Bangkok in 3 days

Damnoen Saduak Floating Market (100km southwest of Bangkok, 1.5hr drive — the most famous of the Bangkok floating markets, dating to the reign of Rama IV) is the quintessential Bangkok image: vendors in wide-brimmed straw hats selling fresh fruit, pad thai and boat noodles from wooden boats on the khlong canals, surrounded by tropical vegetation. Touristy but authentic enough and visually extraordinary. Best by 8am before heat and crowds.

Chatuchak Market (JJ Market — 35 acres, 15,000 stalls, 200,000 visitors per weekend, open Saturday and Sunday 9am–6pm) is the world's largest weekend market: plants, vintage clothing, handmade Thai crafts, Buddhist antiques, street food, live animals (controversial), silk, ceramics and anything else imaginable. Navigating by section map (available at the main entrance) is essential. The food section is excellent.

Lumphini Park (57 hectares in the centre of Bangkok, the largest green space in the city — Bangkok's Central Park — with a lake, monitor lizards (large water monitors sunbathe on the paths), and the evening exercise culture of Bangkokians: aerobics classes, tai chi, badminton and running as the city cools after dark) is the best place in Bangkok to observe everyday Thai life.

Lebua at State Tower's Sky Bar (247m, 63rd floor, open air — the bar featured in The Hangover Part II, the most recognizable rooftop bar image in Asia) for the Bangkok night skyline: the Chao Phraya snaking through the city lit by temple spires and skyscrapers. Cocktails are expensive (฿600+) but the view is extraordinary. Dress code: smart casual (no shorts or flip-flops — strictly enforced at the elevator).

Khlong Lat Mayom (the most authentic floating market near Bangkok proper, 30 min west by taxi, open weekends 8am–5pm) is where locals shop: fresh Thai vegetables, grilled fish on the canal banks, coconut pancakes (khanom krok), and fried mackerel with mango salad. Far fewer tourists than Damnoen Saduak and more genuine in character — you're shopping alongside Bangkok families.

The Jim Thompson House (6 traditional Thai teak houses joined together, containing Jim Thompson's extraordinary collection of Asian antiques and his private garden) is the finest private museum in Bangkok. Jim Thompson was the American businessman who revived the Thai silk industry in the 1950s, making it a global luxury product — and who disappeared without trace in the Malaysian jungle in 1967, one of the great unsolved mysteries of the 20th century. Guided tours only, hourly.

Bangkok's street food is UN-endorsed as the best in the world: khao man gai (poached chicken rice, the Thai version of Singapore's chicken rice, eaten with dark soy sauce and ginger broth), mango sticky rice (khao niao mamuang — glutinous rice with coconut cream and fresh mango, Thailand's most beloved dessert), som tam (green papaya salad, pounded in a pestle with lime, fish sauce, chilli and peanuts) and grilled satay skewers. Yaowarat (Chinatown) is the best street food precinct.

Wat Saket (the Golden Mount — an artificial hill 80m high topped with a golden chedi visible from across Bangkok) is the finest sunset viewpoint in old Bangkok: the Rattanakosin Island, the golden spires of Wat Phra Kaew and the Chao Phraya are all visible from the terrace. The 318 steps are lined with bells and prayer flags. At sunset the city turns golden. Almost no tourists compared to the Grand Palace.

Yaowarat Road (Bangkok Chinatown, established by Chinese merchants in 1782 when Bangkok was founded) is the best street food street in Asia: roast duck and BBQ pork on rice (khao moo daeng-phet), dim sum at the T&K Seafood carts, tom yum fried rice and the extraordinary grilled squid and prawn hawkers who set up after 9pm. The neon signs, the tuk-tuks and the cooking smells make Yaowarat at night an essential Bangkok experience.