More than 15,000 stands. Up to 200,000 visitors every weekend.

Chatuchak Weekend Market is one of the largest weekend markets in the world - and one of the places to get lost, literally and figuratively.

You can run through it in half an hour. Or you can spend a whole day here and still not see everything.

What is Chatuchak and why is it called "JJ Market"?

It's not just a tourist market with a few souvenirs.

Chatuchak is a city within a city. It has 26 sections, hundreds of narrow streets, a mix of clothes, art, antiques, plants, food and sheer bizarreness.

A map at the main entrances helps, but orientation is more sensory than systematic.

With Bangkok's growing popularity, Chatuchak is also becoming a tourist spot, but it still retains its character and many locals come here.

Prices here are up to half the price of markets in the seaside resorts of the famous islands of Phuket or Koh Samui.

Among the locals, the market has earned the nickname JJ Market - sometimes its Thai name is transcribed into Latin as "JatuJak".

Chatuchak Market opening hours

The market is open to the public only:

• 🗓️ Saturday and Sunday
• 🕗 8:30-18:00

There is no admission fee to enter the market.

If you're planning a weekend visit to the market, I recommend staying in the Siam area, where the direct metro goes within 20 minutes to the market.

Best hotels in Bangkok - Siam

It's not really worth staying near the market - there's nothing of tourist interest here.

What to buy at Chatuchak market?

You can buy almost everything at Chatuchak:

• clothes and shoes
• handmade products
• ceramics and art
• spices and teas
• furniture
• flowers and plants
• food

Much of the goods are cheap, but not everything is a bargain. If you are unsure of the usual prices in Thailand, I recommend you read the Money and prices in Thailand chapter beforehand.

What have we personally bought here?

• Two linen shirts
• a waterproof bag for our next trips to Koh Samui and Koh Phangan
• small souvenirs to take home
• spices
• pottery, again as a take home gift
• several bottles of water (uniform price 10 thb for 0.5 litres)
• lots of food and ice cream!

Bargaining at Chatuchak market

Generally, if a commodity has a fixed written price tag, it is not advisable to haggle.

If you don't see a price tag, you can haggle with a smile. Most of the time you will be able to negotiate the price 20% lower.

You can almost always negotiate a lower price if you buy more than one item.

Food at Chatuchak

At the main south entrance is a large open dining area with dozens of stalls.

At the same time, there are many other small cafes, ice cream and hot food stalls across the market.

You will find:

• pad thai
• mango sticky rice
• various fried meats and fish
• coconut ice cream
• fresh juices
• and much more
• 👉 Wherever we ate and drank in Bangkok

You can also eat in the air-conditioned cafes between sections.

The prices here are not particularly touristy yet and even locals come here to eat.

Practical info

What we didn't know before visiting Chatuchak and what would be useful to know?

• Cash with you! Some stalls accept card payments, but most do not
  • ATMs can be found, for example, in metro stations
• although there are no rubbish bins almost anywhere in Thailand, there are plenty of bins for sorted waste in Chatuchak
• many places have clean public toilets - you pay 5 thb in cash and the attendant will change it into larger notes if necessary

How to get to Chatuchak (practical and hassle-free)

Almost everyone deals with this.

Chatuchak is north of the city centre and from the Silom, Sukhumvit area you drive roughly 20-35 minutes depending on the starting station. Then from the historic center it's more like 30-40 minutes.

🚇 Easiest option - metro

• Metro MRT (blue line) - Kamphaeng Phetstation
  • The exit is just a few dozen meters from the main south entrance
  • Quick trip to Sukhumvit area, Silom or Wat Paknam temple in the west of the city
• Metro BTS (light green line) - Mo Chitstation
  • At the northern entrance
  • Quick trip directly to the centre - Siam area, Sukhumvit, Silom, King Power Mahanakhon

For a detailed explanation of transfers and fares, see the Transport in Bangkok chapter.

🚕 Taxi / Grab / Bolt

Works without problems.

Just count on the fact that:

• around 16:00-18:00 the area is extremely crowded and prices are high (higher demand)
• it can take longer to get back to the centre than to get here and considerably longer than the metro
• taxis are suitable for going to the historic centre (the area around the Grand Palace), where the metro takes a very long time

🛺 Tuk-Tuk

You will always find a large number of tuk-tuks in front of both entrances.

Go for the experience, but you have to bargain and you will probably always go more expensive and slower than a taxi.

How much time to set aside

• Quick visit: 1 hour
• A leisurely visit: 2-3 hours
• Shopping mission: all day

Personally, about 2 hours was enough for us. A longer stay was rather exhausting.

How to incorporate Chatuchak into your itinerary

Ideal combination:

• Chatuchak in the morning (less crowded than in the afternoon)
• afternoon Siam (shopping malls)
• evening rooftop bar

But we only had 2 full days in Bangkok and our itinerary ended up looking like this:

• after breakfast at 10:00 a.m. King Power Mahanakhon sightseeing, where we stayed until about 11:00 a.m.
• then a quick coffee at the Arabica café in the opposite skyscraper with a nice view of the King Power Mahanakhon, we were there until about 12:00
• transfer by subway (about 30 minutes in total) to the Chatuchak weekend market, where we stayed until about 15:00
• after that back by metro to the centre for shopping in the Siam area (until about 17:00)
• visit to Akara Sky Hanuman viewpoint
• in the evening we caught the BKK Social Club bar

If you're planning a full stay, I'd recommend figuring out where to stay in Bangkok first - the north of the city is logistically different than the river area or Silom.

👉 Where to stay in Bangkok

If you want a wider choice of hotels:

10 best hotels in Bangkok

Is a visit to Chatuchak worth it?

✅ Yes, if:

• you like the lively atmosphere
• you want an authentic weekend Bangkok
• you enjoy shopping
• you like local food markets
• you have more than just 1 day in Bangkok

❌ No, if:

• you don't like crowds
• you don't like the heat
• you prefer quiet local markets
• you have little time in Bangkok and want to see more temples and a lively downtown

Global comparison

If you enjoy the big markets of the world, you'll have a similarly intense experience at:

• Grand Bazaar in Istanbul
• Camden Market in London
• Darajani Souk in Zanzibar

But Chatuchak is both bigger and neater than most.

What to see around

Discover all the places to see in Bangkok.