In the nine years I’ve lived in Bangkok, Thailand, I must have been to Major Ratchayothin Night Market several hundred times. Situated right down the street from my apartment, at the intersection of Ratchadapisek Road and Pahonyothin, Major Ratchayothin Night Market is set up every night next to the Major Ratchayothin Mall. It’s the place in the Pahonyothin area of Bangkok for cool fashions, great shoes and lots of fun accessories, especially if you’re shopping on the cheap.
Getting to Major Ratchayothin Night Market – One of the easier out-of-downtown night markets to get to, you can take either the BTS sky train to Mo Chit station or the MRT underground to Pahonyothin. With both modes of transportation, once you alight at the station, you’ll need to either hop on a bus to Major Ratchayothin Mall (numbers 543, 63, 503 and 104 will get you there), take a taxi (although traffic is hell on Pahonyothin Road, so it’s not recommended) or a motorcycle taxi.
What to Buy at Major Ratchayothin Night Market – Known for its fashionable clothing, cool shoes, belts, wallets, purses, handbags, mobile phone accessories, scarves, fashion t shirts and more, if you’re somewhat of a fashionista, you’ll be right at home here.
Most of the crowd, and it’s usually a young crowd with a few oldsters thrown in, are on the hunt for unusual items. Many of the stalls sell clothing either the stall owner has made themselves, or they’ve bought from an independent clothing designer or seamstress. Shoes, bags and belts too tend to be unusual, with a lot less of the seen-one-seen-them-all things you’ll get at the more tourist-oriented night markets.
Check out the stalls selling purses and wallets. Catering to men and women, there’s everything from 200 baht ($6.50) bags, all the way up to 2,000 baht ($66) knock-off designer fashion bags, and many more inbetween. Wallets too are cute, and you can often get a great deal on a unique leather wallet for far less than you’d pay in the west.
Be aware, you do need to bargain, as prices here are higher than at more touristy spots, simply because you are usually getting something more unique.
If you know anything about Thai movie actors, actresses or singers, you may also see a few of them shopping here. After all, it is the place for the supremely trendy.
Dining at Major Ratchayothin – There’s no need to worry about food while you’re shopping either. It’s everywhere. The night market used to have stalls selling snacks, but most of them have now disappeared since several cheap restaurants opened right next to the market. There’s a som tam restaurant, a noodle shop, Daddy Dough doughnuts and a couple of other decent places.
Plus, Major Ratchayothin Mall is adjacent to the night marjet with its more than 20 restaurants, and Suzuki Avenue is right in the lot directly behind, and its 50-plus restaurants, cafes and ice cream shops.
There’s even a small restaurant-bar with its deck overlooking the night market, where you can order great food, a beer tower and listen to live music. Why not? You can make a whole night of it.