Private Tour: Floating Markets and Bridge on River Kwai Day Trip from Bangkok

Bangkok, Thailand

This privately guided, full-day excursion out of Bangkok is a wonderful way to maximize your time to experience the amazing floating markets of Thailand as well as Kanchanaburi, home to the bridge made even more famous by the Hollywood movie starring Alec Guiness, The Bridge on the River Kwai.

Your journey commences with a leisurely drive from Bangkok, passing through salt fields and rice paddies before embarking aboard your long tail speed-boat on your journey to the floating markets. The floating markets are a fascinating experience, a complete contrast to how we shop for food in the west, and are made up of Thai style canoes laden with colorful and succulent fruits, vegetables, sweets and meats - gently plying their way through the canal, selling as they go. It is one of most popular Thai sightseeing experiences and not to be missed. If you want to take a closer look your local Thai guide will help you organize a local boat ride through the markets (optional extra).

You will then board your coach for the journey west to Kanchanaburi, home to the River Kwai and it's infamous bridge. The building of the bridge in 1943 was part of a wartime project to link existing Thai and Burmese railway lines to create a direct route from Bangkok, Thailand to Rangoon, Burma (now Myanmar) in an effort to support the Japanese occupation of Burma. Over 100,000 conscripted laborers and 12,000 prisoners of war died during the whole project.

Lunch will be taken at a local restaurant before visiting the bridge after which a visit is made to the new Thailand - Burma War Museum which is adjacent to the War Grave Cemetery. Combining the two attractions unfortunately means there is not enough time to take a train ride, before your journey back to Bangkok and your hotel.

USD $119.08

Review by: Jody Z, United States of America	April 2009
We were in Bangkok for a short time and tried to plan our activities wisely which is why we selected the private tour. We were very disappointed. The tour guide did not speak English very well nor was he very professional or knowledgeable. He didn't engage in conversation and he gave us a few facts but nothing substantial. The floating market was basically a tourist trap and we would have learned more about the Bridge on River Kwai if we found our own transportation and hired a tour guide on the premises.

Review by: Christine W, United Kingdom	August 2007
Having a private tour is well worth doing. The tour guide allowed us to do things in our own time, explained things fully, and gave us time alone to explore afterwards. He was very friendly and knowledgeable. You should be aware that the bridge is a little scary and dangerous as there are no sides. That might just be me worrying too much!

Review by: Andrew C, United Kingdom	June 2007
Our trip was perfect. The guide was great with the children and her English was near perfect. We were given cold scented towels after each stop, to cool us down and had a great day. I would recommend this tour to anyone who is interested in the bridge and its history, but be warned: the bridge is very very hot. It's well worth taking the private trip to make it a more personal day out, which allows you to take longer or shorter at the attractions you are interested in, rather than hanging around for others all the time.