Bypassing Khaosan Road

Finding the Alley

Soi Damnoen Klang Nua is one of those alleys that seem to hold the heart and soul of Bangkok. The short distance between Khaosan Road and the Ratchadamnoen Avenue is not completely solid: a narrow alley runs there parallel to both. Not surprisingly it features the same density of guesthouses, travel agencies, internet kiosks and restaurants as its better known neighbor. Reaching it is simple: there is direct access from Thanon Tanao – the street at the eastern end of Khaosan. On the western end, it is possible to reach it through Trok Mayom (trok is an alley’s alley) that connects it with Thanon Chakkrapong, the road at Khaosan’s west end. Beyond that, at least four very narrow alleys connect it directly with Khaosan; look for those among the overflowing stalls hiding the entries.

On its western end, the soi makes a sharp turn into the Lottery Building esplanade and connects to the Ratchadamnoen Avenue. However, Trok Mayom continues it until Thanon Chakkrapong and features several good restaurants; Barn Thai is remarkable in this category for its freshly baked bread.

Sweetening the Find

The Lottery Building esplanade is of special interest because in the days lottery tickets are sold – this is the wholesalers’ center in Bangkok – there is a coffee stall operating since the earliest hours. This is an awesome opportunity to taste a traditional Thai-style coffee.

Beyond Khaosan

The Soi Damnoen Klang Nua is peculiar since it is split by a street – Thanon Tanao, on Khaosan Road Eastern end – and keeps its name on both sides. The eastern side is beyond the Khaosan Road limits, but still retains much of the area’s spirit, with several guesthouses and restaurants. However, this part is distinctively cheaper than Khaosan and somewhat dingy.

The Rationale

Why bother? Aren’t all the shops along Khaosan Road enough? How different can the next travel agency be? Well, reality is different. Being located in a less prominent place, means the shops along this street must make efforts to attract customers. True, I have seen very little difference among the restaurants and hotels, but after a while, I found there the best travel agency in the area, and probably in Bangkok.

The Main Establishments

Bringing a full list of the establishments along the soi would be impossible in this format. Yet, it is worth mentioning the main ones. The Bangkok Inn and Woraburi branches of the Sawasdee hotels (one of them is reviewed in this journal) are located here; moreover, the laundry shop of the chain is also here, allowing thus to enjoy this service (which features the best laundry shop in the area) also to travelers that chose other hotels for the stay.

The Nana Plaza Inn is one of the rare establishments with entrances on Khaosan Road and Soi Damnoen Klang Nua; it is a reasonable mid-range hotel featuring an attractive Japanese restaurant at its ground floor. D&D – a major guesthouse on Khaosan Road – had recently opened access to this soi. There aren’t any 7 Eleven branches on the soi, but two are very close, one on Khaosan Road and the other on Ratchadamnoen Avenue.

Travel in Style

By far, the reason d’être of the soi is the Travel in Style agency (B30, Soi Damnoen Klang Nua, 02-6293747). It is operated by two young Indian Thais, who probably are the most professional travel agents in the area. Their rendering of Thai is interesting, with much less emphasis on tones than the regular Thai pronunciation, making it friendlier to the traveler. Of course, they speak English perfectly well.

The agency is tiny. Only two customers can sit within it, and that would mean leaving the backpacks outside. A couple of benches on the soi accommodate the waiting customers. These days most tickets are electronic and are issued on the spot, but otherwise, they can deliver them to adjacent hotels, if requested so.

I have been working with them since year 2000, always comparing their offers with those of other agencies. They have always provided the best deals, in terms of meeting the requested conditions and in terms of price; recently I bought a ticket from Bangkok to Los Angeles via Seoul and they beat their closest competitor by more than ten percent.

Sawasdee Smile Inn seemed the correct place for searching the famous Thai smile; eager to meet it, I entered.

On Thai Hotels

A substantial part of the tourism industry in Thailand comes in the form of boutique hotels, small, independent establishments based on local workforce and resources. Often, they combine a travel agency, restaurant and an internet kiosk. On the other side of the spectrum are international chains specializing in large hotels and resorts. Somewhere in between there is room for other approaches; one of them was adopted by Sawasdee Hotels.

