Bangkok With Kids: Sky Pools, Temples & A Little Bit Of Chaos

Bangkok was our big-city stop on this trip and it certainly lived up to its reputation: hot, busy and full of energy from morning to night. We only had a few days here, so we tried to pack in as much as we could while still keeping it fun for the boys.

We flew with AirAsia from Phuket to Bangkok, a short flight of around 1 hour 30 minutes. It was a great little hop and, as you can imagine, went by quickly. Once we landed, we followed the signs for the Airport Rail Link Skytrain, which took us into the city to an area close to where we were staying. It was really straightforward and only a short walk from the Skytrain to our hotel.

Where We Stayed: The Berkeley Hotel Pratunam

We stayed at The Berkeley Hotel Pratunam, a large city hotel that worked really well for us as a family of four. Our room was very big and spacious, which made such a difference with all of us sharing. One of our favourite features was the rooftop pool, which was beautifully lit up at night and a lovely place to unwind. From up there, the Bangkok skyline looked incredible.

Bangkok itself was HOT and super busy. All the time. We knew we only had a short stay, so we tried hard to fit in plenty of exploring while also building in some pool time to cool down.

Shopping Malls, Markets & River Life

We had 4 nights in Bangkok and managed to squeeze in quite a lot. We visited several shopping malls, including Iconsiam, which has an amazing mix of shops and lots of different areas to wander through.

We explored food markets and had a go at eating with chopsticks which provided a bit of entertainment in itself. The boys loved trying new bits and pieces, and there is no shortage of choice when it comes to Thai street food.

We took a river boat along the Chao Phraya River and passed sights like the Grand Palace from the water. We visited Wat Arun Ratchawararam, a beautiful Buddhist temple, and it was lovely to see the intricate detail up close.

We also spent some time walking around Lumpini Park, which felt like a little green escape from the city. The highlight here for the kids was spotting the huge monitor lizards wandering around. They thought this was brilliant and we spent a while just watching them.

Sky-High Views & Rooftop Evenings

A big hit with all of us was going up to the 78th floor of the King Power Mahanakhon Tower. It is the highest viewpoint in Bangkok and has a glass floor section. The children were especially excited because from the outside it reminded them of something straight out of Minecraft.

In the evenings we often headed back to the rooftop pool at the hotel to cool off and relax. There was also a sports bar area up there that served food, which worked well for easy dinners with the kids after busy days out.

We really enjoyed our time in Bangkok. It is full-on and the traffic can be a bit mad, but there is so much to see and do and the boys had a brilliant time.

All too soon it was time to head back to the airport. For the return journey we chose a taxi instead of the Skytrain, as it was very early in the morning and the traffic was still manageable.

Next up for us was our flight from Bangkok to Dubai with Emirates and the start of the next chapter of our adventure.