Sightseeing while Cruising Chao Phraya River
Our first stop for the day 2 of our Indochina tour was the Grand Palace. To reach the place, we boarded BTS at National Stadium station and got off at Saphan Taksin station. Sathorn Pier was just few steps away from the west exit of Saphan Taksin. We hopped on a boat, and then it turned into an instant cruise in Chao Phraya River.
The fare was cheap at TH฿15/pax. We took the boat with the orange flag which we pre-determined to make a stop in Tha Chang Pier (N9), the closest pier to the Grand Palace entrance. (Boats with blue flags will stop at Tha Chang Pier too.)
We hadn’t made that far yet when we saw towering edifices on the river bank. Prominent hotels also chose to locate beside the river – Shangri-La, Mandarin Oriental, Peninsula, and Hilton, to name a few.
As we move farther, we saw great pagodas, temples, and stupas. The Chee Chin Khor Pagoda stood out because of its look which was more Chinese compared to the traditional Thai stupas. But the most notable among those structures was the Wat Arun which was standing tall across the Tha Chang Pier.
The cruise spanned for about 30 minutes and we really enjoyed it – without minding some water splashes.
I failed to experience this on my visit to Bangkok 2 years ago because of the rover flood from the north of the country during that time. Nice views to see by the river.