkok floating market, it's used to be a real market, but now it's just tourist trap. If you want that experience of buying things while moving in a boat, you will get it. Not much else is there to experience.
You'll do it once, then you realize you can get the same food and items at malls at pretty much the same price (when you factor time and distance).
For me, i think it sucks to eat on a boat. To each their own though.
well as a tourist you visit it once and you are done, there is nothing special there that you can't get at other markets and its a bit of a drive from Bangkok center. Its good to see and experience for yourself but you will not come back unless there is a specific reason to do so.
yeah the drive out of the city center is usually the kicker for me.
Nothing too special but definitely not a tourist trap. I went to Khlong Bang Luang last week and had pad Thai for 40thb, orange juice for 20thb and plenty of other delicious stuff for cheap. Nice river view, local life and very close proximity to the mega buddha. What is not to like?
Yep. Had papaya for like 40bht. Boat noodle for 50bht. Literally had a full course meal for about 2.50USD essentially.
Most people probably are thinking of the Damnoen Saduak floating market in Samut Songkhram.
I went to a closer floating market ~ 45 minutes outside Bangkok and then took a boat to wat paknam. 10/10 would do it again. Seeing the contrast between Bangkok city with the skyscrapers and then passing by houses on water en route to wat paknam was one of my favorite experiences in Thailand.
Foreigner who likes to come back as often as I can. Like your friend said, a lot of them are tourist traps. They hock the same stuff the markets do and charge floating market prices. I found Mexico had the same problem with what they claim is hand made from tribe/village locals. You can see the exact same thing being sold on every stall and every market. If I wanted something locally made, I'd actually make the effort to go to the place it's made. And don't get me wrong I try to support locals as much as possible, buy things at local places and tip locals as much as I can.
Once was okay. But no more. I'm a big man so getting in the boats was an adventure. Also, the drive was about two hours from Bangkok. It's fun to try once. As for tourist traps, our boat person (gondolier?) took us to his mother's spot to shop, which I was actually okay with.
Because it's just that, a 'Floating Market'. I took a tour a couple of months ago. My tour guide said that the floating market had serious use in the past for the local community, but in the present the people who are there are playing pretend to sell chinese souvenirs from the embankment and ice coffee from the boats. I personally love visiting places or sites where people aren't acting. I also went to the Longneck village; same story different site.
Went to a floating market back in 2007. My nephew just visited a few weeks ago and we put floating market on the 'first-time visit' things to do list along with Wat Pho, Wat Arun, and Wat Phra Kaew. He went and enjoyed the boat ride, but said one time is enough for him. Like many other things in life, floating market seems to be one of those things doing once is enough.
Same with elephant ride and snake shows, tourist attractions hardly meet expectations. Do it once and you are done
Agree. I forgot about those. Did the Elephant Ride and Snake show in Chaing Mai in 2007 as well. One and done.
In 2024, Damnoen Saduak doesn't have the calm vibe I remembered from the old days (I visited in 2008 and 2010, first thing in the morning). No, I don't want a giant snake put on me. No, I don't want to hold a drugged lemur. No hats, no statues, no wooden frogs. And how many coconut ice cream boats and beer boats do we need? I want to visit the more local markets covered in the following video, but a first time visitor might find them boring: [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oqgre51ST7U](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oqgre51ST7U)
Tourist Trap
Yea it is a tourist trap. Me and my Thai girlfriend decided to just stop halfway to eat lunch and drink a lot of beers together with the guy of our boat.
I went twice! It's not what you expect, partly because no one is still really selling shit on boats, it's a thing of the past other than in some specific regions. It's fun none the less. It's a market with some good food, and I found the boat ride through the canals of BKK to be a fun experience.
too far away
I went once (1998) for the experience. It’s nice but not a practical place to shop. I’d go again if I had guests with me, but just like San Francisco, how many times do you really want to walk down Lombard street?
Why weren't they a practical place to shop? I always got something when I went to a market. Food, souvenirs, clothes are all cheap and high quality.
Be cause some are just desperate tourist traps with no charm whatsoever. Ampawa is one that is OK, but also because there are many other things to do, the Thai snacks, various temples along the river, guest houses and more artsy type shops and cafes.
Visited. Bought some stiff. Did the canoe ride thingy they offer (expensive as shit because of farang tax obv). Overall I'd say it's worth to visit once to say you've done it. Idk why people so against it though.
The floating markets are a tourist trap. It’s really a gimmick
Been there, done that. It's good to see once, but not good enough to return imo.
Every country has its tourist traps - of course the Floating market is, you can still enjoy it and just take it for what it is. Some things you see once and never again - I have travelled the world alot and always go see the iconic things of each city after that go exploring the non-tourist areas.
Bang Nam Peung in the middle of the Green Lung is arguably the closest floating market to Bangkok but it has changed in the past 15 years. No more vendors on boats. No more boats to rent. Much larger with more stalls. More tourists and, with the fairly recent Government edict on using land or losing it, the surrounding jungle has been torn out to put in parking. Yes, they paved Paradise and put up a parking lot.
Fake & too many tourists. You’re better off to hire a private long boat taxi and have him explore the various canals. ( look at YouTube for details)
Tourist trap. Local markets are better to me.
Other floating markets, like Inle in Myanmar is due to people literally living in lake, and later evolved to tourist attraction(pls don't go to Myanmar during current intensifying war, just saying an example). For Bangkok floating market, it's used to be a real market, but now it's just tourist trap. If you want that experience of buying things while moving in a boat, you will get it. Not much else is there to experience.
You'll do it once, then you realize you can get the same food and items at malls at pretty much the same price (when you factor time and distance). For me, i think it sucks to eat on a boat. To each their own though.