Shop till you drop... and other Bangkok, Thailand Shopping Tips

Name of Shop: The MBK Mall and neighbours

Bangkok has lots of cheap (as well as not so cheap) and excellent places to shop. I particularly like the airconditioned comfort of the interconnected Siam Centre, Siam Discovery Centre and MBK (pictured) shopping malls. The MBK centre is huge; there are hundreds of shops on 7 floors. It's well known as a place to buy a mobile phone and also has a vast array of other goods - clothing, luggage, electronics etc - it's is a good place to go looking for cheap goods generally. There's also a food court and a cinema in the complex, as well as the Pathumwan Princess Hotel.

The two malls nearby are more upmarket -the Siam Discovery Centre particularly so and have lots of branded fashion goods - not generally fakes - and there's also a good place to buy CDs - CD Warehouse - in the Siam Centre. The Siam (Central) Skytrain station is right in the middle of these 3 malls. If that isn't enough for you, there's another mall - the Siam Paragon - under development next door to the Siam Centre.



Leave a Comment

Theme: Other
Address: Rama 1 Road, Pathumwan, Bangkok
Directions: National Stadium Station.
Website: http://www.mbk-center.com/

This huge mall was called the World Trade Center until a few years ago, and doubtless many taxi drivers will still call it that. It changed its name in 2003 to Central World Plaza, following a change of ownership. Now, the mall has been remodelled and undergone another name change, this time the name has been shortened to CentralWorld. The name comes from the parent group - the Central Group that run the chain of Central Department stores and are the local partner in the Big C hypermarket chain, and they have plans to add a hotel to the mall in the near future.

There is an excellent department store - Isetan - within the complex. There are also cinemas and a food court, 2 good bookshops - Asia Books and Kinokuniya, and in peak season (December to February) a beer garden is set up outside. If you need a western fast-food fix there is also plenty to choose from here. The shops inside the complex are generally open from 10am until 9pm.

It's particularly handy for the Indra Regent, Amari Watergate and Baiyoke Sky hotels, all of which are a short walk to the north.

If there aren't enough shops for you in the centre itself - just cross the road (via the footbridge) and you'll find a huge Big C, the upmarket Gaysorn Plaza, and several other shopping opportunties...

If that hasn't got you all shopped out there's also a new walkway under the Skytrain line which will take you right to the doors of the Siam Center and the new Siam Paragon mall.



Leave a Comment

Theme: Other
Address: Ratchadamri Road
Directions: A short walk from either Siam or Chit Lom skytrain stations. It's also just south from the Pratunam clothing market.

Name of Shop: Isetan

I think it's the cool refinement of this Japanese-owned department store that impresses me most; everything is neat and tidy and well arranged. Quite a lot of stuff is fairly reasonably priced too, and I've picked up quite a few souvenirs here. Even when I don't buy anything it's a nice place to come and browse.

Open from 10am-9pm daily.



Leave a Comment

Theme: Department Store
Phone: 02-2559898
Address: Ratchadamri Street, Bangkok
Directions: Right inside Central World Plaza, on the right hand side. A short walk from the Chitlom skytrain station.

Name of Shop: Narayana Phand

If you're looking for a nice souvenir, it could be worth your while stopping by this gift and handicraft store. It has a wide range of high-quality goods and it's conveniently located across the road from the World Trade Center. It's not completely easy to spot as it's inside a small shopping arcade, but look just north of Gaysorn Plaza and you should find it.

Items include hand-carved wooden items, ceramics and fabrics. You'll probably get better bargains at Chatuchak, but if you're looking for something specific and/or it's not the weekend, this could be the place to go.

Open from 10am to 8pm daily.



Leave a Comment

Theme: Local Craft
Phone: (02) 252 4670
Address: 127 Ratchadamri Road
Directions: A short walk from Chitlom skytrain station.

Name of Shop: Gaysorn Plaza

This curiously-named upmarket mall near the World Trade Center is full of designer-label shops such as Fendi and Prada. There are several local designer-label shops and some very pricey jewellery stores too. This place will definitely stretch your credit card!

If you can't afford any of this, just go for a stroll and enjoy the fierce air-conditioning as you window-shop. It's open 10am until 9pm every day.



Leave a Comment

Theme: Other
Address: 999 Ploenchit Road
Directions: Connected to Chidlom Skytrain station via a walkway.
Website: http://www.gaysorn.com/

Name of Shop: Big C

Thai-style hypermarket shopping has recently arrived in inner-city Bangkok with the opening of a huge Big C store on Ratchadamri Road, opposite the World Trade Center. The layout is a little different to most Big C stores - there are small shops on the ground floor, then the Big C retail area covers most of the next 2 floors up, and the next floor up from that is a food court.

