Outside The City

Samphran Elephant Ground and Zoo

Thailand is famous for its animal shows and if you’re in Bangkok, one of the better places to go to see these shows is at the Samphran Elephant Ground and Zoo. Here you can see spectacular elephant and crocodile shows as well as wander around the various animal enclosures or take an elephant ride. The Elephant Show is a nice piece of theatre with the elephants as the star performers, culminating in a battle scene, complete with fire balls exploding from the model battlements at one end of the arena. It’s also a chance to see the big friendly animals play a bit of soccer, scoring goals past a human defender. Over at the Crocodile Show you’ll be amazed, and a little worried, with the antics of a couple of Thai men who jump in a crocodile pit with a bunch of crocodiles. During the show they show off their abilities put their heads inside the crocodiles’ mouths and generally play up to the crowd in a funny kind of way. It probably isn’t as dangerous as it looks after the crocodiles have been trained, but it still gets everyone excited all the same! Address: Km 30, Petkasem Road, Samphran, Nakhon Pathom 73110. Tel: +66 0 2429 0361. Opening hours: 9am-5pm daily. Prices: 350B adult, 250B child. Elephant ride 400B, Paddle boats 50B per half-hour. Daily show times: Crocodile Wrestling show – 12.45pm, 2.20pm, 4.20pm. Special Show – 1.15pm, 3pm. Elephant Theme Show – 1.45pm, 3.30pm. (back to top)

Ancient City

Built originally by a rich Thai businessman, the Ancient City is a wonderful, if not exhausting, trip to take just outside of Bangkok. The park covers 320 acres of land and is formed in the rough shape of Thailand. Inside you will find all manner of original historical buildings moved from their original site, as well as recreations in miniature and full-size of other historical buildings from around the Kingdom. To see the whole thing we recommend you take a tour from your hotel in Bangkok so that you’ll have the use of a car to get around the whole park. Or, you can make your own way there by taxi and hire a bicycle to get around it. Don’t think for a minute though that you can do this in the morning before heading off somewhere else in the afternoon, because this place truly is massive! One of the interesting things to look out for is the throne hall reproduced from Ayutthaya that was destroyed when the Burmese sacked the old capital over 200 years ago. The attention to detail is fantastic and even inside it is designed and constructed complete with wall murals and statues making it easy to imagine you’ve just experienced time travel. Address: Sukhumvit Highway Km 33. Tel: +66 0 2224 1057. Opening hours: 8am-5pm daily. Prices: 50B per person, 50B per car. (back to top)

Rose Garden Resort

West of Bangkok, in the same vicinity as the Samphran Elephant Park, the Rose Garden is a nice excursion from the city. Even if you don’t want to spend the night at the resort, you’ll find the activities here are still very enjoyable. The Rose Garden, from which the resort gets its name, surrenders into a park of its own along the riverside creating a nice walking area amongst the greenery. Also here is the small Thai Village Cultural area where you can ride on an elephant as well as catch a cultural show with demonstrations of traditional dancing, Muay Thai boxing, sword fighting, Glong Sabutchai or victory drumming and the colourful Flag Dance. You also have the chance to do a bit of shopping in the village’s handicraft market area and sample some of the local food. Overall, the Rose Garden is a good place to get an introduction to the Thai culture. You can also take part in various other traditional Thai activities including Thai cooking classes, dance lessons and Muay Thai boxing classes here. Address: Km 32, Pet Kasem Road, Samphran, Nakorn Pathom 73110. Tel: +66 034 322 58893. Prices: Cultural show – 380B. Cooking class – 2000B, Thai dance lesson – 3000B, Muay Thai boxing lesson – 3000B. (back to top)

Siam Park City

Bangkok’s premier water park, Siam Park is a great place to go for a little fun after you’ve seen all the top sights in the city. Containing all sorts of water-based attractions, Siam Park has a man-made sea with artificial surf, slides and many other fun things to do. There’s also an aviary and some botanical gardens here so you can have a break from the water for a while. Tel: +66 0 2919 7200. Opening hours: 10am-6pm Mon-Fri, 10am-7pm Sat-Sun and PH. Prices: 400B adult, 300B child. (back to top)

Safari World

Bangkok’s open safari zoo is a good place to go to see some free-roaming animals from all over the world. Lions, tigers, giraffes, elephants, buffalo… you name it, they’ve got them all here. You can either drive yourself through, or you can take a safari mini-coach to get up close to all the animals. This one has been a long-time favourite for visitors to Bangkok. The Park also houses a marine park which has shows with well-trained dolphins, seals and polar bears as well as a stunning stunt show complete with fire and explosions. Safari World is a good place to go if you want a break from all the temples and historical sites of Bangkok. Address: 99 Ramindra Road, Km 9 Klongsamwa, Bangkok. Tel: +66 0 2518 1000. Prices: 700B adult, 450B child. (back to top)