In this guide
💡 The Short Version: Bangkok food tours come in three formats: Chinatown walking tasting tours (about 3 hours), tuk-tuk food tours (3 to 4 hours), and cooking classes with a market visit (3 to 4 hours). A guide orders what a Thai-only menu hides, finds the alley stalls that are hard to locate, and shows how the dishes are made. A Chinatown tasting walk is from ฿1,140, a tuk-tuk tour from ฿1,500, and a cooking class from ฿946. Book 2 to 4 days ahead in the November to February high season. Or book a tour: the Authentic Thai Food Tasting Walking Tour in Yaowaratad (from ฿1,140, 4.9 stars from 1,257 reviews) covers 10 to 12 tastings, including Michelin Guide food, in 3 hours.
The tours and classes compared
A tour pairs you with a guide who orders the specialty dishes, explains the flavour balance and handles dietary requests. Prices are GetYourGuide’s “from” prices in baht, except Sompong’s, which are the school’s own.
| Format | Example | Length | From | What is included |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chinatown tasting walk | Yaowarat walk with 10 to 12 tastings | 3 hours | ฿1,140 | Tastings, a guide, water, Michelin Guide stops |
| Tuk-tuk food tour | Michelin Guide street food tour | 3 hours | ฿1,500 | Tuk-tuk ride, guide, tastings, hotel pickup |
| Midnight tuk-tuk tour | Midnight Food Tour by Tuk-Tuk | 4 hours | ฿2,500 | Tuk-tuk, 10+ tastings, a beer or soft drink, flower market |
| Cooking class | Hands-on Thai cooking class and market tour | 3½ hours | ฿946 to ฿1,400 | Market visit, four dishes cooked yourself, recipes |
| Sompong Thai Cooking School | Silom Soi 13 | 3 to 3½ hours | ฿1,200 to ฿1,300 | Market tour in the morning class, cooking, recipe guide |
Tours and classes on GetYourGuide
Chinatown tasting walk
From ฿1,140 · 4.9 stars from 1,257 reviews · 3 hours · walking
Bangkok: Authentic Thai Food Tasting Walking Tour in Yaowaratad is a walk through Chinatown with a local guide, 10 to 12 tastings including Michelin Guide food, and bottled water. The meeting point is in front of I’m Chinatown Mall. Hotel pickup can be arranged for a fee, and the listing says it is not suitable for wheelchair users, vegans, vegetarians or people with gluten intolerance.
Chinatown with a Michelin stall, maximum eight people
From ฿1,150 · 4.8 stars from 446 reviews · 3 hours · small group
Bangkok: Chinatown Food Tour with Michelin Food Stallad has 10 or more tastings, an English-speaking guide, water and a group of no more than eight, with a stop at a Michelin-recognised stall and the history of Chinese immigration to the district. Hotel pickup and drop-off are included. It is not suitable for children under 10, wheelchair users, vegans or vegetarians.
Backstreets tour, 15 tastings
From ฿2,061 · 4.9 stars from 3,514 reviews · 4 hours · maximum 8 guests
Bangkok: Backstreets Food Tour with 15+ Tastingsad covers 15 or more tastings over 3½ to 4 hours at 8 to 9 stops, including two or three Michelin-listed street food venues, with a licensed guide and an assistant, bottled water and hotel pickup and drop-off. It meets outside the Shanghai Mansion Bangkok hotel in Chinatown. Alcoholic drinks cost extra, and it is not suitable for vegans, vegetarians or people with food allergies.
Midnight food tour by tuk-tuk
From ฿2,500 · 4.9 stars from 2,863 reviews · 4 hours · tuk-tuk
Bangkok: Midnight Food Tour by Tuk-Tukad includes the tuk-tuk ride, 10 or more tastings, a licensed local food guide, a cold Thai beer or a non-alcoholic drink, and hotel pickup and drop-off in central Bangkok. It visits night-time eateries, a bar with a view, and the flower market. The meeting point is Sam Yan MRT, exit 2, in front of Chamchuri Square. It is not suitable for vegans or people with mobility impairments.
