The green urban oasis offered by Bangkok’s parks is not the first thing that pops into mind when you think of this vibrant metropolis. Most visitors are happily surprised to find the city has a significant number of beautiful outdoor green spaces, filled with lush plantings and pretty lakes. From the brand new Central Forest Park with its impressive skywalk to a couple of less known local haunts today we share our favourites with you.
It took us a few visits to discover these parks, but they are now are a regular part of any trip to Bangkok and they have really added a layer to our enjoyment of the city. We thought we would look at some of the most accessible and beautiful parks in Bangkok so you can pop one into your next Bangkok itinerary.
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Lush gardens and tranquil lakes are the perfect antidote to the hustle and bustle of Sukhumvit Road and the malls of Siam. The parks in Bangkok offer something for everyone, whether it’s an outdoor gym, swimming pools, an enormous tree to picnic under or somewhere for a romantic walk that will transport you from the noisy city streets.
We have added a few of our favourite hotels near each park. If you are not visiting for a shopping holiday, we highly recommend staying near one of these “green lungs”.
Tip: Given Bangkok’s heat most parks are at their busiest from dawn until 9am and from 5pm until they close as late as 9pm.
5 parks in Bangkok you should see
If you are struggling to knock out your 10 steps in Bangkok’s heat, then visiting one of these parks at sunrise or sunset when the weather is at its kindest.
The largest and most interesting parks for visitors and best parks for locals include:
- Lumphini Park: near Silom BTS
- Benjakitti Park: near Asok BTS
- Chatuchak Metro Park: near Mo Chit BTS
- Benjasiri Park: near Phrom Phong BTS
- Romaneenart Park: near Sam Rot MRT
The first three parks in bangkok that we are sharing today are connected by a walkway known locally as the green mile and if you decide to do all three in the one day you will start in Silom and end in Asok.
Lumphini Park
We are starting with Bangkok’s largest and most popular park,it’s known for its beautiful man-made lake and views of the city skyline.
With landscaped areas that resemble those of a classic European garden, Lumphini Park is in the heart of the central Bangkok business district. Bangkok’s first public park, Lumphini, sits on was donated by the King in 1925 to host a trade fair, and once the fair was over, it became a public park.
Lumphini Park was named after Lord Buddha’s birthplace in Nepal.
Lumphini Park is the perfect place to meet your first monitor lizard, with over 400 calling the park home. Having grown up with some Blue Tongue lizards in our back garden in Sydney, I did not think these lizards would be all that impressive but some of these are huge! This one we met one day recently when we visited felt more like a crocodile than a lizard.
To walk around the entire park will take you 40 mins (3km). There are outdoor fitness stations, a public swimming pool, an all abilities playground, and even a basketball court, making this park popular with locals.
Check out our guide to Bangkok’s best street food and grab some to enjoy in the park.
Things to do in Lumphini Park?
- Watch the lizards and turtles go about their day
- Rent a paddleboat on the main lake
- Join free yoga or tai chi class
- Check out the Visitors Centre to discover the calendar for performances in the amphitheatre
- The park has several playgrounds, including an all abilities one in an area known as Smiling Sun Ground.
- Grab breakfast at the food area near the Chinese Pavilion
- Check out the local library, which has free wifi
- Have breakfast at one of the food stalls in the Lumphini Station corner.
- Visit the food stalls in the northern east corner for lunch.
Where: Rama IV Road, Pathum Wan, Bangkok
When: 4.30am – 9pm
Getting there: BTS: Sala Daeng – 3-minute walk from the BTS Skytrain station to the park entrance or MRT: Silom exit comes right to the entry of the park.
Good to know before you visit
- Cyclists are only allowed in the park between 10am-3pm
- Dogs, smoking and alcohol are banned in the park
- You should not feed the pigeons – it’s also banned
If you want to keep going, we suggest you exit the park via the north-eastern corner and head up the stairs to the Green Mile, officially known as the Lumphini Benjakitti walkway.
The Green Mile
The Green Mile is a 1.3km elevated walkway that takes you high above the city’s traffic to the next park on our list. While it’s been around several years, a makeover in 2022 has given it a new lease of life and the fresh paint and lighting has made using it much more appealing.
A visit to the Green Mile is an attraction in itself, allowing you great views over the area and an insight into the communities that live below. It’s a great inclusion to your bangkok itinerary.
