Klong Suan Roi Pee Market (Klong Suan Market)

Klong Suan Market

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Klong Suan Market
More photos of Klong Suan Roi Pee Market
Klong Suan Roi Pee Market Info
Klong Suan Roi Pee Market Map

Klong Suan 100 Year Market or Klong Suan Roi Pee Market has gained well-deserved fame for keeping what many many other floating markets have lost to mass-tourism: its authenticity. Despite being quite crowded on weekends, the market has retained the charm of a bygone era, and even though the first signs of change start to emerge, each shop still seems to be frozen in time. It feels like each shop owner was doing the same trade and was having the same exact daily routine more than five decades ago.

Klong Suan 100-Year-Old Market was built under the reign of King Rama the fifth and is a true photographer’s gold mine. The large majority of visitors are Thai from Bangkok and very seldom will you see a Farang (Farang is a foreigner, like me).

The Klong Suan 100-Year-Old Market is located in 20 km south of Bangkok airport and build along the Prawet Burirom canal. The market is a lot larger than we originally anticipated so it was quite a surprise. Long-time ago when the river was used daily to transport goods to Bangkok, boats would frequently stop here before reaching Bangkok. Trade slowly decreased as roads and air replaced water transit, but in recent years the market was reborn as young Thai started to rediscover their own country.

All the shops are made of wood, basking in the warm light so typical of old piers and each store is just an amazing bric-a-brac of goods ranging from vintage candies to homemade cookies and Thai sweets. But what adds to the magic of the place are the everyday shops, a couple of hairdressers trimming hairs the really old fashioned way, some fishermen drying fishes, several bookshops and amulet vendors.

And how could we miss Mister Lee’s tea shop, this old man is now a celebrity and loves to pose for a photo. Inside his cute tea shop, he will be the first one to handle you his photo albums, mostly pictures with all kind of famous visitors (well, they looked famous). His teas and ‘O-Liang’ traditional coffees are worth a short but well-needed break.

And of course, what would be a market without dozens of restaurants, including some famous ones. It’s just a pure feast for the eyes… Note that the market is a bit hot so dress lightly, and ideally, try to come during the weekend… it might be busy, but some shops are closed during the weekdays.