Bangkok Neighbourhoods
Chinatown (Yaowarat): the old Bangkok that never sleeps
Just walk up Yaowarat Road as night falls and you'll understand: beneath a shower of red-and-gold neon, between steaming food stalls and Chinese signboards, Chinatown is one of the most intense neighbourhoods in Bangkok. Founded more than two centuries ago, it remains the beating heart of old Bangkok — a maze of lanes where people eat, pray and bargain much as they did in the days of the first kings of the Chakri dynasty.
Two centuries of Chinese history
When King Rama I founded Bangkok in 1782, he set his palace on the very site of the first Chinese community, which he moved a little further south-east, around present-day Yaowarat. Chinese merchants have prospered there ever since, making the district the capital's great trading hub.
Yaowarat Avenue itself was cut through at the end of the nineteenth century, under the reign of Rama V. Its distinctive curve, barely more than a kilometre long, follows the line of the nearby river and has ever since concentrated the gold shops, traditional pharmacies and trading houses.
Even today, Chinatown remains one of the most authentic neighbourhoods in Bangkok: few towers, many family-run shops handed down from one generation to the next, and an intensity of life that the rest of the city, smoother and more polished, has often lost.
Yaowarat, the avenue of neon and gold
By day, Yaowarat is a bustling commercial artery lined with gold shops in dazzling red — gold is an institution here, both a safe haven and a festive jewel. Come evening, the avenue changes its face: the signs light up, Chinese neon reflects off the asphalt, and the street becomes one of the most photographed sights in Bangkok.
This is a neighbourhood to be experienced on foot, eyes lifted to the façades, losing yourself in the side sois. Each lane has its speciality: medicinal herbs here, dried fruit there, ceremonial paraphernalia or bird's nests further along.
Yaowarat's energy peaks after dark, but the neighbourhood is worth seeing in its quiet mornings too, when the stalls open slowly and wisps of incense rise from small household altars.
The capital of street food
Chinatown is, by common consent, the best place in Bangkok for street food. From late afternoon, the pavements of Yaowarat fill with roaring woks, braziers and folding tables: grilled seafood, stir-fried noodles, soups, dim sum, sweet desserts made with beans or chestnuts.
Here you taste a Sino-Thai cuisine shaped by generations of immigrants: morning congee, roast duck, shark's fin and bird's nest for the more opulent tables, mooncakes in autumn. The best stalls often have a queue — a good sign.
This culinary abundance does not feature in our selection, which favours more discreet tables and experiences you can book in advance. But no exploration of Bangkok is complete without an evening spent grazing along Yaowarat.
Wat Traimit and the Golden Buddha
At the entrance to the neighbourhood, near the Chinese gate of the Odeon, Wat Traimit holds a treasure: the largest solid gold Buddha in the world, five and a half tonnes of pure gold, long hidden beneath a layer of plaster that protected it from looting before it was rediscovered by accident in the twentieth century.
All around, Chinese shrines and Buddhist temples punctuate the lanes, blending Taoist, Confucian and Buddhist traditions. Wisps of incense, red lanterns and offerings set the rhythm of spiritual life in a neighbourhood that has remained deeply faithful to its roots.
These places of worship can be visited freely, in keeping with local custom: modest dress and discretion. Amid the tumult, they offer strikingly still moments of silence.
Talat Noi, the creative old town
Heading down towards the river, Chinatown gives way to Talat Noi, a warren of mechanics' workshops, century-old houses and shrines tucked along the Chao Phraya. Long overlooked, the neighbourhood has become one of the most creative in Bangkok: street art, independent cafés and galleries have slipped into the old warehouses without driving out their soul.
It is precisely in Talat Noi, on Charoen Krung, that Liana is hidden away — one of our favourite French tables, set in a century-old building. The contrast is striking between the contemporary cooking and the weathered décor of the old town.
Talat Noi is best discovered on foot, camera in hand, following the lanes down to the piers. It is one of the loveliest places in Bangkok to feel the passage of time.
Frequently asked questions
Where is Chinatown in Bangkok? Around Yaowarat Road, in the Samphanthawong district, between Hua Lamphong station and the banks of the Chao Phraya, at the heart of old Bangkok.
How do you get to Chinatown? The easiest way is the MRT metro, Wat Mangkon station, which opens right into the neighbourhood. You can also arrive by river, via the express boats and the piers at Ratchawong or Marine Department.
When is the best time to visit Yaowarat? Late afternoon and evening, when the neon lights up and the street food is in full swing. The quieter mornings are better suited to visiting the temples.