What to do in Bangkok on a 6 Hour Layover

If you are on a layover at Suvarnabhumi Airport in Bangkok for just a few hours, it’s really not that bad as there’s quite a few things to do such as visit one of the many restaurants, get a massage, visit the duty-free and more.

But what if you are on a 6 hour layover? Do you stay at the airport? Or can you leave and come back? I was in a situation like this not long ago when I was on a 2 week trip in Vietnam then planned to go back to Canada for a while. I had a connecting flight at Suvarnabhumi Airport and I had 6 hours to kill.

My 6 Hour Layover Experience in Bangkok

After arriving in Bangkok from Vietnam, I pondered the idea of leaving the airport for about 3 hours before my connecting flight back to Toronto. The flight was on time and i had just over 6 hours to go before my next flight.

I’ve explored Suvarnabhumi Airport many times so I just didn’t want to do the same old thing. I decided that if I spent 3 hours outside of the airport I would make it back in well enough time to catch my connecting flight. My flight was at 3:30 PM and it was only 9:30 AM. After some thought, I remembered that I wanted to visit the Mega Bangna Mall at some point and now was my best opportunity. Afterall, it was April which is the hottest month in Thailand so I wasn’t going to be spending much time outside in the heat.

So, I made my way through the terminal and past immigration. Since my bags were going to follow me all the way to Canada from Vietnam, I didn’t have to collect my luggage. I had just one small carry-on which wasn’t going to get in the way. I made my way down to the taxi level and decided I didn’t want to wait for a bus so I got a taxi ticket and proceeded to the corresponding taxi waiting for me.

“Mega Bangna kap” was all I neeed to say to the taxi driver and I was on my way. Traffic wasn’t too bad and I got there in 20 minutes. If I remember correctly I think it was around 300 baht with tip. That’s about $8 USD.

After leaving the nice air conditioned taxi I exited into a wall of heat so I quickly made my way into the mall. I’ve never been to Mega Bangna before so the first thing I did was look at the mall directory. To my surprise, there was an Ikea in here! The last time I set foot in Ikea was years ago and that was back in Canada. So, I thought, what the heck, let’s see what a Thai Ikea looks like.

Spoiler alert – it’s exactly the same! It was weird, I felt like I was back in Canada at the Ikea I was used to. Everything was almost the same! After that weird Thai Ikea experience, I decided to just walk the mall to see what was in store.

The mall has a movie theater and I thought that would be the perfect way to kill some time. Unfortunately the only movie that would work based on my time frame was a movie without subtitles and only in Thai, so that wouldn’t have worked. I speak ok Thai but understanding it in a movie is very different!

After a bit of walking I got hungry and decided to get something to eat. They have a huge food court with very reasonable prices and since I didn’t have much Thai money left it worked out perfectly. I put 200 baht down for a food ticket voucher and found a place that served one of my favorite Thai dishes – Pad Krapao. It was delicious and it was only 60 baht which is $1.76 USD – not bad at all.

After that, I found a cool looking coffee shop and sat down for some coffee and YouTube watching on my laptop. At this point, I had already killed off 1 hour and 30 minutes including the taxi ride.

Ice Skating in the Mall

I was so tempted to go skating – yes, Mega Bangna has an indoor ice rink. However, most of the people that were going were couples and groups of friends, so I thought it would be a bit weird for me to go by myself so I just watched for a bit.

At this point I just walked and browsed through the many different stores. I couldnt really buy anything because my carry-on was already full enough.

Back To Suvarnabhumi Airport

Before I knew it, it was already 12PM and I headed for the main entrance to grab a taxi back to the airport. This time I used the “Grab” app to get a taxi – I use that and “Bolt” a lot while in Thailand because it’s not always easy hailing a cab. These apps are similar to Uber which does not operate in Thailand.

Once I arrived, I entered through the departure area and headed to the airline check-in counters. Since my boarding pass for the Air Canada flight had not been issued in Vietnam, I needed to check in again at the airline counter and got my new passes. Fortunately the whole process went pretty quick and I made the sad journey up the escalator to security. I call it sad because there is something about that escalator that makes you realize your Thailand trip is over. I would be coming back soon again anyway, but more many people it kinda hits you hard.

What to do in the Bangkok Airport During a Layover

At this point I had roughly 2 hours to find things to do. I was a bit hungry again so I thought I would do a very non-Thai thing and go to Burger King. It was my first western food in months and I have to say I missed it.

I got a Massage

After downing Burger King I went for a stroll through the airport and came across a row of massage chairs. After having had many traditional Thai massages while in Thailand, I thought why not try something different. So, I gave it a go. It was actually quite relaxing and after all the walking I did, it was a great choice. I think I spent at least half an hour on that chair which was just enough. I didn’t feel as limber as I did after a real Thai massage, but my muscles did feel a bit more relaxed which was a very welcome thing knowing I had a very long flight ahead of me.

Finished off With a Shower

At this point I had about 1 hour before my flight would start boarding. I remember passing the “Miracle Lounge” where I saw that they have showers. I thought to myself it would be great to feel fresh for the long haul so I decided to partake.

A shower at the Miracle lounge is 500 baht which is around $15 USD. A little pricey for a shower but afterwards I thought it was totally worth it. I felt fresh and ready for my jouney half-way across the world.

What to do in Bangkok on a 6 Hour Layover Recap

Just to recap everything I did, here is a breakdown.

Took a taxi to Mega Bangna Mall (20 minutes)
Browsed Ikea in the mall (15 minutes)
Ate at the food court (20 minutes)
Went for a coffee (35 minutes)
Spent the rest of the time wandering the mall (1 hour and 10 minutes)
Taxi ride back to Bangkok Airport (25 minutes)

This of course was my experience and there are other options to do. For example, if you have been to Mega Bangna Mall already and want to go to a different mall, the Paseo Mall is also a great option. Do keep in mind they are only open from Thursday to Monday. It’s also not very “touristy” so if you are looking for one last experience of traditional Thai culture, this mall is a great choice.

Apart from that, you do have the option of just staying at the airport. I just find 6 hours a bit grueling in one place. If malls aren’t your thing and you want to leave for a few hours, you can check out the Erawan Museum (25 minutes by taxi), the Bang Phli Floating Market (15 minutes by taxi) or the Rama IX Park which is about half an hour by car.