In essence, the Sawasdee hotels and guesthouses are very Thai. The ground floor is open to the street and features – beyond the reception desk – a well-aired restaurant and a few computers. The rooms are in the upper floors and are not different of those found in other Thai establishments. However, Sawasdee is a chain.

They operate mainly in Bangkok (several areas) and Pattaya, offering always a professional and friendly service. If joining their members club there is a ten percent discount on addition to any other seasonal one.

Finding the Smile

At first, finding Sawasdee Smile Inn may seem a difficult task. Its address refers to a soi attached to a secondary street in the Khaosan Road area. Who knows where is Trok Rong Mai?

In practice, the task is easy. At the western end of Khaosan Road, is Thanon Chakkrapong and the Wat Chanasongkhram Ratchaworamahawiharn, a remarkable Mon Temple. Soi Rambuttri begins at the northern corner of the temple and surrounds it. Almost at its end – on the third side of the temple if entering the street from the corner with Thanon Chakkrapong - is a narrow alley connecting Soi Rambuttri with Thanon Chao Fa. At the very corner of this junction is Sawasdee Smile Inn.

The convoluted path of Soi Rambuttri means that Smile Inn is very close to Khaosan Road. There is no need to walk all the way around the temple. The soi seems to have a dead end in clear sight from the guesthouse. But it isn’t so. Reach the dead end and take a look at your right: there is a Muay Thai kickboxing school. Enter it carefully; don’t bother the people training there because they know how to kick back. On the other side there is a tiny door leading to an even smaller alley; the alley ends next to the western end of Khaosan Road.

On the Completeness of Minimalism

Sawasdee hotels provide the guest almost with everything at prices that similar hotels can’t match. The rooms have air conditioners, a shower with hot water, television and a queen-size bed; some branches include refrigerators in the room. What’s the trick? First, they are a chain, thus their relative administrative costs are lower. Second, my initial statement was somewhat misleading. They provide everything, but they also crowd it in incredibly small rooms. Sometimes the only window in the room faces a narrow corridor. The space between the bed and the wall across the room is barely enough for a person to stand there; in fact, it is the width of a backpack. The television is just 14" and often offers only aerial channels.

The rooms below 400 baht per night are too small for being considered as a real option. However, those above that sum are ideal for short stays – for example while passing through Bangkok in the way from Northern to Southern Thailand. The rule while deciding to stay here is to check out the room before checking in. As always in Thailand, that means making sure the water heater in the bathroom works and that the air conditioner provides cool air. Checking out if the television provides anything beyond Thai programs isn’t a bad idea.

Another point to consider is their locations. The vast majority of the hotels in the chain offer irresistible locations next to Bangkok’s main attractions.

The final point is the first one to be spotted while entering the place. On the ground floor and next to the reception desk is a large restaurant offering basic Thai-Western hybrid dishes. Being open to the street and on a corner, the place is very enjoyable during Bangkok’s evenings. Other services offered include laundry, a few computers offering internet access and luggage storage.

Mango Lagoon Place was one of the last hotels to be built in the Khaosan Road area; I followed the lengthy construction process over what was until then one of those rare unoccupied lots in the area. Then I travelled away for a while and when I returned to Bangkok, I met the most impressive hotel along Soi Rambuttri. Checking it out was unavoidable.

Entering the Lagoon

The Mango Lagoon Place avoided the typical design of the boutique hotels populating the area by adopting a receding entrance. The main structure is behind an open garden hosting a basic restaurant, which unlike the hotel is somewhat less attractive than the adjacent establishments, despite the pleasant garden surrounding it.

Beyond the garden is a smallish reception desk untypical of other establishments in the area. A sign by the clerk told me a regular room cost 700 baht, while a deluxe one - with a bathtub in the bathroom - cost 1000 baht; few hotels in the area charge such fees and I began expecting a real treat. The sign made things clear and cut down the usual chit-chat with the receptionist to a minimum. I asked to take a look at a room and on my return, checked in.

The Structure

The Mango Lagoon main building is boxy (two boxes forming an "L"), too boxy for its age. I had enough time to make this assessment since my room was on the top floor and there was no elevator. A wide staircase at one side of the structure connected the different floors, which shared the same design: a row of regular rooms connected by a narrow corridor open to the inner garden; on the short side of the "L" were the deluxe rooms. Yet, once inside the room the general setup of the building was no relevant and the views as good as they get in the area, offering even glimpses of the Chao Praya River.