Michelin Guide street food by tuk-tuk
From ฿1,500 · 4.5 stars from 1,500 reviews · 3 hours · small group
Bangkok: Michelin Guide Street Food Tour by Tuk Tuk with foodad is a round trip by tuk-tuk through Chinatown at night with an English-speaking guide, water, tastings of noodles, Chinese dough and fried rice, and food and drink at Jay Fai’s restaurant and at Teens of Thailand. It meets at River City Bangkok and ends at MRT Hua Lamphong, exit 3, with hotel pickup and drop-off included on some options. Not suitable for pregnant women.
Cooking class with a market tour
From ฿1,400 · 4.9 stars from 1,754 reviews · 3½ hours · small class
Bangkok: Hands-on Thai Cooking Class and Market Tourad is a small class that cooks a four-course meal. The morning class visits a local market first; the afternoon and evening classes add mango carving. Ingredients, equipment, water and recipes by email are included. The morning class meets at Hey! Coffee at MRT Sukhumvit, and the afternoon and evening classes at the school on Sukhumvit Soi 4.
Cheaper class by the flower market
From ฿946 · 5 stars from 1,185 reviews · 3 to 3½ hours
Bangkok: White Lotus Thai Cooking Class with Market Tourad visits a wholesale fruit and vegetable market and the Pak Khlong Talat flower market, makes fresh coconut milk, and cooks four dishes: tom yam goong, pad thai, som tam and mango sticky rice. It meets at the school on the 2nd floor of The Market Organization, about 150 metres from Sanam Chai MRT. Children under 6 are not accepted.
Class in the old city
From ฿1,375 · 4.9 stars from 1,417 reviews · 4 hours · up to 8 people
Bangkok: Maliwan Thai Cooking Class with Market Tourad works in groups of no more than eight, visits a local market by tuk-tuk, and cooks four dishes, with a recipe handout and an e-certificate. It is at 9 Sipsamhang Road in Banglamphu, a short walk from Khao San Road.
Why book a food tour in Bangkok
Street food is easy to find and hard to order well:
- Thai-only menus: many old shophouses print menus only in Thai, or an English version that leaves out the cook’s speciality. A guide orders the exact dish the place is known for.
- Stalls down alleys: the most admired vendors often trade in residential lanes (troks) off the main roads, which a guide walks you to.
- Michelin Bib Gourmand stalls: the Michelin Guide recommends some street food stalls, and several tours route through them; the popular ones have queues at peak times.
Midnight tuk-tuk food tours
A tuk-tuk passing Wat Suthat at night. Photo: Namneverdry, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0.
Four hours · hotel pickup or meeting at MRT Sam Yan
A tuk-tuk tour links the food stops by road after the daytime traffic has thinned, so you eat in several neighbourhoods in one evening. A typical itinerary includes:
- Guay tiew kua gai: wide rice noodles flash-fried with chicken, squid and egg over charcoal, served with lettuce and chilli sauce.
- Pad thai at an award-listed restaurant: thin noodles wrapped in a thin omelette.
- Pak Khlong Talat, the flower market: a late-night walk through the wholesale market, where vendors thread jasmine garlands (phuang malai) and lotus offerings.
- A floodlit temple: a stop outside Wat Arun or Wat Pho after the gates have shut.
- A rooftop beer: the evening ends at a riverside bar with a cold Singha or Chang.
Pak Khlong Talat, the flower market. Photo: Ovedc, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0.
Chinatown walking tasting tours
Walking tours cover Yaowarat and Talat Noi, where the alleys are too narrow for cars and groups are kept to 8 to 10 people. Tastings run to 8 to 12 dishes over three hours:
- Dim sum and pork buns: steamed charcoal buns filled with salted-egg yolk or barbecue pork.
- Peppery pork noodle soup (guay jub): rolled rice-noodle sheets in a peppery pork broth with crisp roast pork belly (moo krob).
- Grilled river seafood: charcoal-grilled prawns with a green seafood sauce of lime, garlic, fish sauce and bird’s-eye chilli.
- Chinese desserts: black sesame dumplings (bua loy) in warm ginger broth, or iced coconut milk (lod chong).
The Yaowarat Chinatown Night Food Walking Tour on KKdayad is a further option. For a self-guided route, see our Chinatown and Talat Noi walk.
