A lot of people are now in Bangkok for Devcon, an Ethereum conference, and a lot of them are stuck in Bangkok traffic for hours
I lived there for 10 years on and off and there's a specific workflow we digital nomads developed to get around Bangkok FAST:
- book your hotel near the BTS (the skytrain)
- bring a hoodie (more on that later)
- look for the orange jacket moto guys, they're everywhere, or install Grab app and book a moto there, check what price should be, it's normal to negotiate and you'll need cash probably
- yes going on the back of a moto isn't safe but here's the point you all miss: you DO NOT drive a moto for your MAIN journey on big roads: you use a moto to get from your hotel to the BTS skytrain station
- then hop on the BTS, buy a Rabbit card (easy) for easy check in
- take the airconditioned BTS skytrain and you might need your hoodie cause it's so cold
- arrive near your spot, if it's a mall you can probably walk into it from the BTS
- if a cafe or restaurant, get out of the station, again look for orange jacket moto drivers or book a Grab moto, drive to your destination
Other things:
- malls are different here than in the West, malls are a universe here, you can spend all day there, not shopping even but just walking around, drinking coffee, eating great food, bowling, cinema, endless activities, and you'll skip the outside heat and air pollution cause air inside is cold and filtered
- try massages, my fav is foot massage
- my fav area is around Lumphini very upscale
- Bangkok is great cause it has a range from supercheap to super luxury expensive, it works with everyone's budget, you probably have stereotypes about Thailand like everyone but there's like 30 different types of Bangkok depending which area you're in, I've had street food sushi for $1 and Japanese Michelin chef private sushi for $700! Can do both
- if you have time, fly to some of the islands, they're nice to explore, Ko Pha Ngan in particular is a great spot kinda like Bali but not so busy and very hippie
Enjoy Bangkok and Thailand!