Ignore the 'it's closed' line.... and other Bangkok, Thailand Tourist Trap Tips

Ignore the 'it's closed' line. This comes not just from the tuk-tuk drivers, but also some people in the street. It's weird as there seems to be no obvious benefit to the person telling you this - I assume there must be a link with the tuk-tuk driver and the place they want to take you to instead of the Grand Palace! (It's not that obvious). Shame because there are some people who really do want to give you advice as to where to go 'off the beaten track' or a special ceremony at one of the wats, but you tend to get suspicious of all. In the end we tended to listed to those that didn't start the conversation with 'it's closed' and were not prepared to call a (convenient) tuk-tuk. Have a map handy - they will indicate where to go and then yuo can make your own mind up.

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May not surprise you for me to say Patphong in Bangkok. But I am talking about the market stalls around the notorious night life. Check the prices in the (very touristy) Silom Village complex. We checked the price a proper 'shop' was charging for a simple tourist item (think it was a candlestick of some description) and discovered it was more than three times CHEAPER than quoted in the streets. Even after heavy bargaining, it is unlikely that you would get it cheaper than Silom Village. Not true of everything, but bear it in mind.

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