Five days in Bangkok covers the Old City temples, modern Sukhumvit, Chatuchak Market, a full Ayutthaya day trip by intercity train, and a combined Maeklong Railway Market plus Damnoen Saduak Floating Market run. The route averages 5-10 km of walking or cycling per day, with no day requiring more than two transit transfers.

Day by day

Day 1: Rattanakosin: Old City Temples and Yaowarat

  • Grand Palace and Wat Phra Kaew — 2.5 hr. Arrive at 8:15 AM. $14 entry with audio guide. Long pants and covered shoulders required; sarongs at the entrance carry a refundable $3 deposit. Last ticket 2:30pm.
  • Walk south to Wat Pho — 5 min. $8.50 entry. 46-meter Reclining Buddha hall. Enter from the east gate on Sanam Chai Road; the south gate has the tour-bus queue.
  • Rest valve — lunch at any lokanta on Maharat Road behind Wat Pho — 45 min. Khao Man Gai or pad krapow gai $2-4.
  • Cross-river shuttle ferry from Tha Tien pier to Wat Arun — 5 min. $0.15 each way (cash only).
  • Wat Arun (Temple of Dawn) — 1 hr. $5.50 entry. Climb to the second tier only.
  • Ferry back to Tha Tien, walk to Tha Chang Express pier — 15 min.
  • Chao Phraya Express orange-flag boat from Tha Chang south to Saphan Taksin — 25 min. $0.45.
  • BTS Silom Line from Saphan Taksin to Wat Mangkon (via MRT transfer at Sala Daeng) — 25-30 min. $1.20-1.60.
  • Yaowarat (Chinatown) night street food — 1.5 hr. Phadungdao alley runs the seafood-grill stalls at half the price of Yaowarat Road frontage. Cash only.
  • Total: ~6 km walking; 2 ferries, 1 BTS segment, 1 MRT segment.

Day 2: Sukhumvit, Siam, and the Riverfront

  • Jim Thompson House — 1 hr. $7 entry at the gate. 1959 teak-house compound. BTS National Stadium exit 1.
  • BTS from National Stadium to Siam — 2 min. $0.50.
  • Rest valve — lunch at Som Tam Nua, Siam Square Soi 5 — 45 min. Som Tam Thai, gai yang, sticky rice $5-7 per person.
  • Walk through Siam Paragon and MBK Center to BTS Siam — 45 min.
  • BTS Sukhumvit Line from Siam to Asok — 8 min. $0.65. Walk through Terminal 21 to Sukhumvit MRT.
  • MRT from Sukhumvit to Lumphini — 5 min. $0.45.
  • Lumphini Park walk — 1 hr. 57-hectare park with the largest monitor lizard population in central Bangkok. Free.
  • MRT to Silom, BTS Silom Line to Saphan Taksin — 15 min. $0.90.
  • Free Asiatique shuttle boat from Sathorn pier — 15 min. Departures every 30 min from 4pm.
  • Asiatique riverfront — 1.5 hr. Sunset and dinner at the riverside food halls. Mid-range plates $4-8.
  • Free shuttle back to Sathorn pier — 15 min. Last service 11:30pm.
  • Total: ~5 km walking; 4 BTS segments, 2 MRT segments, 2 shuttle boats.

Day 3: Chatuchak Market, Wat Saket, and Phra Athit

  • MRT Blue Line to Chatuchak Park or BTS to Mo Chit — 20-30 min. $0.65-1.20.
  • Chatuchak Weekend Market (Sat-Sun) — 3 hr. 27 numbered sections, 8,000+ stalls. Pick up a free printed map at any information booth. On weekdays, swap to Or Tor Kor Market across the road.
  • Rest valve — lunch at Section 26 food zone — 45 min. Khao Mok Gai, Pad Thai, and mango sticky rice $2-5 per dish.
  • MRT from Chatuchak Park to Sam Yot — 20 min. $0.85.
  • Walk from Sam Yot exit 3 north to Wat Saket — 20 min.
  • Wat Saket (Golden Mount) — 1 hr. $0.55 entry. 318 numbered concrete steps to the summit chedi. Widest free 360° Old City viewpoint in the city.
  • Walk west through the Banglamphu antique market lanes to Phra Athit pier — 30 min.
  • Santichaiprakan Park and Phra Sumen Fort — 45 min. 1783 white octagonal fort, free park along the river.
  • Chao Phraya Express orange-flag boat from Phra Athit pier south to Saphan Taksin BTS — 30 min. $0.45.
  • Total: ~6 km walking; 2 MRT segments, 1 ferry.