Cooking schools
Cooking classes are the active option. Each student gets a station with a stove, wok and chopping board, and eats the dishes cooked.
| Feature | Silom Thai Cooking School | Sompong Thai Cooking School |
|---|---|---|
| Location | Silom Soi 11, near BTS Chong Nonsi | 2/6-2/8 Soi Silom 13, Bang Rak |
| Price per person | On the school’s booking page | Morning 1,300 THB; afternoon and evening 1,200 THB |
| Classes | Morning (09:00), afternoon (13:40), evening (18:00) | Morning 9:00 to 12:30, afternoon 13:30 to 16:30, evening 17:30 to 20:30 |
| Market visit | Morning and afternoon classes | Morning class visits a local market; afternoon and evening use the school’s indoor market |
| What you cook | Curry paste, a curry, pad thai, a soup, mango sticky rice | Four dishes, including homemade Massaman curry paste |
Sompong’s prices and times are from the school’s own pages for its morning class, afternoon class and evening class; it opens from 08:30 to 21:00. Silom Thai Cooking School and Sompong Thai Cooking Class are also sold on Klook: Silomad and Sompongad.
What happens in a morning class
- Market walk: the instructor takes the group through a neighbourhood market and shows how to choose galangal, lemongrass, kaffir lime leaves and fresh coconut cream.
- Curry paste: students pound shallots, garlic, dried chillies, coriander root and shrimp paste (or mushroom paste for vegetarians) in a granite mortar into a red, green or Massaman paste.
- Wok cooking: each dish is cooked at your own wok, eaten at the shared table while hot, and followed by the next.
- Dessert and recipes: the class ends with mango sticky rice and a recipe handbook.
Dietary restrictions and allergy advice
- Vegetarian and vegan: classes can replace fish sauce and meat with mushroom or soy-based alternatives. Street food tours are more limited, and several Chinatown listings say they are not suitable for vegetarians or vegans, so check the “not suitable for” line on the listing.
- Peanuts: peanuts are a garnish on pad thai and som tam and are crushed on shared boards. With a severe allergy, a private cooking class is safer than a street food tour.
- Gluten: Thai cooking relies on rice noodles and jasmine rice, but many soy and oyster sauces contain wheat. Ask a cooking school in advance for gluten-free soy sauce.
What to explore next
- Where to eat on your own: food courts, night markets and street food hygiene are in where to eat in Bangkok.
- Noodles: compare Pad Thai vendors in our guide to the best Pad Thai in Bangkok.
- Night markets: see Bangkok night markets.
- Walking routes: the Chinatown and Talat Noi walk and the Rattanakosin old city walk.
- General planning: airport transit and temple rules are in the Bangkok travel guide.
Cash and ATM fees for the stalls are in money in Bangkok.
Common questions
How much does a guided food tour cost in Bangkok?
A Chinatown walking tour with 10 to 12 tastings is from 1,140 THB on GetYourGuide for 3 hours, a tuk-tuk food tour is from 1,500 THB, and the 4-hour midnight tuk-tuk tour is from 2,500 THB. A cooking class with a market tour is from 946 THB, and Sompong Thai Cooking School's own prices are 1,200 THB to 1,300 THB.
What is included on a Bangkok midnight tuk-tuk food tour?
The midnight tuk-tuk tour on GetYourGuide includes the tuk-tuk ride, 10 or more tastings, a licensed local guide, a cold Thai beer or a non-alcoholic drink, and hotel pickup and drop-off in central Bangkok. Its stops include a night-time eatery, a bar with a view and the Pak Khlong Talat flower market.
Which cooking schools in Bangkok are best for visitors?
Sompong Thai Cooking School on Silom Soi 13 runs a 9:00 to 12:30 class with a market tour for 1,300 THB, and 3-hour afternoon and evening classes for 1,200 THB. The GetYourGuide classes from 946 THB to 1,400 THB include a market visit and four dishes cooked yourself.
Can food tours accommodate vegetarians or allergies?
Not all of them. Several Chinatown tour listings state that they are not suitable for vegetarians or vegans, and one lists people with food allergies as unsuitable, so read the listing's 'not suitable for' line before booking. Street food is cooked in shared woks, so severe peanut or shellfish allergies carry a cross-contact risk. Cooking classes handle diets more easily.
Are drinks included on food tours?
Water is included on most. The midnight tuk-tuk tour includes a cold Thai beer or a non-alcoholic drink; on the Chinatown backstreets tour alcoholic drinks are extra.
