Bangkok, the most visited city in the world

Bangkok, capital and main port of Thailand. It is the only big city in a country of small towns and villages. Bangkok is home to thousands of beautiful monuments, most attractive among them are the ancient Buddhist temples, each of them is a marvel of design and beauty. Bangkok city has a record of being the most visited city in the world for many years by a number of authentic rankers, the city welcomed more than 22 million people in 2019.

Bangkok has a population of eight million people which is approximately 12.5 of the nation, and it provides 35% of the GDP. The city is between tow rivers and filled with spectacular palaces, temple, parks and markets, here are six of Bangkok’s most visited sites.

The Grand Palace

The Grand palace takes the first spot on the list. The royal mansion is filled with spectacular structures that will put many of the recent monarchs to astonishment. This marvel was built in 1782, by orders of King Rama 1. Grand Place has been the residence of the royalty for generations, the ground floor was used as the King’s Court, until 1925 when the royal family shifted to other residences elsewhere in Bangkok, but no other palace in Bangkok is as marvelous as The Grand Palace.

In total The Grand Palace occupies an area of 218,400 square meters. The royal keep is still utilized for important occasions throughout the year and serves as accommodation for the heads of state. There are many magnificent buildings within the walls of The Grand Palace; the place is filled with many halls, lawns, corridors and gardens. The Grand Palace is the first location every tourist goes when they land to Bangkok. Mostly all the tourists dress with modesty when they visit the Grand Palace.

Wat Pho

Surely after the Grand Palace, Wat Pho takes the spot. The Wat Pho temple is situated straight at the south of the Grand Palace district, in the heart of Bangkok. It was also built by King Rama I. The temple is ranked first on the list of six temples in Thailand regarded as royal temples, all of these royal temples are situated in Bangkok.

Temple Wat Pho is the most senior temple in Bangkok, as well as the largest, covering the area of about 80,000 square meters. It has for ages been well thought out as a “place of healing”, and was known for its pharmaceutics throughout Bangkok, and as the nation's first "university". You can get a Thai or foot massage at the conventional medical school on the site, but yes, the costs are undoubtedly much more than what you will be charged at any other massage parlor or Wat in Bangkok.

Wat Arun

Certainly, temple Wat Arun is not a thing someone would miss when touring Bangkok. The temple is named Arun after the Hindu God Aruna. The temple’s history goes back to the period of ancient conflicts between the Ayutthaya Kingdom, former Thailand, and Burma. Having fallen to the Burmese, Ayutthaya faded to dust, but General Taksin and the surviving army pledged to march "till the dawn" and to construct a temple at the very spot, as a token of loyalty for the state. Wat Arun, the Temple of the morning sunlight, was the temple, those warriors built. The structure of the temple is as glorious as its past, many tourists believe that Wat Arun is the best temple in Bangkok, due to its architecture.

The central prang, which is a stupa like tower covered with different gems, is said to be 85 meter tall, this makes Wat Arun the longest temple in Bangkok city. The main prang is surrounded by four smaller prangs furnished by seashells and ceramics. Seven tridents are placed at the top of the main prang, referred to as a possession of God Shiva. Along these prangs, lies the hall of ordination with various statues of Buddha encrusted by gold. According to many the temple provides an understanding to the Buddhist views on spiritualism which makes it unique in all of Bangkok.

Wat Traimit

Temple Wat Traimit comes next on the list, besides its grand and unique architecture, The Golden Statue of Jade Buddha placed here for public viewing makes the temple much more attractive, as there is no statue well carved as this one in whole of Bangkok, and some even say the world.

There is a mysterious tale regarding this statue, it's said that in the 1950s, the East Asiatic Company bought the surrounding land of the temple. One of the conditions to the sale was the removal of a plaster work sculpture of Buddha, but the sculpture proved to be much heavier to manage for the crane being utilized. Therefore, the cable broke and the statue was dropped. It was left overnight at the spot where it fell. The event happened to be in a rainy season, and in the following morning some monks detected a glint of gold shining through the plaster.

The plaster covering was removed, showing a 3.5-meter Buddha statue made of 5.5 tons of pure gold. There is no other pure gold statue in Bangkok which is that big. All investigations to trace the origins of that statue are so far unsuccessful, but rumors are that it is from the Sukhothai period, when raiding invaders wanted to annex the country and its wealth, at that time it became quite common to cover valuable Buddha figures under a finishing of plaster. Yet it is still a mystery how the statue came to Bangkok.

Damnoen Saduak Floating Market

The Damnoen Saduak Floating Market is another distinguishing destination in Bangkok on this database. This interesting market experience is far different than any other. Damnoen Saduak is a famous market on water, located in Ratchaburi which is 1.5-hour drive from Bangkok residential zone. The spectacular floating market earned Bangkok the title of being the Venice of the Eastern Hemisphere. This market is home to many different shops that offer totally different merchandise. From food to clothing, decoration stuff to almost every color flower, fixtures and furniture everything is available. Such vast collection of tradable goods is nowhere to be found in Bangkok, but Damneon Saduak market.

The floating market are now extremely touristic enterprises, so it's difficult for a sole morning of shopping on a boat, but surely every visitor is able to buy fresh-cut and delightful foods and most importantly an authentic interaction with the locals is most possible over here than elsewhere in Bangkok city. The markets also highlight the life of the country men of Thailand, which according to them is very difficult.

Lumpini Park

Last over here is, Lumpini Park which provides tourists with a green paradise faraway from all the traffic and crowd of the Bangkok city. The walking path in the park is 2.5 kilometer long. The Park is filled with Lush green lawns of which a person cannot keep count of. The Park was built in 1902s at the orders of king Rama the Fourth. The place is multi-purpose and offers many activities to tourists.

There is a large Public Library, a dance hall and BMA Apprentice School which provide training for computers, stitching, facial make-up etc. Cultural festivals are held every month in the park. There is no park in entire Bangkok or even Thailand which offers this much activities as this one. Lumpini Park is a fantastic place to spend a day closer to nature, the artificial lake within the park resembles it with an oasis. Furthermore, all the great skyscrapers of Bangkok city are easily visible from the park which provides a rare but beautiful sight.

End Note

These were the top six picks of the city, which are surely the rarest structures and places you would hardly find elsewhere but Bangkok. People of Bangkok city are highly famous for their hospitality, there is not a single visitor who complained about overall behavior of local people in the history of Bangkok. The city is highly secure, it is very rare that any incident occurred since the city opened its doors for international tourists. Bangkok is influenced by the modern culture, yet it has strong links to its tradition and Buddhist spirituality.