Banglamphu Bangkok | Khaosan Road | Khaosan hotels

Banglamphu & Khaosan - Cheap Accommodation - Travelers Heaven

Nearly all backpackers head straight for Banglamphu, Bangkok’s long-established traveler’s ghetto, location of the cheapest accommodation and some of the best nightlife in the city, and arguably the most enjoyable area to base you in the city. It’s within easy reach of the Grand Palace and other major sights in Rananakosin (which has only one, very plush, accommodation option of its own), and has enough bars, restaurants and shops to keep any visitor happy for a week or more, though some people find this insularity tiresome after just a few hours.

At the heart of Banlamphu is the legendary is the legendary Thanon Khao San (Khaosan road), almost a caricature of a traveler’s centre, crammed with Internet cafes, dodgy travel agents and restaurants serving yoghurt shakes and muesli, the sidewalks lined with stalls and shops flogging cheap backpackers’ fashions, racks of bootleg music and video CDs, tattooists and hair-braiders. It’s a lively, high-energy base: great for shipping and making travel arrangements (though beware the innumerable Khao San scams) and a good place to meet other travelers. It’s especially fun at night when young Thais from all over the city gather here to browse the temporary clothes stalls, mingle with the crowds of foreigners and squash into the bars and clubs that have made Khao San the place to party.

The increasingly sophisticated nightlife scene has enticed more moneyed travelers into Banglamphu and a growing number of Khao San guest houses are reinventing themselves as good-value mini-hotels boasting chic décor, swimming pools, and even views from the windows – a remarkable facelift from the cardboard cell of old. The cheap sleeps are still there though – in the darker corners of Khao San itself, as well as on the smaller, quieter roads off and around it. Rooms overlooking Thanon Khao San are noisy late into the night, and the same is increasingly true of accommodation on parallel Thanon Ram Bhuttri, where a plethora of bars keeps the street busy at all hours. Things are a little quieter on the roads that encircle the nearby temple, Wat Chana Songkhran, namely Soi Ram Bhuttri and its feeder aley, Soi Chana Songkrhram, along Phra Athit, which runs parallel to the Chao Phraya River and is packed with trendy Thai cafes and restaurants (and also has a useful express-boat stop); and in the residential alleyways that parallel Thanon Khao San to the south: Trot Mayom and Damnoen Klang Neua. About ten minutes’ walk north form Thanon Khao San, the handful of guest houses scattered amongst the neighborhood shop houses of the Thanon Samsen sois offer a more authentically Thai atmosphere. A further fifteen minutes; walk in the same direction will take you to Thanon Sri Ayutthaya, behind the National Library in Thewes (a seven-minute walk from the express-boat stop), the calmest area in Banglamphu, where rooms are larger and guest houses smaller.

We’ve listed only the cream of what’s on offer in each small enclave of Banglamphu: if you first choice is full there’ll almost certainly be a vacancy somewhere just along the soi, if not right next door. Theft is a problem in Banglamphu, particularly at the cheaper guest houses, so don’t leave anything valuable in the room and heed the guest houses’ notice about padlock and safety lockers.

Banglampu is served by plenty of public transport. All the guest houses and hotels listed lie only a few minutes’ walk from Chao Phraya express boat stop N13 (Phra Athit, sometimes known as Bangamphu), N14 (Rama VIII Bridge) and N15 (Thewes). Note that if you are using boat service in the evening to head downtown via the Central BTS train station at Saphan Taksin, the last boat leaves N13 at about 7.15pm. Banglamphu is also served by public longtail boats along Khlong Saeb Saeb, which leave from Phan Fah and have a particularly useful stop at Saphan Huachang, which is a few minutes’ walk from both BTS Ratchathewi and BTS Siam 9 about every 10mins during daylight hours; B8; 10mins). The other fast way to get on the BTS system is to take a taxi from Bangamphu to BTS National Stadium. For transport to the airport from Banglamphu, it’s easier to arrange a seat in a minibus through your hotel or guesthouse.

Traveler-oriented facilities in Banglamphu are second to none. The Bangkok information Centre is on Thanon Phra Athit, and there’s a tourist of Thanon Chakrabongse, near the Soi Ram Bhuttri junction. The closest poste restante service to Khao San is at Ratchadamnoen Post Office on the eastern stretch on Soi Damnoen Klang Neua, but the one at Banglamphubon Post Office near Wat Bowoniwes is also handy. Almost ever alternate building on Thanon Khao San, Thanon Ram Bhuttri and Soi Ram Bhittri offers Internet access, as do many of the guest houses; instance competition keep the rates very low (B40/hour or less) and there’s an especially enticing cyber lounge, True, on Khao San. There are also Catnet Internet terminals at the Ratchadomnoen Post Office. As well as numerous money exchange places on Thanon Khao San, you will find two branches of national banks, several ATMs, and outlet for Boots the Chemist and a couple of self-service laundries at Weaverer Laundromat on Thanon Samsen, between sois 1 and 3, you can also lounge on sofas, drink coffee, and enjoy free WIFI access. Several places will download your digital pictures onto a CD.

