Best bangkok travel guides according to redditors

Bangkok: The Story of a City by Alex Waugh is pretty good history wise. It's kinda dense, but really covers everything.

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I don't understand why people are hating on Bangkok, I personally consider it one of the most interesting cities on planet Earth.

Get this Nancy Chandler map, it shows everything interesting in Bangkok: https://www.amazon.com/Nancy-Chandlers-Map-Bangkok-27th/dp/6169046260/ref=dp_ob_title_bk

Remember, you have to subtract almost an entire day whenever you travel from one place to another. So if you go to a beach that leaves you 9 days to explore. You might consider flying into Phukett (or Chiang Mai), then returning home from Bangkok. You can take the night train or bus from Chiang Mai to Bangkok saving a day (and a hotel).

Fair enough. Seriously though, stay out of the Bangkok street protests. It is only a matter of time before a tourist gets hit. It might seem safe but explosions are happening pretty regularly. While I would hate for anyone to be injured, if it were a tourist it would also cause a lot of harm to the industry many Thais rely on. I have come to genuinely care about the Thai people and I would not want to see so many families impacted by a tourist being in the wrong place at the wrong time.

May I suggest the HI Hostel near Victory Circle as being a great, safe launch pad on your first days that is (was?) out of the protest areas and just a lovely place. Easy to get to on Airport Rail (then one stop on the SkyTrain) and very easy to the skytrain. The queues for the change counters and ticket machines were abysmal when I was last there so pay the extra to get a rabbit card and load it up.

Don't miss Chatuchak Market on a Saturday or Sunday and if you want to be really awesome buy a Nancy Chandler Bangkok Map in advance. http://www.amazon.com/Nancy-Chandlers-Bangkok-26th-Edition/dp/6169046236