Date Visited: 20th October 2012
14th February 2013
For sightseeing purpose, besides temples which commonly known as "Wat" by the local, there are numerous floating markets throughout the country, with many of them are situated just few couple of hours from the capital city. One of the most well-known and largest floating markets among the tourists is Damnoen Saduak Floating Market.
Located in Ratchaburi Province, 100 kilometers southwest of Bangkok (which took more than 2 hours car ride), Damnoen Saduak Floating Market is a very fascinating spot for the foreign tourists especially to see and experience the traditional way of selling and buying goods from countless of sellers paddled along the congested canals while enjoying the ride inside a paddle or longtail boat.
Besides tropical fruits, fresh vegetables and snacks, there are even vast of typical souvenirs, handicraft and even clothes selling along the canal. Bargaining among buyers and sellers is common here but I noticed the price of souvenirs here are higher compare the one I saw in town - mainly because this is the famous tourist spot. Hence, I advise don't be silly to purchase from here but try to scout around the town instead.
One thing I found annoying was our boat paddler purposely bring us closer to certain shops which we're interested at all in return hoping for us to purchase something from the vendors - probably they might get commission perhaps, I'm just guessing but the best we could do was smiled to them and politely said "Khob kun kap" to the guy and "Khob kun ka" if the vendor was a lady.
I went this floating market twice within less than half year - first time with my friend as it was my maiden trip to Bangkok, hence this famous and popular tourist spot shouldn't be missed out and the reason why I went for the second time was because of family trip which was their first time experience of visiting Bangkok. But honestly to say, after this there will be no more third visit cause one time is eventually pretty enough for an eye-opening.
I went this floating market twice within less than half year - first time with my friend as it was my maiden trip to Bangkok, hence this famous and popular tourist spot shouldn't be missed out and the reason why I went for the second time was because of family trip which was their first time experience of visiting Bangkok. But honestly to say, after this there will be no more third visit cause one time is eventually pretty enough for an eye-opening.
Compare to my second visit, I had more spare of time to wander along the bank after got off from the paddler boat and thus, my friend and I scouted for more food especially. We had coconut ice-cream, some flat noodle with beancurd, sweet mangoes (why most of Thai mangoes were so sweet and delicious compare to Malaysia one) and noodle served with pork and fish cakes. The price of the foods were incredibly cheap, ranging from 25 baht to 50 baht.
How To Get To Damnoen Saduak Floating Market
As the journey from Bangkok town to Damnoen Saduak Floating Market takes more than 2 hours, hence it is not advisable to rent a taxi if you are travel in 1-2 pax as the taxi driver will basically charge higher and maybe, they will also try to arrange you for a private boat that will cost 5,000 baht for a boat.
For my case, twice I booked this tour from Mama Travel & Tour, a local travel agent located in Khaosan Road that charge 400 baht for a pax (approximately RM41). This tour fee including pick-up from your lodging, the shuttle service and most importantly, the paddle boat ride. Just that by the end of the tour, the bus driver dropped us at Khao San Road and we had to make our own way back to our hotel.
Address: 144 Khaosan Road, Bangkok Thailand 10200
Tel No: +66 2 629 1163
You can even send direct message on their facebook page -Mama Travel & Tour. But in case they didn't reply you after certain period, then you have to go Khaosan road to look for them. This is what I did when I went Bangkok for the very first time. Thanks to my Japan travelmate, Nicole for sharing this local tour agent with me.
