Stretching across approximately thirty-five acres of central Bangkok immediately north of the Mo Chit BTS Skytrain station, the Chatuchak Weekend Market is one of the largest weekend markets in the world and the principal historic flea and handicraft market of central Bangkok. The market operates only on Saturdays and Sundays, with around eight thousand individual stalls organised across twenty-seven numbered sections and approximately two hundred thousand individual visitors during a typical weekend. The market was originally established in 1948 by the Thai government under a wider state policy of providing low-cost market space for small Thai traders. The original site was at Sanam Luang next to the Grand Palace in central Bangkok, where the market operated for around thirty years. The market was moved to its current much larger site at the northern entrance to the central city in 1982 to relieve overcrowding at the original Sanam Luang location and to allow for substantial future expansion. The current site is laid out as a grid of around twenty-seven numbered sections, each containing several hundred individual covered stalls. The sections are organised broadly by category of goods sold, with consistent labelling at each of the principal entrances allowing visitors to navigate efficiently between the categories. The principal categories include traditional Thai clothing in sections eight through ten, handicrafts and souvenirs in sections one through three, plants and gardening supplies in sections three through six, household goods in sections seven and nineteen, fashion and accessories in sections two through five and antiques in sections one and twenty-six. The principal individual highlights of the market include the famous Chatuchak Tropical Pets section in sections eight through eleven, one of the largest single live animal markets anywhere in the world. The section is famous for its substantial selection of small ornamental fish, exotic birds, reptiles and other small pets, although the operational standards of the section have been progressively tightened in recent years following criticism from international animal welfare groups. The various food court sections scattered through the wider market provide some of the most authentic Thai street food anywhere in central Bangkok. The market operates each Saturday and Sunday from around nine in the morning until around six in the evening, with the busiest hours typically between eleven in the morning and three in the afternoon. The principal MRT subway station of Kamphaeng Phet directly underneath the western edge of the market provides direct underground access to the central sections, while the BTS Skytrain Mo Chit station at the eastern entrance provides easy connection to the wider central Bangkok rail network. A small Friday evening preview market operates from around eighteen hundred to midnight for visitors who cannot attend the principal weekend opening hours.

Type: Market / Mall

Address: Kamphaeng Phet 2 Road, Bangkok, Thailand

Opening Date: 01/01/1982