The Room

As hinted by the price, the room belonged to the top end of hotel rooms on Khaosan Road. Instead of a key attached to a plastic slab used for activating the electricity in the room – almost a must in the area – I got a proper magnetic card for opening the door. The last was heavy and solid. Once inside I couldn’t see everything at once – that was a good sign.

A big bathroom was at my left. There were enough towels and the hot water worked perfectly well. Toiletries were provided handsomely and overall I couldn’t complain. A big closet was in front of the bathroom, beyond it was the room.

Two queen-size beds occupied mist of the room. One of them was near a large window; being on the top floor meant I could see the river. Next to the window was a large couch that seemed to be older than the hotel, it was the only dissonant spot in the room. A large television set showed more cables networks than I cared to check. A menu let me know that I could order room service from the restaurant. However, it was clear that after climbing up all these floors by foot, the waiter would reach me with a cold coffee, thus I gave up the treat.

Overall, the Mango Lagoon provides by the end of 2008, one of the most appealing options for staying in the Khaosan Road area.

On Soi and Thanon

One of the most important characteristic of Bangkok for the traveler willing to navigate it is its ordering into Thanon and Soi. Different models exist for the design of cities. La Paz and American cities stick to strict rectangular grids. My hometown uses radial avenues originating in various main plazas. Asian cities resemble trees; the main avenues are long branches with smaller streets and alleys splitting from them. Crossing from one main branch to another is difficult.

In Thailand, the main streets are called "thanon;" this may be confusing since avenues like Sukhumvit and streets like Khaosan are both called thanon. Small streets and alleys beginning from a thanon are called "soi;" usually they are numbered. The first alley along Sukhumvit would be called Sukhumvit 1, sometimes a nickname would also be given to it. A soi beginning at another soi would still be defined by the main avenue; following the former example, it could be called Sukhumvit 1/1. However, sometimes the venue is not even an alley; a very narrow soi is called a "trok;" finally, some alleys are not named or numbered at all.

Rambuttri is a rare occurrence in Bangkok; it wasn’t by chance I did not define it either as thanon or soi. It has two parts; the one east of Thanon Chakrapong is a regular street – a thanon – while the one west of it, which is reviewed here, is a soi – an alley.

A point to keep in mind is that in many cases the institutions along it feature addresses belonging to adjacent alleys, creating that happy mess that characterizes Thai addresses.

Soi Rambuttri

Following its renewal in 2006, Soi Rambuttri became almost a pleasant walking street; "almost" because despite not having sidewalks, cars are allowed in, mainly to serve the restaurants and hotels along it. Also, the police presence here seems to be heavier than on Khaosan Road. Despite these problems, it is friendlier to the traveler than its cacophonic neighbor, Khaosan Road.

The street is asymmetric. Being built around Wat Chanasongkhram Ratchaworamahawiharn, means one of its sides is the wall surrounding the temple. This means nothing else can be built there; along the wall are many stalls offering books, snacks and knickknacks. However, across the street from the temple the place resembles very much Khaosan Road, and is completely crammed up with shops, restaurants, hotels and travel agencies.

Khaosan Road is so fun! Why should I go to Soi Rambuttri?

Khaosan Road offers with no doubts the highest density of establishments for travelers in Bangkok. Maybe even in the world. That is exactly its drawback, since it is very difficult to find anything. At first it is even complicated returning to a known shop. Where did I book my ticket?

This should ensure a fierce competition and better prices; but reality is a bit different. Many of the agencies work as sub-contractors and can’t offer better deals than their neighbors. Under these circumstances, the density becomes a drawback. Soi Rambuttri offers the same shops and deals in a more relaxed, friendlier ambience; the travel agents, hotel receptionists and restaurants waiters have more time to spend with the customer.

Main Attractions

A complete list of the establishments along this short road would be too extensive for such an entry. Here is a partial list of the main ones:

Hotels

Three hotels of the Sawasdee chain are in the area, namely the Smile Inn, the Welcome and the Krung Thep. Over time I have tried all of them and found the Smile Inn the better one; it is reviewed in this journal.

