Bangkok from Above – The Red Sky Bar at the Centara Grand
Bangkok is famous for its rooftop bars. They offer a chance to take a break from the bustling streets and admire the city from a sky-high vantage point while sipping a drink.
While I love the Thai capital – I know it can be a little bit intense at street level. Scruffy stray dogs trot past street noodle stalls, rats disappear into gutters, bright pink taxis and yellow and green tuk tuks crawl through a snarl of traffic. You are constantly torn between watching your step on the often-broken pavement and gazing up at the gleaming gold roof of a temple. Just walking around can be an exhausting exercise – especially in the tropical heat and humidity.
Taking a break at a rooftop bar will lift you up out of the noise and chaos of street level and give you a chance to catch your break while surveying Bangkok from above. We decided to check out one of the rooftop bars while we were in Bangkok and after a bit of Googling (there are many to choose from) we were intrigued by Red Sky Bar at the Centara Grand.
Red Sky Bar, Bangkok
Getting up to the bar from the Central World shopping mall was an experience. We took several escalators, an elevator, then another elevator – I almost thought my ears were going to pop from the change in altitude.
The bar is not just on the 5th or 6th floor, it’s on the 55th floor which is a totally different experience. You are looking down on the city from such a high vantage point that you almost feel like you are flying over it. The streets glitter with tiny cars moving through traffic, the enormous MBK shopping mall looks like an architectural model and you can see the city stretch out for miles.
Of course, the increased altitude comes with a higher price. To have one cocktail and one mocktail cost us around 800 baht, which is more than a night in our hotel on Soi Rambuttri. However, there are some mocktails available for around 250 baht, so if you can go without the alcohol this experience doesn’t have to break the bank.
We went at around 6:20pm, a great time to go because it was just before the sunset. The sky faded into darkness and we got a new perspective on the city as the lights twinkled like a galaxy below us.
Have you been to any rooftop bars in Bangkok? Let us know in the comments below!
Check Out Some More Bangkok and Thailand Related Info:
5 Reasons Why We Use Bangkok As Our Base for Asia Travel
Our Adventures on the Thai Islands of Koh Lanta and Koh Phi Phi
Bangkok Sights and Sounds – Our First Impressions
How We Saved a Thousand Dollars by Getting Our Immunizations in Bangkok
World’s Coolest Cities: Bangkok
Siam Paragon Gourmet Food Hall, Bangkok – A Hungry Traveller’s Paradise (right next to the Centara Grand so you could get dinner here after visiting the rooftop bar)
