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If the idea of standing in the street getting soaked for three days doesn't thrill you, Bangkok can offer a more inviting option on the water rather than in it .
The Bangkok Water Festival 2026 is running free boat rides across 10 cultural stops in the old town, right along the Chao Phraya.
The festival runs April 13-15, with two routes threading through some of the river's most storied neighbourhoods. You can hop on and off as you please, switching between routes at Tha Tien Pier (Wat Pho Pier) on Soi Pratunokyung.
Route 1 runs from 9am to 4.30pm, taking you from Wat Rakang Pier through Wat Arun, Wat Kalayanamit, Wat Prayurawongsawat and Yodpiman before finishing at Wat Pho. That stretch of riverbank is dense with history – temples, old communities and the kind of riverside scenery that still manages to feel unhurried even in the middle of a busy city like ours.
Route 2 picks up from 10am to 5.30pm, looping from Tha Tien Pier out to SookSiam at ICONSIAM, across to the Kuan Yu Shrine Pier in Khlong San, then back again. A nice contrast – ancient and contemporary sharing the same stretch of water.
A couple of extras worth knowing. There’s a paid ferry between ICONSIAM and Sathorn Pier by the BTS running all day for eight baht. There’s also a free shuttle boat from Sathorn Pier to Asiatique, running from 10am to 8pm if you want to stretch the day a bit.