The Bangkok Flower Market, Pak Khlong Talad, is the biggest wholesale and retail fresh flower market in Bangkok. Whilst it might not be a typical tourist attraction, Pak Khlong Talad attracts visitors seeking out Bangkok experiences that are off the usual tourist trail.
The Bangkok Flower Market has all kinds of popular flowers and flora-related items, including roses, forget-me-nots, orchids, lilies and more.
Thailand’s Most Important Flower Market
Located behind Yodpiman Riverwalk, just off the Chao Phraya river, the busy and chaotic market feels like a maze with its narrow lanes and countless stalls.
This part of Bangkok has been an important trading area dating back more than 200 years. During the reign of King Rama I, Pak Khlong Talad was the site of a floating market.
Decades later during the reign of King Rama V, also known as King Chulalongkorn, the area became a fish market. When the fish traders moved out in the mid 1900s, the flower, fruit and vegetable sellers moved in, and now Pak Khlong Talad is firmly established as the most important flower market in Thailand.
Flowers are delivered to Pak Khlong Talad from nearby provinces such as Nakhon Phatom and Samut Songkhram, but also further afield from Chiang Mai and Chiang Rai.
Pak Khlong Talad is best known for its flower market, but fruit and vegetables are also sold here.
Sensory Overload
The market is a feast for the senses. Dazzling yellow chrysanthemums by the thousands are bunched up next to purple orchids. In the side-streets, chillies form a fiery traffic light of colour with red, amber and green filling table-tops and overflowing on to pavements.
Passers-by are tantalised by whiffs of jasmine and the perfume of orchids hangs heavy in the humid Bangkok air.
Chrysanthemums are amongst the best sellers at Pak Klong Talad. These flowers are used on a daily basis in Buddhism and found at temples and shrines throughout Thailand.
The market caters to seasonal demands with the lead up to Valentine’s Day seeing an abundance of red roses, but whenever you visit, the flowers on display are an incredible sight.
The market is open to individual buyers, but it is mainly a wholesale market. If you’ve ever checked in at a hotel in Bangkok to find orchids or garlands on your bed, those flowers have almost certainly started the day at Pak Klong Talad. If you visit the market, you’ll be able to see the florists working on delicate garlands and intricate displays.
Tourists Welcome, But Be Alert
Tourists are welcome to visit the market, but if you do go, please respect the fact there are people here trying to make a living. Keep out of the way of the porters pushing barrows and the vehicles making deliveries.
Don’t be put off visiting Pak Khlong Talad if you think you have to come here late at night or in the early hours of the morning. While it’s true that this is the busiest time for the market, it is open every day and can be visited any time of the day or night.
A riot of colors and smells, Pak Khlong Talad is part of the Old City and is located on Chak Phet Road, near the Memorial Bridge. Shops and vendors are housed inside 2- to 3-storey shophouses on both sides of the main road.
The market lies just south of Wat Pho and has access to a river pier, so it makes for a great single-day trip when combined with other historical attractions in the area.
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