The Mango Lagoon Place was one of the last hotels to open in this area and is one of the most upmarket options; it is also reviewed in this journal.

The Green Guesthouse, Merry V and the Sawasdee House (which is not part of the Sawasdee chain) are basic guesthouses suitable if arriving late and finding no vacancies elsewhere. Even cheaper options exist, like the Mini Guesthouse – but they are for really desperate occasions.

Restaurants

Being less crowded than Khaosan Road, Soi Rambuttri offers a better, breezier environment for a dinner in the area. The Four Sons Village is probably the best option since it occupies a very spacious space facing the street. Popiang and Green Guesthouse are among the leading establishment offering grilled fish during the evenings; both are worth a stop. Near Popiang, a Korean establishment offers excellent dishes from that cuisine.

The Four Sons Village is one of the more attractive boutique restaurant/hotels in the Khaosan Road area and attempts to address all the travelers' needs at once. Its big restaurant dominates the access to the handsome semi-walking street in the backside of Wat Chanasongkhram Ratchaworamahawiharn and offers comfortable seats on solid wooden tables and chairs. I have never stayed at the attached hotel, but the restaurant is one of the most attractive options for a casual dinner in the area.

The Name

For those knowing the Thai alphabet, the establishment name in Thai provides an interesting insight into the adaptation of foreign names into that language. It reads "For Son Willage," accounting for the dislike of Thais for double consonants at the end of a word and the lack of a "v."

On Spirits

A very local touch is the large and colorful spirits’ house at one of the restaurant’s sides. Enjoying Coca-Cola, incense and samples of the establishment extensive menu, it provides an interesting view into the local culture. Early in the evening, the shift manager lights incense and performs a little ceremony there.

On Entertainment

The establishment features several television screens tuned to Thai programs; the language is not a problem since they are mute while the shift manager plays music from the main counter; apparently guests can order specific songs.

An integral part of the place is the waiters and waitresses; without going into identifying details, I’ll just mention most of them provide colorful entertainment and are part of the experience.

The Menu

The restaurant has an extremely varied menu designed for the various parts of the day. The main options for breakfast are the Continental one, which costs B65 and the American, at B100, these are the standards served by all the restaurants in the area. Simpler options are available for less; an Asian breakfast of boiled rice with different kinds of meat is also available (B50 to B70).

Appetizers fitting different cuisines include anything from mozzarella sticks, through Thai sausages and French fries to shrimps and croissants. Salads are available for B80 or B90, and Thai salads for B40 to B80. In this category, the Som Tam Salad (green papaya, peanuts and chili are its main ingredients) is recommended, though it is served very spicy.

Seafood - sea bass, red snapper, crabs, mussels and shrimps among others - are sold by weight or as a set dish and the ones eaten cooked can be steamed or fried. The prices begin at B70 (almost $2) and rise quickly up to B450 (a bit above $12) for a kilogram of big shrimps. Despite being an attractive option, there are better establishments in the area for sea food, especially so Popiang, on the same street.

Thai main dishes occupy several pages of the illustrated menu and cost between B80 and B300. The extensive menu includes a list of sandwiches and special offers as well. Overall there are much more than a hundred meals to choose from.

The Meal

Four Sons Village offers good variations of Western dishes; whenever tired of Thai food, this is one of my favorite locations for enjoying a bread-based meal.

Interestingly, garlic covered toasts are one of the most popular bread-based snacks in Thailand; they are sold on street stalls in the mornings. Thus it was not surprise to find that here an excellent garlic bread is served here; it makes excellent company to the soups, or while waiting for a main dish. Five small toasts make a perfect snack, though sometimes they are heated on a microwave and create a chewy experience.

If talking of bread-based meals, then the club sandwich is a favorite here. Amidst three layers of fresh white bread, an egg, ham, and cheese attempt to share the limited space with a varied assortment of vegetables. The tasty sandwich is served with a generous amount of French fries. As always in Thailand, a wide arrangement of spices – with anything from Tabasco sauce to the awesome Sri-Racha bright orange sauce (originary from the town of the same name in Thailand’s Eastern Shoreline) are placed next to the dish.