Ayothaya Floating Market
ตลาดน้ำอโยธยา
A purpose-built, old-style floating market for visitors, with wooden walkways and boat vendors selling Thai snacks and handicrafts. It suits lunch and families, and traditional dance performances are held on weekends.
Ayothaya Floating Market lies on the east side of the Old City island, about 1.5 km north of Wat Chai Watthanaram. It opened in 2010 and was built on artificial waterways in the style of the Ayutthaya era. Unlike the traditional floating markets around Bangkok, it feels more like a cultural theme park. Wooden walkways connect dozens of thatched-roof shops selling Thai grilled meat, noodle dishes, coconut ice cream, mango sticky rice and handicrafts, at moderate prices. Boats on the waterways sell snacks, and for about 20 baht you can ride a boat around the market.
On weekends and holidays, free performances of Thai traditional dance, martial arts and historical dramas are staged, and on public holidays there are also events where visitors can wear Thai costume. Foreign visitors pay 200 baht admission (free for Thai nationals), and it is open about 09:00–18:00. Next to the market, an elephant camp offers elephant riding, but it is controversial on animal welfare grounds, so it is not recommended.
It is a good place to have lunch after visiting Wat Chai Watthanaram and Wat Phanan Choeng. Allow 1–1.5 hours. For more authentic local snacks, go to the Ayutthaya Night Market on Bang Ian Road inside the Old City, open Friday to Sunday evenings, or the Krungsri Night Market beside the railway station. Getting there: about 4 km from the railway station, about 80–100 baht by tuk-tuk.
Opening hours
09:00–18:00
Nearby sights
- Wat Maheyong
- Wat Yai Chai Mongkhon
- Wat Phanan Choeng
- Chantharakasem Palace
- Baan Hollanda
- Wat Mahathat
- Wat Ratchaburana
- Ayutthaya Historical Study Centre