Off to Bangkok for business and taking my younger brother with me. He is single and I'm not. Humph! Any suggestions as to a few tourist sites to visit? We are there only 4 days. Also, restaurants, clubs, massage (sexy and soapy and just regular) would be appreciated. We are staying at a Ritzy hotel but we want to avoid getting stuck there. Money isn't an object but as always I like a bargain. Thanks!
3 most fun temples in BKK: Wat Prakaew (pra - KOW) -- easy to get to by taxi, can spend about 1 hour looking around, lots of sculptures and architecture to look at. Wat Arun (a - ROON) -- across the river, can spend about 20-30 minutes, very tall. Most fun is taking a river taxi across the Chao Praya to get there, because then you will see a lot of normal Bangkok life as you go. And boats are always pleasant and relaxing. Wat Pho (Poe) -- somewhere around Wat Prakaew, center of Thai traditional massage. Pretty cool -- you sit in an open room with a bunch of oteher people getting massage. Can spend over 1 hour if you get a massage. But note -- some people find Thai massage uncomfortable to painful (I don't like it much).
I found this restaurant called MahaNaga when I was last there and I was only in BKK for a week but ate there twice! Really good and great atmosphere. http://www.mahanaga.com/
I always loved the beer gardens which usually start in November. Biggest was at Central World Plaza, Pratunam (central to city). But the shopping mall got damaged during the riots so don't know if they'll still have it or not. Open air, loads of booths from local restaurants, you can see what kind of food they make, so it's easy to order. Grilled chickens, spicy salads, flavorful sausages, sticky rice, etc etc etc. It was always packed, maybe 500-1000 people, a lot of fun to experience something with local Bangkokians. The prices were usually very reasonable. Great way to start a fun evening. If that one's not open, you'll see them everywhere with yellow fold out tables and patio umbrellas of some kind of beer on it. Wednesday's -- 2-for-1 pints at Londoner (http://www.the-londoner.com/) Central to city, get off at Asoke SkyTrain or Subway station, walk about 5 minutes. Never had the Thai food there though (actually never had any food, only the pints). Another favorite -- any seafood restaurant (you'll see fish and stuff in front) that is crowded. When I felt adventurous, I'd just point to a few random lines on the menu from different sections, that way you'll get different items, and maybe 1 will be something you don't like. But one is raw oysters, best to leave it and not eat it -- I got really sick from it one time. Sometimes they have grilled shrimp, that's really good.
regarding restaurants, clubs and massage, depends upon where you are staying, like are we talking "ritzy" on the chao phraya (oriental, peninsula, shangri-la), or silom area or along the sukhumvit-phloen chit line? would check out previously mentioned mahanaga, have been there quite a few times. not inexpensive in a relative sense but tasty food in a funky ambience. similarly good food and price at baan khanitha, they have branches on sathorn and sukhumvit 23, would opt for the sukhumvit 23 one as it is a nice soi, lots of trees and which also has a slew of the rubber matress massage joints, maybe 200 yards down from sukhumvit. another funky place i haven't been to in a while is http://www.bedsupperclub.com/bangkok/en/ which has a club attached and is on sukhumvit soi 11. Qbar is right around the corner, which is also an ok, rather upscale club. for the girlie bar/clubs, there is the one at nana hotel at suk. soi 4 or there are several lively joints on patpong soi 1 and 2, most all of them not getting going until after 10 if not midnight. for a good seafood joint, check out khrua nay baan on lang suan near lumphini park. caveat; do not let the tuk-tuk drivers take you to their recommended seafood place as it is way overpriced (commissions for them). there are also a few good legit massage parlors on lang suan (i.e.no happy ending), valaikorn being one of them, massage number 5 another. one other restaurant worth a trip is called Just One(no points for the name;-), if not raining as they have a great outdoors ambience and equally delicious food and is right at the corner of soi ngam duphli and sathorn soi 1. soi ngam duphli is across rama 4 by walking bridge from lumphini muay thai stadium. if you get to just one and it starts to rain on you, up sathorn soi 1 about 50 yards is a pricey, shi shi restaurant called Pandanus, worth a trip. ok, gotta get on the day here. enjoy you can PM me if you want more info.
Man who is trying to sneak through subway turnstyle is going to bang cock. Have a great trip (as long as it's not raining!)
not necessarily every day and usually just a wicked, drenching storm when it does come. monsoon season into november and sure, low season, less tourists AND noticeably cleaner air when compared with March when it may not have rained much for 4 months. a little cheaper and if you have yet to book your hotel (i think you mentioned you already had), i am an SPG rat so super nice, new le meridien hotel right in the middle of gomorrah on surawong or the plaza athenee in a way more mellow but still convenient location, at about $130 and $120 per night. wish i were there, have a great time...