The neighborhood that gave Bangkok its name as a backpacker haven is Banglamphu.  But it’s not just for backpackers.  It’s for everyone who wants an authentic taste of Bangkok in a tourist-friendly locale.

Banglamphu is located a 30-minute boat ride on the Orange Chao Phraya Express to the north of the city.  (The central-city side of the boat trip connects to the BTS, aka the Skytrain).   Along the way of the boat ride are Bangkok’s most celebrated tourist attractions – Wat Arun, Wat Pho and the Reclining Buddha, not to mention Chinatown and Yommarat.  But when you get off the boat at Banglamphu’s Pier 13, you’ve entered an entirely different Bangkok.   Its most well-known party strip is Khaosan Road – a 200-yard stretch of bars and street vendors.  And in recent years the adjacent street, Rambuttri, has attracted eateries and street vendors to rival Khaosan.  Less well known about the neighborhood are the fact that the Thai Buddhist equivalent of The Vatican is a 5 minute walk from Khaosan, that the neighborhood park adjacent to the boat pier hosts Bangkok’s most awesome breakdancing events, that there’s world-class massage at affordable prices at a half-dozen places, and the food is to die for both on the street and in restaurants.  And most everything costs less than the venues in the heart of the downtown area.

Full disclosure – my wife and I own a condominium in Banglamphu, so we are prejudiced.  Then again, my wife came to Bangkok for quarterly business trips for nearly 10 years before we bought our condo – so we knew the city well before we settled on Banglamphu.