See all of Bangkok on just B500? We put the city to the test

First things first: food. I started in Silom with a proper Bangkok breakfast: grilled pork skewers and sticky rice from a street vendor for just B40. Starting with street food felt like the obvious choice – I knew I wanted to save some of the budget for later rather than spend a big chunk of it before I'd even made it to Siam.

There’s also something about buying breakfast straight from a street stall that makes the city feel properly awake. The pork came straight off the grill, still hot and with sticky rice almost too hot to handle, it was enough to get me going without feeling like I'd sacrificed much of the budget at all. Seeing B460 still in my hand afterwards made the B500 challenge suddenly feel very doable.

One thing I started noticing almost immediately was how useful cash was going to be. I ended up paying cash at most of my stops during the day, which meant I could physically see my budget getting smaller every time I bought something. It made every B20 or B50 feel much more important than it normally would when scanning. Pro tip: use cash if you’re counting the pennies. QR codes feel almost free, and I know we all fall into that trap.

Grilled pork skewers and sticky rice, Silom. B40. 

Remaining cash: B460

BACC was probably the biggest surprise of my day.

I went in expecting to have a quick look around because it was free, but I ended up staying for almost two hours. Some of the exhibitions were much more interesting than I expected. Others, perhaps a little lacklustre. It’s free though, so who am I to complain?

There were rooms that felt almost empty and incredibly quiet, but rather than making them boring, the emptiness made me feel strangely emotional. Some of the work wasn't necessarily something I completely understood, but it still made me stop and think – which I suppose is what good art is supposed to do.

I also saw lots of school groups visiting while I was there, moving between exhibitions with their teachers. I'd arrived fairly early, so some of the smaller shops inside hadn't opened yet, but I didn't really mind because I was  much more interested in the exhibitions themselves anyway.

It was also such a contrast to what was waiting outside. BACC felt spacious, calm and quiet, and I completely lost track of how long I'd been inside. The fact that I'd spent well over an hour doing something I genuinely enjoyed without touching my remaining budget made it easily one of the best-value stops of the entire challenge. And yes, the air-con helped.

Bangkok Art and Culture Centre (BACC), Pathum Wan. Free entry.

Remaining cash: B400

Walking out of BACC and further into Siam felt like somebody had suddenly turned Bangkok's volume back up. After the quiet galleries, I was straight back into traffic, motorbikes, car horns and crowds moving in every direction. Siam is huge and chaotic, and there was so much happening around me that I genuinely didn't know where to look first.

As I walked, I passed a market packed with food stalls and then another selling clothes. I obviously couldn't resist going inside the clothes market for a look. There were racks of clothes everywhere and I found myself eyeing up things I liked, asking sellers how much they wanted and even trying to negotiate the prices down – despite knowing full well that buying anything would completely defeat the point of the challenge.

It became a bit of a game. I'd spot something I liked, ask the price, see how low I could get them to go and then have to remind myself that even a good deal is still spending money. Walking away after successfully negotiating a price without actually buying the thing felt slightly ridiculous, but at least my B400 survived. Pity there wasn’t a real bargain to be had, although there’s many places for cheap shopping further out of town. 

From there, I headed into Siam Center, where the temptation didn't exactly disappear. Clothes, beauty products, Thai brands and food were competing for my attention on pretty much every floor. I love shopping, so by this point the challenge was testing my self-control more than my budgeting skills. It felt very meditative, almost Buddhist – to resist material temptation and live to my means. I feel I learned something from it, actually.

Still, between the markets outside and wandering around the mall, I'd managed to spend quite a while exploring Siam without losing a single baht. Eventually I found something I was actually willing to open my wallet for: food.

Siam Center, Pathum Wan. Free to browse – assuming you can resist shopping.

Remaining cash: B400

By this point I'd worked up an appetite, but I deliberately didn't want to go for another cheap Thai meal. I already knew I could eat locally for very little money in Bangkok. I wanted to see whether the challenge still worked if I chose something more Western simply because I fancied it.

That's when I spotted Toro Fries on the second floor of Siam Center. The fries are pretty long, so they immediately stood out – quite literally. There were more elaborate options available, but this was one of those moments when the B500 sitting in my pocket started making the decision for me. I went for the plain version with ketchup and mayo for B100.

It wasn't the most adventurous order I could have chosen, but I actually liked that. I still got to have something completely different from breakfast without throwing the challenge off course. They were simple, filling and the novelty of eating fries that long made them more fun than a normal fast-food lunch. And after all that window shopping, I deserved a treat.

B100 felt like a noticeable jump after my B40 breakfast, but with B300 still left afterwards, I didn't regret it.

Toro Fries, second floor, Siam Center, Pathum Wan. Foot-long fries B100.

Remaining cash: B300

I hadn't even had to leave the floor before the next temptation appeared.

The Grainey stand was really nice and immediately caught my attention. It was one of those places where the cookies look good enough from the counter that walking past becomes considerably harder than it should be. And unfortunately for my remaining cash, I have a sweet tooth and needed some ying to the yang of the salty french fries.