Fixed, generally low prices, and credit cards accepted should you want to buy a whole load of stuff. There's a parking lot and taxi stand in the basement should you need to transport your purchases away. It's also airconditioned, of course, and is currently open daily from 9am until 11pm.

A 10-screen multiplex cinema is located on the top floor; in its first week it had The Matrix Revolutions showing on all 10 screens!

What To Buy: Big C is an excellent place to buy good quality cheap clothing, toiletries, cosmetics, and any manner of food and drink. This is especially so if you don't like bargaining or want to avoid fake goods (Thai hypermarkets are generally fake-free - if you see a brand name here, it's almost certainly genuine).

What To Pay: Depends what you're buying - T-Shirts, for example can go as low as 77 baht, or you might pay 800 baht for a good-quality pair of jeans...

Leave a Comment

Theme: Discount Store
Phone: 0-22504888
Address: Ratchadamri Road (also spelt Rajdamri Road)
Directions: A short walk from Chitlom skytrain station.
Website: http://www.bigc.co.th/en/index.asp

Name of Shop: The Emporium

The Emporium shopping mall is full of upmarket shops selling all sorts of designer labels - you can severely dent your credit card here! There are also some very expensive jewellers.

Personally I come for the shops on the upper floors, including the Kinokuniya and Asia Books bookshops, and CD Warehouse. Just my thing! There's also a handy internet cafe, a department store, a food court, and a multiplex cinema (run by the SF Cinema chain).

It's open from 10.30am (10 at weekends) until 10pm, and it's very easy to get to - it's directly connected to the nearby Skytrain station with a footbridge.



Leave a Comment

Theme: Other
Address: Sukhumvit Soi 24
Directions: Directly adjacent to Phrom Phong skytrain station.
Website: www.emporiumthailand.com

Name of Shop: Robinson

If you're staying on Sukhumvit and feel the need to do a little department-store shopping, Robinson (near Soi 19) is very handy indeed. It's nothing spectacular but has a good range of mid-priced clothing and a good variety of other goods. It's open from 10am to 10pm daily.

There's also a convenient exchange booth near the entrance of the store on Sukhumvit Road, in case you need to change a traveller's cheque.

If you need an urgent fast-food fix, there's a McDonalds on the ground floor, too.



Leave a Comment

Theme: Department Store
Address: 259 Sukhumvit Road (between Soi 17 and 19)
Directions: Near the Asoke skytrain station.

Name of Shop: Asia Books

Want to buy an English language book in Bangkok? If you do, it's worth checking out Asia Books. As well as imports, there's a surprisingly large number of locally-published English language books - very useful if you want to delve deeper into the local culture. They also have great "coffee-table" books which make nice souvenirs, both on Thailand and neighbouring countries.

There are branches of Asia Books on Sukhumvit Road, in the Siam Discovery Center, the World Trade Centre and the Emporium shopping mall. Take a look at www.asiabook.com/store/maps.asp for branch details. The branch pictured is located at 221 Sukhumvit Road, near to the Robinson Department Store and the Asok Skytrain station. Unlike the Bookazine chain, there are currently no branches outside Bangkok, so if you see a book there you like, it may be wise to get it before you leave town.

Incidentally, although you can get books on your way home at Bangkok airport, they are much more expensive there than the shops in town - beware!



Leave a Comment

Theme: Books
Phone: (02) 715-9000
Website: http://www.asiabook.com/

Name of Shop: Bookazine

Bookazine, as the name suggests, has a good stock of English language magazines as well as a great selection of books. You get a slightly smaller book selection than in most branches of Asia Books, but this is made up for in most branches by the addition of local and international newspapers.

There are several branches of Bookazine around Bangkok (including two on Silom Road), but the one I usually go into is pictured. This branch is on Sukhumvit, next to Soi 5 (where I usually stay), and if you want to stop and read your purchase straight away just nip next door to Starbucks, buy a coffee and read away...

Unlike the Asia Books chain, there are also Bookazine locations in some of the larger tourist resorts outside Bangkok - Pattaya, Hua Hin, Patong in Phuket and Chaweng in Samui all have branches.



Leave a Comment

Theme: Books
Phone: (02) 655 2383
Address: Sukhumvit Road Soi 5
Directions: Close to Nana Skytrain station.