Travel Tips
Postcard from Thailand: Shopping Bangkok’s Floating Markets
One of Bangkok’s claims to fame is its floating markets where vendors sell crafts and food.
But is this an authentically local experience, or a tourist trap to avoid? Sarah Lahey investigates.
Dear Peter,
It’s time for us to talk dirty. Dirty water.
Poo-poo meds. Things that go plonk in the river. Yeah, let’s talk about Bangkok’s infamous floating markets.
When Suzy and I take shopping tour clients to Bangkok, there’s always a few shoppers who’ve read about the famous floating markets and want to go. They dream about drifting through quaint canals filled with longboats selling Thai crafts and memories; they anticipate Kodak moments.
We’ve never fulfilled these fantasies for a couple of reasons: It takes almost two hours to get to the market and although it’s been around for more than 150 years, the market is now geared for tourists.
Learn more with Suzy Gershman’s Postcard from Bangkok.
You want to float? Try the Dead Sea. Unless you are a sucker for a major tourist trap, don’t do this.
HISTORICALLY SPEAKING
There are three floating markets near Bangkok, two of which are open on Saturday and Sunday and sell food. (Hmm, I wonder if they have root beer floats? Oh well.)
Most visitors are interested in the largest of the three, which is located in Damnernsaduak, about 100 km southwest of Bangkok. It’s open every day, you get there by private car or via tour bus … and I decided to check it out. After all, it’s my job.
Read Sarah’s Postcard from Thailand: Phuket Vacation & Shopping Guide.
TAKEN AND TAKEN THERE
I didn’t want to spend an entire day out of Bangkok, so I investigated half-day trips. The concierge at the Intercontinental Hotel recommended a very fancy tour for 4,300 Thai baht (about $140) but I chose a much cheaper deal across the street at the Holiday Inn’s tour desk. (Insider’s secret: these two hotels are owned by the same person.) For 1,220 Thai baht (about $35), my World Travel Services tour included pick-up and return to the hotel and visits to a Palm Sugar factory, the floating market at Damnernsaduak, and a stop at a wood-carving center on the way back. Whoopee.
First stop was a Tao Tan, a palm sugar factory. When a coconut tree is about 3 to 4 years old, it’s tapped to collect sap which is then simmered for 12 hours over coconut husks in a furnace. The syrup is left to cool into honey colored blocks which are ground into sugar. I sampled, bought, and eagerly climbed back into the bus, ready for serious shopping.
Learn where to stay with Thailand Hotel Guide: From Bangkok to Phuket
TO MARKET, TO MARKET
My tour bus dropped me off a couple of miles from the floating market in a yard filled with dozens and dozens of twin tourist buses. We headed to a boat landing where lines formed Disneyland-style to board speed boats bound for the market. Once loaded, the boats inched along the narrow waterway in one long queue, so there wasn’t much speed to the journey; it was more of an aquatic traffic jam. Pirates of the Caribbean was a lot more thrilling.
We disembarked at a concrete dock connected to an open-air building which looked like it belonged at the Indiana state fair and were told to “have fun and bargain like crazy.” I wish I could say that the floating market was worth the money and time, but honestly, I’ve never seen a bigger tourist trap (TT, as we like to say).
For starters, there’s not much about the market that floats. The narrow canals still host some food vendors in boats, but the shopping takes place in massive concrete pavilions built on stilts, lining the shores of the canal. Most of the goods are from India and the “Thai silk” garments and bed linens are pure polyester.
There are lots of fake designer handbags of the worst quality and more key chains and refrigerator magnets than I’ve ever seen in one place. Packaged spices are plentiful and overpriced; curious, I picked up a small container of tamarind and was told by the vendor that the powder would make me “poo-poo.” No, thanks.
For more authentic experiences, don’t miss these articles: Off the Brochure Travel Guide to Bangkok and the Ask the Locals Travel Guide: Bangkok.
A quick stop at The Royal Thai Handicraft Center was interesting and I was amazed at the talent displayed, but had no desire to purchase an elephant carved from teak.
In fact, I’ve already got one.
Please, please don’t waste your time and money on this adventure; instead see the real heart of Thailand and get away from the TTs.
With heartfelt hugs,
Sarah
By Sarah Lahey for PeterGreenberg.com.
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