I chose the triple-chocolate cookie for B50. Because who wouldn't? Did I actually need a thick chocolate cookie? Absolutely not. But by then I'd already done BACC for free and still had half of my original budget, so I convinced myself there was room for dessert. ‘Food math’, I think they call it.

By this stage I'd paid cash almost everywhere, and handing over another B50 kept the challenge feeling surprisingly real, despite my splurge. Watching the notes disappear from my hand was very different from mindlessly tapping a card.

The cookie itself was definitely one of the more unnecessary purchases of the day – but it was also one I enjoyed. And if the challenge was supposed to represent a proper day out rather than the cheapest possible day, I felt like unnecessary dessert was allowed.

Grainey Premium Soft Cookie, second floor, Siam Center, Pathum Wan. Cookies from B50.

Remaining cash: B250

The Japan stop wasn't something I'd planned at all.

While continuing through Siam, I came across The Wondrous Japan Heritage at Siam Paragon. Because it was free, I went in expecting to have a quick look and move on, but it surprised me more than I expected.

I spent around 10 to 15 minutes exploring the Japanese cultural displays. I actually would have liked to stay longer and look around properly, but I'd arrived towards the end and the activation was starting to wind down.

That was the only frustrating part. I didn't feel like I'd had enough time to see everything, but for something I'd stumbled across accidentally and paid absolutely nothing for, it was still worth stopping.

It also made me realise how easy it is to find unexpected things around Bangkok without planning them. I'd gone to Siam expecting malls and food and somehow ended up getting a tiny taste of Japan without spending another satang.

The Wondrous Japan Heritage, Siam Paragon, Pathum Wan. Free entry. Open until August 30. 

Remaining cash: B250

After plain fries, ketchup, mayo and a triple-chocolate cookie, I decided it was probably time to eat something that hadn't been designed to test my self-control.

While exploring Siam, I found fresh fruit and spent B70 on lychee and another fruit I hadn't tried before. After spending so much time walking around in the Bangkok heat, the cold fruit was exactly what I wanted.

The lychee was sweet and refreshing, and this was one of those purchases that felt more practical than indulgent. B70 wasn't that cheap compared with my B40 breakfast, but I liked having something fresh after all the heavier food I'd eaten earlier.

Did it undo the fries and triple-chocolate cookie? In my head, yes. Please don't fact-check that.

Fresh fruit, Siam. B70.

Remaining cash: B180

After grabbing some fresh fruit in Siam, I walked over to Chulalongkorn University’s Museum of Imaging Technology for one last free stop before heading back to Silom.

Home to old cameras, photographic equipment and displays tracing the evolution of photography, it made for an easy final detour. Best of all, entry was free, meaning my precious B180 survived untouched.

Museum of Imaging Technology, Chulalongkorn University, Pathum Wan. Free entry.

Remaining cash: B180

After squeezing in one last free museum stop, I jumped back on the GrabBike I'd already budgeted for and headed to Silom, my local haunt, for dinner. By this point, going back to Thai food sounded perfect.

I ordered a bowl of boat noodles for B80, with pork and meatballs swimming in a rich, dark broth. I'd never tried boat noodles before, so I didn't think too much about what was actually giving the broth that deep colour and flavour.

Then I found out it traditionally contains pork blood. I was genuinely shocked. Don’t criticise – I’m new here, and discovering the city first hand. 

I'd never heard of blood being used in a broth before, let alone knowingly tried it. But the bigger surprise was how delicious it was. The broth was rich, spicy and packed with flavour, and the pork and meatballs made it properly filling. It ended up being one of my favourite meals of the entire day – which I definitely wasn't expecting after learning what was in it.

I probably wouldn't have thought to order something like that myself, but that's one of the things I've been enjoying about eating around Bangkok: occasionally you try something first and ask questions later. It’s a motto I'm standing by. 

For B80, it was also easily one of the best-value things I ate all day. After the plain fries and triple-chocolate cookie earlier, having something hot, spicy and properly savoury felt like a real meal again.

And when I counted what I had left, there it was: one final, crisp B100 note. Oh, what was a girl to do… 

Local boat noodles, Silom. B80.

Remaining cash: B100

I could have called it a day and gone home with B100 still in my pocket, but after making it this far, that felt like cheating. I wanted to see if I could actually use every last baht, so I headed to O’Malley’s in Silom for one final drink.

Sure, the pub wasn’t my usual scene and was pretty quiet when I arrived, but I actually appreciated that after the noise and chaos of Siam earlier in the day. Here, I finally got to sit down, switch off for a bit and look back at everything I'd managed to squeeze into the budget.

There was only one problem: I’m really not a beer person. But the happy-hour promotion worked perfectly in my favour – B100 for a pint. Still, after hours of food, art, shopping temptation and running around Bangkok, having a cold somewhere quiet wasn't a half-bad way to finish.

Would I order the beer again? Probably not. Would I do the B500 challenge again? Absolutely.

O’Malley’s Irish Pub, basement, United Center Building, 323 Silom Road. Happy-hour drinks from B100.