Culture
Maeklong, the market on the railway line, and the floating markets near it
South-west of Bangkok, a market spreads its stalls across a working railway line and folds them away each time a train comes through. Nearby, the old canal towns of the delta hold their markets on the water.
By Walter Pellow2 November 20263 min read
The market at Maeklong looks, at first, like any other Thai fresh market: a long, narrow lane of stalls under awnings, heaped with fish, prawns, vegetables, fruit, curry pastes and sweets, with shoppers squeezing past each other and vendors calling out prices. Then you notice the steel rails running along the ground beneath the baskets, and the trays of fish set out on the sleepers. Then a bell rings, and somebody shouts.
In the next minute, the market vanishes. Awnings fold back, umbrellas come down, and baskets are pulled a few inches clear of the rails. A train edges slowly through, its sides almost brushing the produce, while shoppers and tourists press back against the stalls. And as soon as the last carriage has passed, the awnings go up again, the baskets slide back, and the market carries on as if nothing had happened.
A market on a working line
The town of Maeklong, also known as Samut Songkhram, lies near the mouth of the Mae Klong river, south-west of Bangkok. The railway line through it is a small branch that runs to the river, and the market was there along its tracks long before it became famous. The trains run to a timetable through the day, and each time one comes, the market performs its trick. Its Thai nickname is said to mean, roughly, "the market where the umbrellas come down".
It is a working market first. Local people do their shopping here, and the produce, much of it from the sea and the river nearby, is fresh and good. The best time to visit is the morning, when the market is busiest; many vendors pack up in the afternoon. Train times change, so check them on the day if you want to see one pass.
As soon as the last carriage has passed, the market carries on as if nothing had happened.
The floating markets
The country around Maeklong is part of the delta of the Mae Klong and the Chao Phraya, a flat, wet land of orchards, coconut groves and canals. For centuries, the canals were the roads, and markets were held on the water, with traders selling from small boats. A few of these floating markets survive, and they are within easy reach of Maeklong.
Amphawa, a short drive from the railway market, is a canal-side town of old wooden shophouses, and its floating market is held mainly on Friday, Saturday and Sunday from the afternoon into the evening. Boats moored along the canal sell grilled seafood, noodles and sweets, cooked on board, and the town is a favourite weekend outing for people from Bangkok. After dark, boats go out on the river to see fireflies in the trees along the banks.
Damnoen Saduak, about thirty kilometres away, is one of the most visited floating markets and runs every day. Its narrow canals are crowded with boats selling fruit, noodles and souvenirs, and with tourists in boats watching them. It is lively and colourful, but it is now very much a market for visitors, and busy; go early, before the tour coaches arrive, if you go at all.
A common plan is to combine the railway market in the morning with one of the floating markets: Damnoen Saduak on a weekday, or Amphawa on a weekend afternoon and evening.
Tours that stop at Maeklong
Both holidays here have Maeklong in their lists, at the end of a journey south from the north of Thailand.
Explore's nine-night Best of Northern Thailand begins in Chiang Mai and goes to the Elephant Nature Park, the old cities of Si Satchanalai and Sukhothai, Naton Chan, Uthai Thani and Ayutthaya, then Kanchanaburi and the Erawan Waterfall, Maeklong and finally Bangkok. It departs in February, March, April, August, October, November and December.
Explore's eleven-night Upgraded - Discover Northern Thailand covers similar ground at a slower pace: Chiang Mai and Doi Suthep, the Elephant Nature Park, Maekampong, Lampang, Naton Chan, Sukhothai, Uthai Thani, Ayutthaya, Kanchanaburi and the River Kwai, and Maeklong. It departs from August to February.
Making the most of it
Arrive early, stand well back from the rails when the bell rings, and keep hold of children and bags as the train comes through. Buy something: a bag of fruit, a grilled fish, a sweet wrapped in banana leaf. It is a real market, not a show, and it deserves to be treated as one. Then, if you can, stay for the afternoon, and follow the canals to the water markets of the delta, where the old Thailand of boats and wooden houses still goes about its business.
By Walter Pellow, the name Atlas & Passage’s editorial team writes under. Prices and dates in the trips below come from the operators and can change.