Getting there: Access to the Green Mile is via bottom of Sukhumvit Soi 10 or Sukhumvit Soi 4 – it’s a great walk to explore local life in Bangkok
Benjakitti Park
While Lumphini is the grand old dame, Benjakitti Park feels more like a rock star. When you feel the need for some space and a good dose of fresh air, it’s impossible to go past Benjakitti with its skywalk, green spaces and mangroves. Whether you spell it Benjakitti or Benchakitti this enormous space in Bangkok is a must see.
On our recent trip, we chose a hotel near the park so we could take advantage of it for sunset walks and escaping the city hustle for a little while each day.
Regular visitors who have not visited Bangkok since 2020, will be amazed by this amazing addition to the city.
While larger than the original park, the Forest Park is an extension of the original, which is arranged in four zones:
- Zone 1 – This zone includes the extensive areas of open green space great for picnics
- Zone 2 – The wetlands and forest – good cycling lane for cyclists – join the sky bridge here
- Zone 3 – The original park and the lake
- Zone 4 – Not yet opened but will include the Benjakitti Forest Park Museum and an indoor sports centre
Benchakitti Forest Park
The forest park’s gardens and wetlands are an unexpected site in the middle of such a large city. With a network of walking paths and raised walkways, the landscaping here is outstanding and the number of mature trees included makes it feel like it’s all been here for quite some time.
The extension is being constructed in three phases. The first two are now open, with the final one expected next year. The final zone in the park will be a museum built in the shell of the old tobacco factory building.
Things to do in the forest park
- See the Lotus garden – best between Dec and April and in the cool of the day
- Wander the 6km of walkways and skywalks to watch the bird life – the walkways are lit until 8pm so you can enjoy it when it’s cooler.
- Exercise, there are 2.8km of jogging tracks and 3.4km cycling paths and more than 5.5km of walking paths.
Good to know before you visit
- Bicycles are banned on the skywalk
- There is a dog park at the Sukhumvit Road end of the park.
Benjakitti Park
Opening in 2004, this section of the park is more like a grand European style park and completely different from the adjoining forest park.
If you are wondering what the name means, Benjakitti translates to 5 cycles, which is a reference to the age of the queen when the gift was made.
The idea for Benjakitti Park originated when the Thailand Tobacco Monopoly donated the land to Queen Sirikit for it to be transformed into a green space for the city.
The most popular feature of this original section is the man-made Lake Ratchada. The lake is ringed by a 2.5km track which features both running and cycling lanes. It’s much used by Sukhumvit locals for their daily exercise.
What are some highlights of Benjakitti Park
- The view of the skyline from the lake
- See the Golden Lotus sculpture at Lake Ratchada.
- Stunning flower beds lining the lake make the perfect foreground to a skyline photo
- Ride in the paddle boats
Tip: Visit at sunset for beautiful views over the lake
Where: Bordered by Soi 4 Sukhumvit & Soi Sukhumvit 10 on the Sukhumvit side and Queen Sirikit National Convention Centre at the other end.
When: 5am- 9pm (no bikes after 5.30pm)
Getting there: Enter via Soi 4 or Soi 10 for the Green Mile and the Central Forest
If you are not coming in via the Forest Park and the Green Mile, you can enter the park from Queen Sirikit National Convention Centre. It’s less than 10 minutes walk to the park. From Asok BTS Station – take exit 4 make your way to the main intersection which is nearby, turn to Ratchadaphisek Road and walk for about 300m will take you to the older lake section of the park.
Chatuchak Metro Park
Right next door to Chatuchak Market, this park is easily reached by public transport and if you are in Bangkok for an extended period, it’s worth checking out. It makes a great break after a couple of hours at the market.
The metro park features three parks that border each other;
- Chatuchak Park sits aside the main road literally on top of the Chatuchak MRT line. It’s an older park with lots of mature trees,
- Queen Sirikit Park is a botanical garden with an extensive range of local trees and flowers beautifully landscaped with lotus ponds and a water lily yard. It’s separated from Chatuchak Park by a roadway.
- Rot Fai Park is connected to Queen Sirikit Park by the cool Bird Wave Bridge. This park has lots of facilities for families and children, including fun bike tracks and a pool.
While each has a different name, many locals just refer to all three as Chatuchak.
Compared to many public parks in the city, Chatuchak is well shaded and you will find lots of people sitting relaxing after shopping at Chatuchak Market.
Chatuchak means 4 cycles and the park and was named in honor of King Rama IX’s 48 birthday.
