Visitors Planet - Is it easy to explore the tourist attractions in Bangkok without a tourist guide>?

Is it easy to explore the tourist attractions in Bangkok without a tourist guide>?

We plan to explore Bangkok on our own as we are on a budget trip. Is it easy to do so without the aid of a professional tourist guide. We dont speak thai but can speak English. Can taxi drivers just ferry you to the place you want to go say the Grand Palace or Emerald Palace if you speak tot hem in English. Can many of them understand this language.

Public Comments

You should at least engage an english speaking cabbie as a guide, A good cabbie might be all the guide you need. Look for a cab service that's set up that way, and perhaps offers longer term rates. A specialized travel agent might be able to find it for you.
Will not a problem........however English is not widely spoken by taxi drivers in BKK, but your hotel can talk to your taxi driver if you wish and given them the location in Thai, also get the name card of the hotel you are staying in, usually has the thai address on the back...can use this to get back to your hotel On taxis make sure the trip is done on the meter.... Also check out the travel agents which offer half day/full trips around BKK...can get a car and a driver for the whole day to take you to the tourist spots and wait for you....not much more expensive than taking taxis all over the place
Yes not much english spoken by most taxi drivers, but you can sometimes fiend one. Be careful you dont get taken to his cousins shop on the way. Many of the main tourist attractions can be arrived at by river ferry much cheaper and pleasant than taxis.
You dont need a tourist guide to explore Bangkok. Many people can talk a bit of english. But the thais pronounce english words in a different way. So thet will not understand what you request for. Just have some brochures of the places that you want to visit or have a copy of a travel guide. Whenyou show the destination to a taxidriver he will understand easily and take you to where you want to go. Always get in to a metered taxi and have the meter on.
hi i've travelled around bangkok quite a bit and never needed a guide. the palace and most of the temples are reasonably together so long as you dont mind walking around, its well worth i you see some great true sights of bangkok if you walk! the river provides a great bus service dont get a private taxi, pay on the boat or you will be paying for a private REALLY expensive taxi, it should cost you a few baht! taxi's are good and speak english or at least understand it but really better to walk the traffic will cost you a fortune but if you have to make sure they put the meter on, insist when you get in some will refuse! and tuk tuk are fabulous fun but do have habit of taking you to random shops on route as they are on commision insist on direct travel no stops! my advice always is walk oh and dont believe the drivers when they say certain temples etc closed and offer you a replacement tour, there just trying luck! enjoy hope you have fun! grand palace definetly worth the entrance fee!!!
The answer is yes. You can get around to all the sites easy with no guide. Before you get in any taxi, ask them if they will run the meter if not, DO NOT get in the taxi. Around tourists sites are the worst of the worst taxi scam artists. Find meter taxi only is rule number one. Learn to use the BTS Skytrain and MRT underground train which is very simple. Cheapest and fastest way around the city. This is probably the most important thing you can do to save on your budget. All stations have all signs in English and tellers speak English so no problems. Third thing is you need to know where you want to go and what you want to visit before you get to Thailand. Without a doubt, http://www.visualthailand.com is the best site by far for this information. http://www.visualthailand.com has 1000's of current photos of all Bangkok attractions, all commercial and advertising free. These are actual photos of all attractions. There is FAQ, plenty of real stories and other things that will allow you to plan your whole trip with ease. You will know exactly what you want to see and do without a doubt by looking at all the photos. Bangkok is a very easy city to get around, just use common sense and watch out for some of the well known scams such as gem scam and tuk-tuk scam around the Grand Palace. Do some google on Bangkok scams please for your own good. You can have a marvellous time with only a little research on the internet. Good luck
It is an on going problem with taxi drivers trying to get maximum $ from international tourists.....Heed the warning and insist on the meter being switched on...get out if they don't agree...I insisted on the same and at destination taxi driver was so furious even with a tip..he just threw baggage on side walk.. ..Also take your time at the airport to make inquiries as to the best way to your hotel,,,,they will fix the price for you at a very high cost...this problem has been discussed at length by Thais' themselves because of the blatant rip off of tourists. The transport system is very good and easy to use.....The trains in Bangkok proper will take you to a lot of the sights you will want to see..Roadside food is excellent and cheap.. Thai's take everycare to make sure food is fresh and wholesome....Never have I seen and eaten pineapples so yellow and so sweet....for about $3 australian you can get a big piece of grilled chicken, corn on the cob...bag of fresh cut mango, pineapple, melon... Lots of Thai speak English.....there is always someone around who is helpfull...last but not least..Bangkok is an ultra modern city........Have fun. cheers
You can do without a tourist guide in any of the countries - provided you have a tourist map and have some basic knowledge of local attractions. You can easily find english speaking taxi drivers - no problem But do look for a metered taxi - also you can get a sky train and BTs map from the station and it will guide you which station leads to which area - very easy and handy for guidance. we use it most of the time - local tourist map and knowledge of Sky train / bts and we normally go thru the city without any problems. and the places you have mentioned as very famous so any taxi driver would take you.
It's very easy to explore places like the Grand Palace on your own, the Temple of the Emerald Buddha is located within the Grand Palace and is included in the admission price to the palace. It's probably a good idea to bring along a guide book describing the sights within the grounds although you are given a pamphlet with a map and brief description of the sights when you buy your ticket which also includes admission and a guided tour of Vimanmek Mansion a few miles away by taxi. I think instead of taking a taxi to the palace, take the Chao Phraya Express tourist boat instead, it's located at the end of the Saphan Taksin Skytrain line, if you take the tourist boat, instead of the water taxi it will include a narrated tour of the sights along the river in English and can take you right near Wat Po where the Temple of the Reclining Buddha is located and a short walk to the Grand Palace from there, also the Temple of Dawn or Wat Arun is located just across the river from there, and you can take a river crossing ferry from the pier. The tourist boat only costs 120 baht for an all day pass or much less just to go to the palace. Just be careful around the palace of all the touts who will try to tell you the palace is closed and offer you a personal tour of other sights, they are scam artists and your "tour" will inevitably end up at a less than honest gem shop or tailor, ignore them, the palace is open everyday. Otherwise, you've received some good advice about taxis from your other answers, another place I think is worth a visit is the Jim Thompson House, it's located near the National Stadium Skytrain stop, and only costs 100 baht for an English language guided tour. Have fun. http://www.chaophrayaboat.co.th/touristboat_chaophrayariver_e.htm
My friends and I had no trouble getting around Bangkok without a guide. Be wary of anyone outside the gates of the temples offering to be your guides - they told us that the temple was closed to anyone but Thai people and wanted to take us elsewhere. We went to the temple anyway and of course it was open!! Also, our hotel gave us a slip of paper to hand to the taxi driver with the address/name of where we were going written in both English and Thai. This was very helpful - ask at the front desk if they can help you with that. We also took the train to the big market and had no trouble on the public transportation at all. It was very easy to get around.
Not many taxi drivers will understand the English name of the places you may be planning to visit. It will be good if you have a local to help. Otherwise, armed with a tourist map, you can get to many places with the trains and cabs. Use the map to help guide the cab driver to your destinations.