Street · Bangkok
Yaowarat Roadถนนเยาวราช
Come after 18:00, hungry, for Bangkok's best-known street-food evening under the neon Chinese signs; arrive by MRT, graze stall to stall, and avoid Mondays, when many stalls take the night off (check).Come after 6:00 PM, hungry, for Bangkok's best-known street-food evening under the neon Chinese signs; arrive by MRT, graze stall to stall, and avoid Mondays, when many stalls take the night off (check).
Map to the start
Add your hotel to get directions from it. · stays in this browser; shared with the pocket card.
Length
1 km0.6 mi
approximate
Walk end to end
12 min
without stops
Traffic
Open to traffic
Best time
18:00–22:00, Tuesday to Sunday (check)6:00 PM–10:00 PM, Tuesday to Sunday (check)
At a glance
- Length
- 1 km0.6 mi
- Start
- Chinatown Gate at Odeon Circle
- End
- Ratchawong Road junction
- Traffic
- Open to traffic
- Currency
- THB
Decide
What the street is for, and when to be there
At a glance
The main street of Bangkok's Chinatown: gold shops, Chinese medicine stores and neon signs by day, and one of the city's busiest street-food strips at night.
Getting there
MRT Blue Line to Wat Mangkon Station, 3 minutes' walk; or Hua Lamphong station, 10 minutes to Odeon Circle. Chao Phraya Express Boat to Ratchawong pier (N5) for the west end.
Traffic and walking hours
Open to traffic. A busy traffic road day and night; food stalls use the sidewalks and road edge. Occasional car-free evenings have been trialed on some nights or for festivals (check).
Hours change for events and holidays: check locally.
Morning, afternoon, night
Best time: 18:00–22:00, Tuesday to Sunday (check)
05:00–11:005:00 AM–11:00 AM local time
Wholesale trade, gold shops and Chinese medicine stores opening; side-lane markets busy with shoppers from early.
Best time: 18:00–22:00, Tuesday to Sunday (check)
See & do
The stops in walking order, then where to shop and what to eat
Walk this street
↓ about 4 min · 280 m0.2 mi
↓ about 4 min · 320 m0.2 mi
↓ about 4 min · 330 m0.2 mi
Minutes are walking time at an easy 5 km/h3 mph with a margin for crowds; add time for shops. The GPX opens in Organic Maps, OsmAnd or Google My Maps.
Where to shop and what it costs
- Street-food stalls and shophouse restaurantsNoodle soups, seafood, dim sum, toasted buns, desserts and fruit฿40–1,200 (≈ US$2–40) / dishPrice check →
- Gold shopsChinese-owned gold dealers selling jewelry priced by weight at the daily gold ratePrice follows the daily gold rate฿5,000–200,000 (≈ US$160–6,500) / itemPrice check →
- Chinese medicine and dried-goods storesHerbs, dried mushrooms, tea, dried seafood and bird's nest฿50–5,000 (≈ US$2–160) / itemPrice check →
Typical buys
- Rolled rice-noodle soup (guay jub)฿60–120 (≈ US$2–4) / bowlPrice check →
- Grilled seafood or crab dish฿250–1,200 (≈ US$8–40) / platePrice check →
- Bird's nest soupPrice depends on grade฿200–1,500 (≈ US$7–50) / bowlPrice check →
- Fresh fruit or durian (in season)฿50–400 (≈ US$2–13) / portionPrice check →
- Chinese sweet dumplings in ginger soup฿40–80 (≈ US$2–3) / bowlPrice check →
Ranges, not quotes: prices move with season and exchange rates; the equivalent in your currency is approximate. Checked Sep 2026.
Eat on or near it
- Yaowarat street foodThe full food page: which stalls to try and how to order.
- Soi Texas (Phadung Dao) seafoodSeafood restaurants with street tables at the Phadung Dao junction; busiest late evening.
Sights on the street
- Chinatown Gate at Odeon CircleCeremonial gate built for the King's 72nd birthday in 1999; the start of the strip.
- Wat Mangkon KamalawatMain Chinese Buddhist temple, on Charoen Krung Road a block north of the middle of Yaowarat.
- Wat Traimit (Golden Buddha)Solid gold Buddha a few minutes east of Odeon Circle (check hours).
- Sampeng LaneNarrow wholesale market lane running parallel to the south; best in the morning.
Practical
Getting a ride there, what goes wrong, and access
Show the driver
Show the driver
ช่วยไปส่งที่วงเวียนโอเดียน ถนนเยาวราช ครับ/ค่ะ
Please take me to Odeon Circle on Yaowarat Road.
Say 'khrap' if you are a man and 'kha' if you are a woman. Evening traffic is heavy; the MRT is usually faster.
Safety, traffic and scams
Traffic on a busy road with crowded sidewalks medium
Pickpockets in the evening crowds low
Food hygiene low
Scams and traps
- Stalls without posted prices, especially seafood; ask the price per plate or per kilo before ordering.
- Taxis refusing the meter to and from Chinatown at night; use the MRT or a ride-hailing app.
Accessibility
- Uneven, crowded sidewalks with high curbs and stalls; difficult for wheelchairs and strollers at night.
- MRT Wat Mangkon Station has elevators (check which exit).
Photo tips
- Neon signs over the traffic from the sidewalk near the Phadung Dao junction after dark.
- The Odeon Circle gate at dusk.
A line of history
Chinese traders were moved to this area in the late 18th century when the royal palace was built on their former site; Yaowarat Road itself was built in the 1890s under King Chulalongkorn and became the commercial heart of Bangkok's Chinese community.
Combine with
- Talat NoiRiverside neighborhood of old shophouses and street art 10–15 minutes south-east; better by day.
- Sampeng LaneWholesale market lane parallel to the south; go in the morning, then return here for dinner.
More streets in Bangkok: Khao San Road
Questions people ask
Which night is best for Yaowarat street food?
Tuesday to Sunday. Many stalls close on Mondays for street cleaning (check).
Is Yaowarat good for vegetarians?
Harder than most areas, but during the October vegetarian festival yellow-flagged stalls serve meat-free food (check dates).
Deep dive
Sources; hours, rules and prices change, so check before you go
Sources
- secondaryWikivoyage: Bangkok/Chinatown
- officialTourism Authority of Thailand