While some people say Benjakitti is like Bangkok’s version of Central Park, I think Chatuchak Park has much more of a NYC Central Park feel. It’s also so well used by locals and not really a tourist park, but having said that it’s a great place for visitors who want to see something different from the usual tourist sites.
Things to see in Chatuchak Park
- The nine ASEAN sculptures scattered through the park
- Thai literature and herb garden
- The stepping stones through the sculpted pond
- Bangkok Butterfly Garden and Insectarium in Rot Fai Park
- Rent a bike – adults and kids’ bikes are available
- Children’s discovery museum in Queen Sirikit Park
- Use the golf driving range, soccer fields, tennis courts, basketball court or skate park.
Where: Kamphaeng Phet Rd, Chatuchak, Bangkok
When: 4am – 8pm
Getting here: The nearest BTS station is the Mo Chit station on the BTS Sukhumvit Line or the Chatuchak Park station on the MRT Blue Line.
Across the road is Suan Somdet Ya Park (aka the Queen Mother Park) If you want to visit just get off the MRT one stop earlier at Phahon Yothin.
Benjasiri Park
Benjasiri Park is not far from Benjakitti, and the name often confuses people. Benjasiri is known as the park of sculptures with a large sculpture of Queen Sirikit greeting you at the entrance. Quite fitting really, as the park commemorates her 60th Birthday.
Benjasiri’s centrepiece fountain was designed by renowned local sculptor Mesium Yipinsoy. There is supposed to be a fountain show three times a day (6am, noon and 7pm) but we have not been here at the right time to see it yet.
Along with the fountain, there are a dozen sculptures scattered around the park; the most impressive is a huge pyramid. This is a pretty park and although it’s not large, you will see turtles and lizards and even squirrels as you wander around. If you are visiting the malls of Sukhumvit Road, you will find it right near EmSphere, Bangkok’s newest mall.
There are lots of opportunities for exercise with a swimming pool, roller skating rink, tennis court and basketball courts.
Where: Sukhumvit 22-24 Khlong Tan, Khlong Toei, Bangkok
When: 5 am to 9 pm
How: The park is only 100m from Phrom Phong BTS Skytrain and near the Emporium Shopping Mall, making it easy to pop in for a visit if you are shopping in this part of Sukhumvit.
Romaneenart Park
Romaneenart Park is an interesting green space in the Rattanakosin district that sits on what was once the old city jail. Klong Prem Central Prison housed the worst criminals in the city.
While it’s not as pretty as other parks, you will find remnants of the past, a watchtower and part of the old jail wall. There is also an interesting museum.
It’s also an interesting spot for people watching and worth stopping by if you are visiting Wat Suthat, aka the Golden Mount Temple, which is a short walk away.
Things to do in Rommaneenat Park
- Visit the Corrections Museum (Thur to Sat 8.30am to 4.30pm)
- Check out the two remaining prison towers
- Get a workout in the free gym
This is not a park you would go out of your way to visit but wander through if you are nearby visiting the Giant Swing.
Where: Maha Chai Rd, Samran Rat, Phra Nakhon
When: 5am to 8pm
Getting there: MRT – Sam Rot is just a few minutes’ walk away.
Nearby and not far from the Grand Palace you will find is Santichaiprakarn Park is a brilliant spot facing the Chao Phraya River. This is a great place to visit in the early evening before you head to the famous Khao San Road for drinks. At sunset you will find the park filled with street artists performing for the crowd.
Parks on our to do list for this year
Now we are spending a few months in Bangkok we plan on adding these to our list soon.
- Pathumwananurak Park – with its sign declaring it as Oasis in the City the park right behind CentralWorld is certainly an oasis in a sea of shopping malls. It officially opened in mid 2023 and is a short walk from Pratunam Pier.
- Rama IX National Park – Bangkoks largest park is outside Bangkok’s centre featuring the Rommanee Garden and a water park.
- Si Nakhon Kheun Khan Park – a botanical garden in Tambon Bang Krachao that makes a great half-day trip.
- Phutthamonthon Park – Phra Phutthamonthon Park, is a 400-hectare park with sculptures depicting key moments in Buddha’s life.
Check out our guide to public transport in Bangkok before you head out, as these parks are easily reached by BTS or Metro.
Map of Bangkok’s Parks
Our map of parks in Bangkok features the five here, but a total of 17 parks we think are worth a stroll if you are in the area.
We hope you enjoy discovering life in Bangkok’s green spaces, if we have missed one of your favourites share it below.