Bangkok Dinner Cruise

[Big Boy]

Something I’ve been fancying for a few years, but I’ve avoided because I detest Bangkok (or any capital city). Mrs BB has a birthday coming up soon, and I've convinced her it would be a nice way spend the evening, eating food during a leisurely cruise along the Chao Phraya (she normally detests any on the water ).

I avoid Bangkok so much, I know little about the place apart from the football stadiums (and maybe a few shady drinking areas about 40 years ago ).

I’ve done a little research on the river cruises, and they seem to depart from 3 locations. Does anybody know which location would suit us best (I always thought they left from somewhere called Thaksin Pier)? Please remember Mrs BB is not very active on her legs. The 3 locations I’ve identified are:

• Asiatique
• ICONSIAM
• River City

All 3 of the above are totally alien to me. Does any departure point have any advantages over the others?

Next question, has anybody been on one of these cruises and can recommend a particular boat. Some seem to be just eat and cruise, some have an inclusive show, some have a disco (I don’t think so with Mrs BB’s legs), some have free flow booze included (we don’t really drink any more).

Thanks in advance for any guidance you can give.

[caller]

Where will you be staying? Asiatique and river city are either side of the Taksin Bridge on one side of the river and iconSiam is nearby, towards River City, but on the other side of the river. Traffic around iconsiam can be really bad. As far as I can recall, you will have to walk through Asiatique to get to the river. Same with River City, but just a short flat walk, through the building. If you really want to celebrate on style have a night at thr Sheraton next to River City

[Nereus]

Many years since I have done it, but well worth the effort in my opinion.

For me, in your situation, I would not even attempt to try and book a cruise, never mind even try and get there myself. ICONSIAM is on western bank of the river, the other two on the city side.

I suggest that the way to do it is to find a “tourist” type of hotel that has a tour desk, and is somewhere that you think that you can find near the river if preferred, but a bit further away may be a better option.

I cannot remember how difficult it was to board the boat, but I am sure that they will have a ramp of some sort. That needs to be checked with the tour operator, but they are sizable boats, so it should not be a problem.

Cannot recommend a particular boat, but one thing that I do recall was that with some of them your meal preference has to be pre-ordered.

[Big Boy]

Thank you for the fast replies. The page I've been looking at is https://www.click2gothailand.com/guides ... 68NoOp5BCU .

I know so little about Bangkok, I don't even know what Asiatique, ICONSIAM or River City are. I'm assuming they are some sort of shopping mall. My plan was to identify which was most suited to Mrs BB's needs (she'd be using a stick, rather than a chair, although if shopping malls, I presume wheelchairs will be available). Once I have a destination, I was going to find a convenient hotel.

The cruise I've been looking at most favourably so far is Meridian Cruise 2.

[VincentD]

I've been on one fairly recently, it left from ICONSIAM. A lot of the cruises operate from this pier, so I would suggest looking at their websites and finding the cheapest option. The one I went on had a disco and I got stuck right in front; great view, but hard on the eardrums. Not the easiest access, though, so I would check the websites for your particular need.

[2dandan]

https://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Search?q= ... irect=true

Have a read through this. You might find some useful information.

[buksida]

Funny you should post this, was thinking of doing exactly the same thing since we're in the Big Mango this week.

Let us know what you find, online searches have been pretty fruitless so far with either dual-priced operators which I wont entertain, or those run by the big hotels that are five-star prices.

All we want is a simple sunset cruise with a bit of grub and a glass of vino, in Cambodia there are hundreds of them and they're $16 a head, not 3,000 baht!

[Big Boy]

I've already posted one link. Here is another link that appears to be fractionally cheaper https://en.theicity.com/?utm_source=fac ... jLIJ8cJIaQ

Both links seem to be cheap enough. My concern at the moment is finding a suitable hotel close to point of departure, which is why I'm trying to ask for more information about Asiatique, ICONSIAM or River City. As soon as I've identified point of departure, the rest will fall into place easily.

[buksida]

Some good deals on that site.

Our issue is that we're staying on the other side of the city near Seacon Square so its gonna take at least an hour to get to the pier!

I'm also clueless when it comes to Bangkok. Aside from temples, malls, and the obvious nocturnal attractions which are not family-friendly, there isn't much else touristy to do.

[VincentD]

Another thing to note. I noticed the really big boats operate out of ICONSIAM; the one I was on had a large tour group from Vietnam and it was a fairly rowdy crowd. I think the smaller boats operate out of River City.
That being said, the cruise I was on had to go downriver instead of upriver (remember, big boat) as the water was high and they were afraid they could hit a bridge..

[Big Boy]

I did read through the Trip Adviser stuff, but nothing really new. A few people wanting to moan, because they could. The main comment was the food is ordinary (I wasn't expecting too much for that kind of money), but the trip itself was excellent. A few reports about difficulties finding the check-in desk at IconSiam. Oh, and a few people complaining about the humidity, but I guess they are in Thailand on holiday.

[VincentD]

You're going for the cruise!! Food is typical buffet, unless you make a special order and pay for it before the cruise leaves. And make sure you book your seats beforehand, otherwise you will find yourself under deck, which will defeat the purpose of the cruise..

[VincentD]

Slightly off topic.. Over twenty years ago, one of the big bosses in my company fancied a river cruise for his birthday. He booked the whole boat and got the lot of us on it for the night..

[GeorgieGirl]

Although more than 20 years ago we did this one, and it was delightful then and according to reviews on trip advisor it still is, not cheap but if it’s for a special occasion.
The boat leaves from the Anantara, a lovely hotel on the river, so you could push the boat out, no pun intended and stay there as well.
Hope this helps
Http:/www.Anantara.com/en/riverside-Bangkok/r ... ha-cruises

[Dannie Boy]

Slightly off topic.. Over twenty years ago, one of the big bosses in my company fancied a river cruise for his birthday. He booked the whole boat and got the lot of us on it for the night..

BB could do the same and invite the HH Forum members?


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