This post is LONG delayed but it’s been an absolute whirlwind so better late than never right!? I think also, and I don’t mean this cheekily, but I’ve been to Bangkok many times so I don’t feel this massive urge to write about it. However, this time around we did a couple new things that deserve to be chatted about. So with that, here goes!!
I took my daughter Ava to Bangkok for the weekend back in early March 2025. She had been invited to participate in an international swim meet so of course we had to go….and make a long girls weekend out of it, so fun! Plus we have friends who still live there so it was a win-win all around.
This year we once again chose a Marriott brand property and fell in love with the look and location of the Athenee Hotel. Situated in the heart of Bangkok, a mere 5 minutes walk to the nearest BTS stop- Ploenchit (and trust me you definitely want to be close to the BTS lines…..traffic is crazy and the BTS is so easy and convenient to manage). The Athenee was very comfortable, the service impeccable, the food delicious. The pool area was perfect, situated right in the heart of the skyscrapers surrounding the hotel. I even had an opportunity to frequent the hotel spa for a famous Thai Foot massage. It did NOT disappoint, and the added luxury of choosing scented oils and relaxing after in a private room overlooking the pool area complete with tea and treats, just perfection.
We had lots of shopping on our minds so we spent the first full day there Friday shopping until we dropped. There are so many shopping malls in central Bangkok, we could walk or BTS to all of them….and boy did we :). Starting at Central World, we checked out stores like Sephora, Zara, H&M, Jim Thompson, and more. From there a quick walk to Siam Paragon where we also checked out another Sephora as well as some fun boutiques. By this point we needed lunch- we happened upon a cute little restraints within the nearby Intercontinental Hotel called SoCal, ha! Fresh pizza, salads, and tasty beverages. Hit the spot. After that, we had to go back to Terminal 21 shopping mall, a quick 3 stops away on the BTS. We went to this mall last year and it’s so cute. It’s like a departure lounge on each floor with various destinations around the world, so cute. Here we checked out American Eagle, Mango, Birkenstock, and a little window shopping around the boutique areas. Such a FUN day with my favorite girl!!!! Side note last year we went to the new and very large ICONSiam mall which I highly recommend for basically anything and everything. Situated right on the Chao Phraya riverbanks, it’s a must do for sure, we just ran out of steam this year, lol.
After dropping our bags and taking a quick dip in the pool, we headed out to meet up with one of Ava’s school and swim friends with her parents for a nighttime food tour! I hadn’t done one of these in many years in Bangkok and when my friend Jen who lives there suggested this one, I knew it would be a hit! Booked through Bangkok Food Tours, we chose the Nighttime Tuk Tuk Food Tour– both for the food as well as giving the girls a fun evening riding around the streets of Bangkok in Tuk Tuks. They are just such a fun way to get around town. After an initial DOWNPOUR of rain (and the fun that went along with that), we ended up stuffing our faces at every point. The group was about 10-12 people in total so not private but not huge. Our guide was fantastic and with 2 people per tuk tuk, we all had a fun time chatting with our own drivers and blaring our own music in between stops. Our first stop was food from Northern Thailand (fantastic, very little oil used in the cooking methods), 2nd stop was an amazing fruit stop where we gorged on some delicious Thai fruits as well as the famous mango sticky rice. From there we went to a very famous Michelin rated noodle shop that was so basic you wouldn’t even believe how much flavor came from that bowl of noodles, plus the cooks in the back gave us a fun fire show, MUST go again! Our 4th stop was in Chinatown (haha for us coming from Beijing) but man was the desert amazing that we tried from street side carts. Our 5th shop took us to a rooftop with a view. Climbing 5 flights of stairs, this bar overlooked the river, 2 temples, and just was such a great stop to catch our breath, wet our tongues, and snap some pics. If you can believe it we had a 6th and final stop…..at the famous 24/7 flower market- the largest in Thailand, where hotels even source their flowers. We strolled around the market and finished with chicken, pork, and beef skewers.
WE. WERE. STUFFED!!!!!! Perfect tour, thanks Jen for the recommendation.
Saturday was a long and fun day at the swim meet, hosted at ISB (International School of Bangkok). From there we cleaned up and took a Grab taxi to our friend’s house for dinner. Such a wonderful night catching up and bonus their youngest and Ava are 6 months apart and two peas in a pod. They convinced us to have a sleepover which was amazing….and also meant the rest of that night and Sunday morning for me to myself at the hotel to get a foot massage, workout in their great fitness facility, and chill.
Sunday afternoon I met up with the girls and Jen for a fun final afternoon of shopping. This time they took us to the famous Chatuchak Weekend Market, which is the largest weekend market in the world. So wild. And the BTS stop is called “Mo Chit”….which is hilarious- get off at Mo Chit so you can go buy “Mo Shit”. lolol! This market literally has EVERYTHING- I mean it has it all: food options, household items, clothes, jewlery, accessories, artwork, toys, etc etc etc. We browsed and all got some fun goodies and finished it with a super cheap and absolutely amazing 30 minute foot massage for the equivalent of $5 usd. Yep, that’s 2 foot massages in 1 day for me, but who’s counting! We had time for a quick final dinner together before the night ended and per the girls request- Shake Shack- haha. It was actually amazing.
Monday morning we took our flight back to Beijing and collapsed. What a fun weekend with my amazing daughter making memories and having a blast exploring the world. Love that I experienced some new things I haven’t before in Bangkok alongside her…..she loves the city just as much as I do and we can’t wait to go back for more!
Until next year’s (hopefully) swim meet- haha!
Thanks for reading, cheers!
xo, Kimbra
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