Average Cost of Living
Bangkok can be very cheap or not so much. If you stay outside the city center you can find cheap food and accomodation. For example a studio can be as low as USD $200 per month. Including utilities, air con or internet can it can go up to USD $368 for one person, or USD $845 for a family of four.
So the total, including rent, is around $830 for one person, and $2300 for a family of four.
Add food at around $300 per person a month and transport for $100.
The monthly salary after tax is USD $694.
Source: Cost of Living in Thailand
Popular Attractions in Bangkok
There are many great attractions in Bangkok that are both historical and modern.
Suan Pakkad Palace Museum costs USD $3 to enter and it is a great place to learn about Thailand’s past on your visit if you have some time to explore around this area before visiting popular locations like Grand Palace where you can see the Temple of the Emerald Buddha which is one of Thailand’s most important Buddhist temples built in 1782 by King Rama I on his palace grounds. The Temple houses a large statue of Buddha made from jade called Phra Kring Kaew Morakot. The temple is one of the most famous landmarks in Thailand and makes a great photo op as you can climb up to the top for an even better view. It costs USD $15 to enter but it's definitely worth it.
There are many shops surrounding this location where you can purchase souvenirs, jewelry and other items to bring home as well as restaurants offering local cuisine very cheap prices, like a USD $3 Pad Thai! You can get cheap food anywhere, including the streets, and of course, the markets and floating markets all around the city.
Another big temple is the Wat Pho Temple, with a USD$3 entrance fee, which features a reclining Buddha statue carved from solid marble with its head cast separately making it one of the largest Buddha statues in Asia! This temple houses classrooms where Buddhist monks teach students about Buddhism which provides an interesting perspective if you have never been around this type of environment before.
Sukhumvit Road or Khao San Road offer a variety of restaurants serving different types of food from all over the world, and very well priced massages, starting at USD $10.
Bangkok's Culture And People
Bangkok offers a great deal of culture and learning opportunities for visitors. Many places to dine or shop offer menus in both English as well as Thai so you can use this as a way to learn some basics about the language if you have time before shopping, dining or visiting attractions. The people are very welcoming from what I have seen on my many visits! They will always offer help if needed even though they don’t speak much English which makes it a great opportunity to learn some basic phrases in Thai such as “hello, thank you, how much is this/that?” etc. Overall Bangkok has been one of my favorite destinations anywhere I have ever visited around the world due to its abundance of history along with its modern side something that is hard to find often within major cities! If your looking for an equally exciting destination without all the history then Phuket Island might be up your alley because there are also beautiful beaches there but it’s hard to beat the beaches in Thailand compared to anywhere else in SE Asia!
Eating Out In Bangkok
Most people eat out when in Bangkok due to the cheap prices and excellent street food. In the streets of the city you can find lunch deals for as little as USD $3. Lunch or dinner in a restaurant for two can cost between USD $15 and USD $20, depending on the area and restaurant, and fast food like a McDonald's meal is around USD $6.30.
If you want a drink out, you can enjoy a cold local beer for less than USD $4, and an imported beer for USD $7, and even less in some neighbourhoods. A shot of whisky could be your preference, and they are USD $3.60 in most places.
Transport Costs
Bangkok has a great public transportation system that is cheap and easy to use once you get used to it. There is a railway system that runs above ground on elevated tracks called Sky Train (BTS) which takes passengers throughout central Bangkok including some outlying areas like Nonthaburi or Samutprakarn BTS Stations. This can cost between $0.50 and $2 USD, depending on distance.
The subway system is called MRT and offers many lines that run throughout the city connecting with BTS Stations for transferring passengers to their final destination. The MRT underground train cars are very clean compared to some countries around the world where you may find graffiti painted on trains or other more disgusting things! This is common in countries like Russia or Ukraine but not so much in Thailand where they take public transit seriously! There are also bus routes throughout the city that run 24 hours a day 7 days a week 365 days per year!
You will have no problem getting around this city whether it be by taxi, bus or skytrain/subway, but if you want to do the touristy thing, get a Tuk-Tuk. They don't have taximeter or anything like that, and you will have to negotiate the price with the driver, so be prepare to pay 100 bhat minimum for a short diatance. You will always end up paying more than a taxi, but it'a a must do while in Bangkok!
Bangkok's Climate
Bangkok’s climate is tropical and humid with a wet season from May through October and a dry season from November through April. Average temperatures range between 73-85 degrees Fahrenheit or 23-29 degrees Celsius year round.
During the rainy season, it rains often and during the dry seasons that occurs about three months out of each year, it can get very hot in Bangkok as high as 95 degrees Fahrenheit or 35 Celsuis on average. The rainiest month of the all is September where you may expect over 80% chance of showers every day during this time period!
This city has four seasons like most places around the world but they experience extreme weather changes within those few months compared to other countries such as Canada where they have four major seasons similar to Thailand, but also enjoy warmer summers shorter winters.
Bangkok's Geography
The Chao Phraya River runs through Bangkok with many canals throughout the city. The river is connected to an extensive network of canals crisscrossing through the entire city, which are used for transportation and water supply. There are also elevated highways above some of these canals that connect most major roads in Bangkok. Many areas around these canals or rivers have houses on stilts built along their banks giving them access to boats for transportation, fishing, and trade while keeping their feet dry when it rains. Areas around some waterways serve as public parks where locals enjoy biking or jogging while others rent kayaks to explore some parts of the river further away from crowded streets during weekends or holidays when traffic dies down a little bit in this otherwise bustling city center that remains busy 24 hours a day, 7 days a week 365 days per year!
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