Amphawa Floating Market is one of the largest and oldest floating markets in Thailand. As the floating market is not far from Bangkok, it makes this place a popular weekend destination for both locals and tourists who like to come here and enjoy a relaxing Thai-style shopping atmosphere. Discover a detailed guide to Amphawa Floating Market – one of the most popular floating markets in Thailand – and find the best market tour from Bangkok.
As Amphawa Floating Market is not far from Bangkok, it makes this place a popular weekend destination. If you are staying around Bangkok during the weekend, try to get out from the city and spend one evening at this market.
You can discover Amphawa Floating Market together with Maeklong Railway Market on this tour to the markets from Bangkok that also takes you to enjoy a firefly boat cruise and to visit Wat Bang Kung, a hidden temple wrapped in tree roots, just outside Bangkok.
History of Amphawa Floating Market
Amphawa has a long history reflecting Thai heritage. It was considered to be an important water transportation hub of Samut Songkhram province. Not surprisingly, it was also a commercial hub with a large floating market and waterfront community.
Location of Amphawa Floating Market
The market is located in Samut Songkhram province, near Wat Amphawan Chetiyaram, just 70 kilometers southwest of Bangkok, and it takes approximately 1.5 hours to get there from the Thai capital.
Amphawa Floating Market Opening Hours
Amphawa Floating Market is open only on Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays.
Unlike most of the other floating markets in Thailand, Amphawa does not open early in the morning. The market starts around noon, with only some shops opening a bit earlier. If you wish to experience Amphawa Floating Market in its full glory, you should visit it later in the afternoon. The market stays open until 20:00.
Amphawa Floating Market Experience
The charm of Amphawa is its traditional wooden architecture. The houses and local shops surrounding the canal are not less than 50-100 years old and are still well preserved.
Food at Amphawa Floating Market
One of the highlights of the market is a large selection of delicious food. With the abundance of Samut Songkhram province, many fresh vegetable and fruit shops are lined up waiting for buyers.
At Amphawa Floating Market you can expect to see vendors selling food and beverages such as fried clams, grilled squid, noodle, coffee, and Thai desserts on their boats. Actually, there are not so many boats floating on the river in the daytime, as most of the shops here operate at the riverside. You can easily walk around the market stretching along the 800 meters on both sides of the canal and easily spend several hours here.
Here are listed our top picks of food at Amphawa Floating Market that you should try when visiting the market.
Seafood
At Amphawa Floating Market you can expect to see vendors selling seafood in restaurants along the canal.
Traditional Thai Desserts
Traditional Thai desserts are a must-try when visiting Amphawa Floating Market. At Amphawa Floating Market you can find many kinds of them, such as Sweet Golden Drops and Golden Egg Strips.
Traditional Thai desserts at the floating market cost 35-50 baht.
Thai Jelly Sugar Candy, or Khanom Alua, is a traditional Thai dessert that is made of wheat flour, coconut milk, and sugar. The price is 35 baht.
Thai Herb Beverages
Thai herb beverages at Amphawa Floating Market cost 20-30 baht per glass.
Som Tam
The most popular salad in Thailand is Thai Papaya Salad (Som Tam), and at Amphawa Floating Market it costs 50-70 baht.
Noodles
There are many restaurants selling noodle dishes that you can try. We’ve tried two of them: the pink soup noodle, which is made from red tofu, and clear soup noodle. The soup is good, and it costs just 35-50 baht per bowl.
Pla Tuu (Mackerel Fish)
"Pla Tuu Mae Klong" from Samut Songkhram Province is the best-known trademark for mackerel fish in Thailand. The price starts from 20 baht per piece.
Thai Curry
If you are looking for a place to try Thai food dishes, Amphawa Floating Market is a perfect place for it as here you can find many kinds of Thai curry, and they are delicious. Thai curry at the market costs 30-50 baht.
Dumplings
At Amphawa Floating Market you can try steamed Chinese chive dumplings (Kanom Gui Chai).
Thai Donuts
Thai Traditional Style Donuts (Kanom Wongthong) at Amphawa Floating Market cost 20 baht per set.
Shopping at Amphawa Floating Market
The market is also a source of arts and crafts such as antique toys, household items, and screen-printed t-shirts. There are different types of souvenirs available at the market, such as beautiful postcards, magnets, and key chains.
Activities at Amphawa Floating Market
The floating market offers various other activities for the visitors.
Boat Tour
There are a number of operators offering boat rides for a really affordable price at the market, as it costs only 50 baht per person. You can take a long-tail boat, which will bring you through the canals of Amphawa to visit 5 local temples and see local life on the Mae Klong River. The whole trip takes around 2 hours.
Amphawa-Chaipattana Nurak Conservation Project
Amphawa Chaipattana Nurak is the royal project under the initiative of H.R.H. Princess Sirindhorn in order to preserve the way of life of Amphawa people.
The area of this project is divided into 3 main sections. The first section is an attractive demonstration garden for learning about the King’s Sufficiency Economy and Agricultural Farm. The second section is a cultural playground for multipurpose activities of the community, such as traditional Thai puppet shows, traditional Thai musical bands, and demonstrations of coconut leaf weaving. The last section is the platform and shops of villagers that can be seen when walking by the waterfront area.
Firefly Watching Boat
When the sun goes down, going on a boat trip to see the pretty fireflies is really a good choice. You will see fireflies in quite and dark areas of the Mae Klong River. The price of the tour is 50 baht per person, and it takes about 1 hour.
Stay in Amphawa
If you want to experience the way of life of those who live along the river, you can choose to stay overnight at a homestay along the canal or in the nearby areas of the floating market. You will be amazed by the simplicity and vitality of the Amphawa community’s atmosphere.
There are many accommodations to relax and experience the atmosphere of the traditional local life by the waterfront. Check the list of the best hotels in Amphawa, and you will find the right one for your stay.
How to Get to Amphawa Floating Market
Going on a tour is the easiest way to get to Amphawa Floating Market. There are many tour agencies offering half-day tours to Amphawa on weekends that also include the visit to the Maeklong Railway Market. If you want to make it easy, discover Amphawa Floating Market together with Maeklong Railway Market on this tour to the markets from Bangkok that also takes you to enjoy a firefly boat cruise and to visit Wat Bang Kung, a hidden temple wrapped in tree roots, just outside Bangkok.
If you want to visit the floating market independently, you can take a bus, van, train, or taxi from Bangkok to Amphawa. Pay attention that taking a van or bus will be much more time-consuming, while taking a taxi will be much more costly than taking a tour.
For more details about all transport options, check How to Get to Amphawa Floating Market from Bangkok.
Tips
If you have more time, take the opportunity to combine a visit to Amphawa Floating Market with the nearby markets, Damnoen Saduak Floating Market and Maeklong Railway Market.