Day 4: Day Trip: Ayutthaya by Intercity Train

  • BTS to Bang Sue (transfer to MRT Blue Line, one stop to Krung Thep Aphiwat Central Station) — 30 min from Sukhumvit. $1.10.
  • Intercity train from Krung Thep Aphiwat to Ayutthaya — 1.5-1.75 hr. $1 ordinary class (no air conditioning), $6 second-class express with air conditioning. Departures 7:10, 8:20, 9:25 AM. Buy at the station counter; no online sales for ordinary class.
  • Rent a bicycle at the Ayutthaya station rental shop opposite the exit — full-day cycling. $2 per day plus passport deposit. Motor traffic is light; the temple ruins cluster within a 4 km radius of the station.
  • Wat Mahathat — 1 hr. $1.65 entry. The 14th-century Buddha head wrapped in Bodhi tree roots is the single most-photographed object in central Thailand; it sits inside the second courtyard, behind the main prang.
  • Wat Phra Si Sanphet — 45 min. $1.65 entry. Three identical 15th-century chedis built by King Trailok over the cremated remains of three kings of the Ayutthaya kingdom.
  • Wihan Phra Mongkhon Bophit — 30 min. Free entry. The 17-meter bronze Buddha is one of the largest seated bronze Buddhas in Thailand; the current hall was rebuilt in 1956 over the 15th-century original.
  • Rest valve — lunch at a canalside stall near Bang Ian Night Market — 45 min. Khao Mok Gai (Thai-Muslim chicken biryani) $2-4 per plate, or Roti Sai Mai (Ayutthaya's signature sweet thread candy wrapped in thin green pancakes) $0.30-0.55 per roll.
  • Cycle 1.5 km west across the river to Wat Chaiwatthanaram — 1 hr. $1.65 entry. The 17th-century Khmer-influenced complex on the river's west bank lights up at sunset; the central prang and the eight surrounding chedis sit on a single elevated plinth.
  • Cycle back to Ayutthaya station — 25 min.
  • Train from Ayutthaya back to Bangkok at 5:42 PM or 6:00 PM — 1.5-1.75 hr. $1-6 depending on class.
  • Total: ~10 km cycling on the island; 2 intercity train segments, 1 BTS + 1 MRT each way.

Day 5: Day Trip: Maeklong Railway Market + Damnoen Saduak

  • BTS to Victory Monument — 15-30 min from central. $0.65-1.20. Walk to the minivan station on the north side of the monument circle (exit 4).
  • Minivan from Victory Monument to Maeklong — 1.5 hr. $3 one-way. Departures every 45 min from 6am.
  • Maeklong Railway Market — 1.5 hr. Free to walk. Position yourself on the track before 11am to watch the 11:10 AM train thread the market; vendors retract their awnings and pull baskets back from the rail in a 60-second choreographed sweep, then put everything back the moment the last car passes. The other train times (8:30am, 2:30pm, 5:40pm) are equally dramatic.
  • Rest valve — lunch at the trackside stalls before the train arrival — 45 min. Grilled prawns on bamboo skewers, fresh-cracked coconut, and Thai iced tea (cha yen) $1-3 per item.
  • Shared songthaew (pickup truck) from Maeklong to Damnoen Saduak — 45 min. $1.65. Departures from the Maeklong market exit road.
  • Damnoen Saduak Floating Market — 1.5 hr. Free entry to the towpath. A rowed sampan tour through the canals costs $11 for 30 min, $20 for an hour; the rowed boats handle better in the canal bumper-jam than the motorized long-tails. By 2pm most working vendors have left and the canal goes quiet.
  • Minivan from Damnoen Saduak back to Victory Monument — 2 hr. $3. Last reliable departure 4:30 PM.
  • Evening at the Wat Pho Thai Massage School — 1 hr. $13 for a traditional 1-hour Thai massage, no booking required. The school is the headquarters of the national Thai massage training program and the practitioners are senior instructors. Located on Sanam Chai Road across from Wat Pho's south gate.
  • Total: ~3 km walking on tour stops; 2 minivans, 1 songthaew, 1 BTS each way.
Traveller Tips
  • Book Day 4 train tickets the day before at Krung Thep Aphiwat station — second-class express seats fill in advance Dec-Feb. Ordinary class is walk-up only and tolerable for the 1.5-hr ride.
  • Day 5 only runs efficiently if you depart Victory Monument by 7am for the 8:30 AM Maeklong train arrival. Missing the 8:30 means waiting until 11:10 — still worth it but compresses Damnoen Saduak into late afternoon when the market is dead.
  • If you visit Bangkok on weekdays only and miss the Chatuchak weekend, swap Day 3 with a half-day at Or Tor Kor produce market plus an afternoon at the Bangkok National Museum (closed Mon-Tue; check before swapping).
  • Days 4 and 5 are physically demanding back-to-back. If you prefer a single day trip, take Day 4 (Ayutthaya) over Day 5 — the Ayutthaya cycling route is the better cultural payoff for the same calorie cost.
  • Carry $42-56 cash on Day 5: minivan fares, songthaew, market food, boat ride, and massage are all cash only. ATMs in Damnoen Saduak charge double the city Bangkok Bank fee.