Brief review of the best hotels at Khaosan Rd and Banglamphu.

Khaosan Hotels | Banglamphu Accommodation		RATES
	Boonsiri Place 55 Buranasart Rd., Pranakorn, Bangkok 10200 Thailand Khaosan     Traveler Review : (0 from 5)	Start Rate : 1,170 THB
	Buddy Lodge Hotel The most stylish and expensive hotel on Khao San and right in the thick of the action. The charming , colonialvstyle rooms are done out in cream, with louvred shuters, balconies, air-con and polished dark-wood floors, through they are not as pristine as you might expect for the price. There's a beautiful rooftop pool, a spa and several bars and restaurants downstairs in the Buddhy Village complex. Specify an upper-floor location away from Khaosan to ensure a quiter night's sleep. 265 Khaosan Rd., Taladyod, Pranakorn, Bangkok 10200 Thailand Khaosan     Traveler Review : (0 from 5)	Start Rate : 2,129 THB
	Diamond House 4 Samsen Road, Banglampoo, Phranakorn, Bangkok 10200 Khaosan     Traveler Review : (0 from 5)	Start Rate : 1,000 THB
	Hotel De' Moc 78 Prajatipatai Rd. Pra-Nakorn, Bangkok 10200, Thailand Khaosan     Traveler Review : (0 from 5)	Start Rate : 1,287 THB
	Navalai River Resort 45/1-2 Phra Athit Road, Phra Nakorn, Bangkok 10200 Riverside     Traveler Review : (0 from 5)	Start Rate : 2,270 THB
	New World City Hotel (Formerly New World Lodge Hotel) Popular with long-stay guests and with a cute community feel. A good location for the Old City yet away from the hurly-burly of Khaosan Rd. Fand and a/c rooms, some are fairly spacious and have satellite TV for a higher price. Some overlook the canal.Safety boxes are free for guests, as it the use of a small gym. 2 Samsen Rd., Banglumphu, Pranakorn, Bangkok 10200 Thailand Khaosan     Traveler Review : (0 from 5)	Start Rate : 1,170 THB
	Royal Princess Larn Luang Hotel Air-con, restaurants, pool, gorgeous 4-star hotel, part of the quality-stamped Dusit chain of hotels with excellent facilities and a fantastic location. All rooms have balconies overlooking the old city. 269 Larn Luang Road, Pomprab, Bangkok 10100 Thailand Khaosan     Traveler Review : (0 from 5)	Start Rate : 2,270 THB
	Sawasdee Bangkok Inn Good value,clean, fair-sized rooms with wooden floors and some with air-con right at the centre of the action. A vibrant, popular bar and friendly staff. Free safety deposit and left luggage. 126/2 Khaosan Road, Banglampoo, Bangkok 10200 Thailand Khaosan     Traveler Review : (0 from 5)	Start Rate : 684 THB
	Sawasdee Khaosan Inn Probably the pick of the Sawasdee bunch due to its modern style and location just around the corner form the Khaosan towards Sanaam Luang. This one has its own bakery and popular cocktail bar looking out onto the street. 18 Chakapong Road, Banglumphu, Bangkok Thailand Khaosan     Traveler Review : (0 from 5)	Start Rate : 840 THB
	Sawasdee Krungthep Inn Clean and simple rooms, all with cable TV. Family rooms available with 2 double beds. 30 Rambuttri Road, Phanakorn, Bangkok 10200 Thailand Khaosan     Traveler Review : (0 from 5)	Start Rate : 713 THB
	Sawasdee Lang Suan Inn 93/4 Soi Lang Suan 5, Ploenchit Road, Bangkok 10330 Ploenchit - Chidlom     Traveler Review : (0 from 5)	Start Rate : 1,080 THB
	Sawasdee Smile Inn Large, spacious sitting area at the front under a gaudy looking green, Thai-style roof. Restaurant and 24-hr bar, so ask for a room at the back if you want an early night. Rooms are clean and simple, all with cable TV. Free safety boxes available. 35 Soi Rongmai, Chao Fa Rd., Phanakhon, Bangkok Thailand Khaosan     Traveler Review : (0 from 5)	Start Rate : 697 THB
	Trang Hotel Bangkok A/c, restaurant, pool. Friendly, attractive hotel that is well priced and popular with families and return visitors. Set around a relaxing courtyard a little away from the action and major sights. 99/1 Wisutkasart Road, Bangkhunphrom, Phranakorn, Bangkok 10200 Thailand Khaosan     Traveler Review : (0 from 5)	Start Rate : 1,287 THB
	Viengtai Hotel The second best of the optoins in Banglamphu's upper price bracket, with a good location just a few meters from the shops and restaurants of Thanon Khaosan, though street-facing rooms get noise from the burgeoning number of Ram Bhuttri bars. Rooms are a decent size if not especially stylish, they all have air-con and TV, and there's a big pool 42 Tanee Road Banglampoo, Bangkok 10200 Thailand Khaosan     Traveler Review : (0 from 5)	Start Rate : 1,615 THB