| The sprawling city of Bangkok is full of interesting attractions for tourists, however, the heavily congested traffic means that it is difficult to cover a lot of ground in a single day. Sightseeing should be selective if time is short or restricted to one area per day, although the Skytrain does help visitors travel across town more quickly. An excellent way to appreciate the layout of the city is to go to the observation deck on the 77th floor of the Baiyoke Sky Hotel, one of the tallest hotels in the world. Many of the main places of interest, such as the Royal Grand Palace, Wat Pho and the National Museum, are to the east of the Chao Phraya River (west of the north-south railway line) in an area called Rattanakosin Island, which is also home to many hotels. However, some visitors may stay to the east of the railway line in the Sukhumvit Road area, where there is excellent shopping, nightlife and tourist sights, such as Suan Pakkard Palace Museum and Jim Thompson Thai House. |