The Old Siam: Damnoen Saduak and Maeklong Railway Market
Highlights
- Watch stalls fold back as the train passes at Maeklong Railway Market
- Paddle boat ride into Damnoen Saduak Floating Market
- Buy directly from vendors selling out of their boats
- Try pad thai, rice noodle soup and mango sticky rice
Description
See two of Thailand's most famous markets on one day trip from Bangkok, as a shared group or a private tour. You begin at the Maeklong Railway Market, also called Talad Rom Hup, the "Umbrella Pulldown Market." It is one of the largest fresh seafood markets in Thailand and sits right on the railway track. For more background and practical advice, see our Damnoen Saduak Floating Market guide.
Pricing
Adult
Age 10-99
THB 995per person
Child
Age 3-9
THB 795per person
Infant
Age 0-2
Free
per person
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Meet at The Old Siam Plaza or hotel pickup
Start at The Old Siam Plaza, or take a hotel pickup. Hotel pickup is at 08:00; if you check in yourself at The Old Siam Plaza, please be there by 08:30.
Arrive at the Maeklong Railway Market, known locally as Talad Rom Hup. The market is set on a working railway line, and stalls pull back as a train passes, then reopen once it has gone.
Take a short paddle boat ride along the canals to reach the Damnoen Saduak Floating Market.
Explore the floating market at your own pace. Vendors sell food and local specialities from their boats along the canal.
Travel back to Bangkok in the afternoon. Drop-off at MBK Mall is around 15:30 with normal traffic.
Included
- Roundtrip air-conditioned transportation
- Paddle boat
- Guide
- Water
- Hotel pickup (if option selected)
Not included
- Meals (drinking water is included)
- Alcoholic drinks
- Personal expenses and souvenirs
- Tips for the guide (optional)
- Comfortable shoes
- Sunglasses
- Sun hat
- Sunscreen
- Cash
This tour starts at a fixed meeting point. Please make your own way there.
The Old Siam Plaza
The Old Siam Plaza is at 12 Tri Phet Road in Wang Burapha, on the edge of Phahurat. The simplest way is the MRT to Sam Yot station and a walk of about 300 metres; taxis and Grab know The Old Siam Plaza by name. Please arrive by 07:45, 15 minutes before the 08:00 departure.
The meeting point is different from most Bangkok tours: Bigcountry Old Town at The Old Siam Plaza, with check-in by 07:45 for the 08:00 departure, or hotel pickup if you selected that option at booking. The tour runs as a shared group or private, whichever you booked.
Maeklong Railway Market opens the day. The guide walks you through how one of Thailand’s biggest fresh seafood markets operates on an active railway line; if a train is due while you are there, you watch the whole market fold back and reopen within moments, though the timetable, not the tour, decides that.
Damnoen Saduak follows, reached by paddle boat, and this is the stop to arrive at hungry, with cash in your pocket: vendors sell mango sticky rice, noodle soup and pad thai straight from their boats. Drinking water is included through the day, meals are not. You are back in Bangkok mid-afternoon.
FAQs
At Bigcountry Old Town at The Old Siam Plaza, by 07:45 for the 08:00 departure, or the driver collects you first if you added hotel pickup at booking.
Yes. Eight services a day come through the market and the visit is timed to be there for one of them. You watch every stall and awning fold back from the track as the train edges past, then reopen moments later. The State Railway of Thailand occasionally runs late, in which case the stop simply lasts a little longer.
No meals are included, just drinking water. That is deliberate: both markets are places to eat your way through, from mango sticky rice to noodle soup, so bring cash and an appetite.
Yes, the trip runs as a shared group or as a private tour; you choose when booking.
Yes. Cancelling or moving your booking to another date is free up to 24 hours before the tour starts, and anything you have paid is refunded in full. Cancellations made less than 24 hours before the start time are non-refundable, and no-shows are not refunded. If we have to cancel, for example for weather or safety, you can move to another date or take a full refund.
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Reviews
Based on 254 reviews
- Erdenebat MunkhbatAugust 11, 20265.0
Early start totally worth it.
- Noriko SugimotoAugust 7, 20265.0
A half-day-plus format suited our Bangkok schedule perfectly. Vendors restored their awnings almost as soon as the last carriage cleared.
- SylvèreAugust 5, 20265.0
The boat moved slowly enough for photographs and small purchases. Our children counted boats selling food rather than souvenirs. The schedule gave us structure without making every minute feel controlled. I brought a compact camera and used it constantly. A half-day-plus format suited our Bangkok schedule perfectly.
- Nattapong WongchaiJuly 25, 20265.0
This removed all the transport planning from two distant attractions. MBK drop-off made it easy to continue sightseeing afterward. Check-in at Old Siam Plaza was straightforward and punctual. My brother cared about the train and I cared about the food, so both of us won. Fresh fruit boats and tiny canal kitchens made the floating market vivid. A fish seller rolled her baskets back seconds before the locomotive arrived. Both markets were touristy in places and fascinating overall.
- Naran BatboldJuly 24, 20265.0
Cold water and efficient transfers made the warm day manageable. A chilled bottle of water was ready after the hottest stop. Check-in at Old Siam Plaza was straightforward and punctual.