You’ll need two things to navigate this city successfully: a map and patience. Bangkok’s streets are among the busiest and most crowded in the world, and traffic headaches are as much a part of Thai lives as monsoons and fiery hot chili peppers. Midday traffic is bad enough, but rush hours (6-10 am and 3-7 pm) are bottlenecks. Renting a car without a driver is not recommended. Some alternatives, both conventional and unorthodox, are described in the Getting Around section below.

Don Muang International Airport is 15 mi/24 km north of the city center. In the early morning and at night, the drive into the city takes about 40 minutes. At any other time, plan on at least one hour.

Speed limit on the major highways is 50 mph/80 kph. Because Bangkok is the center of the country politically, economically and geographically, all major roads pass through it. Highway 1 goes north to Chiang Rai, Highway 3 goes southeast to Pattaya and Rayong, and Highway 4 goes south to the Malaysian border. Unfortunately, there’s no easy way to bypass the city. The elevated toll road, the Bangklo-Jangwatana Expressway, is an attempt to alleviate traffic problems, but often you can look down and see street traffic moving faster. Toll for the expressway is 30 baht-40 baht, depending on which exit you take. The Don Muang Tollway can cut the trip to and from the airport by at least 20 minutes. It costs 20 baht-40 baht more.

The main train station in Bangkok is Hua Lampong Terminal. Information and advanced booking: Rama IV Road, phone 223-0341. The Chiang Mai Express from the north arrives daily at Hua Lampong Terminal at 6 am and 9:40 am. The Hat Yai Express from the south arrives at the terminal daily at 9:30 am and 10:35 am.

Bangkok is a point of embarkation or disembarkation rather than a port of call for cruise lines. Laem Chabang serves as the port city for Bangkok; it’s approximately a two-and-a-half-hour drive from the city. Taxis for coming ashore and getting to Bangkok should be arranged by your cruiseline office, since there are no cabs available near the docks.

Bangkok has four major bus terminals, one for each direction of travel outside the city. It’s nearly impossible for a non-Thai-speaking person to make reservations by phone. Use one of the many local travel agents in town.

Roads in Bangkok seem to be constantly in a state of repair. Sukhumvit Road, the main street of Bangkok, always seems to be torn up in one location or another. Even without construction, traffic is horrible. Our strong recommendation: Leave the driving to someone else.

A taste of former glory, the Oriental Express travels in luxury from Singapore to Bangkok and back with stops in Sukothai, Chiang Mai, Kuala Lumpur and Hua Hin, Wang Po and Kanchanaburi. The trip takes three days each way. Prices start at around 25,000 baht. Call the Oriental Hotel, 236-0400, or E&O Services (in Singapore), 65-227-2068, for more information.

The one where you’d most likely arrive (or depart from) is the Southern Air-Conditioned Terminal on Charansantiwong Road (it’s actually due west of Old Bangkok). This station is the jumping-off point for the Rose Garden, Demnoen Saduak Floating Market, the River Kwai Memorial, Phuket and other places west and south. These air-conditioned buses are clean and comfortable. The VIP buses that travel overnight even have reclining seats. It’s possible to buy tickets weeks in advance, but you must get them at the station (or a hotel staffer or a travel agent will do so for a small fee of 50 or 100 baht.

The city operates both “regular” and air-conditioned buses. Fare on the “regular” ones is generally 3.50 baht, on the air-conditioned ones 6 baht. Most run 5 am-11 pm. The problems presented to visitors by these buses include the absence of a bus map, the frequent adding of new routes or changing of old ones and the difficulty of communicating in the Thai language. Carbon monoxide fumes may cause faintness. The buses are dangerously crowded. (Novices will find it especially chaotic traveling during rush periods, 7-9 am and 4-9 pm.) Because it’s so difficult to get on and off, children should not be brought onto a crowded bus.

One route goes via Din Daeng and the Victory Monument to Phyathai Road, turning right at Petchburi and ending at Sanam Luang—not far from the budget traveler’s district surrounding Kaosan Road. A second follows a similar route, but turns eastward at Siam Square and proceeds the length of Sukhumvit Road. The third follows Rajaprarop Road, passes by the World Trade Center, then proceeds the length of Silom Road. This is a stress-free way to enter the city, even if your destination isn’t along one of the routes. You can disembark at, say, the Victory Monument or the World Trade Center and catch a taxi onward. Signs at the stops are large and easy to read. For route information, phone 246-0969.

Note: Your destination may not always be at a regular stop on the water-taxi route. If you wish to visit, say, Wat Arun on the Thonburi side of the river, get off at the dock most directly across the river (in this case, Tha Tien). From there you can catch a small ferry that crosses the river for 1 or 2 baht. Pick up a copy of Nancy Chandler’s famous Map of Bangkok from any bookstore for river taxi pickup points.

The principal klong (canal) taxis run along Klong Saen Saep, beginning close to Wat Saket and the Golden Mount and continuing eastward as far as Klongtan. Jim Thompson’s House (the Phyathai), Ratchadamri Road and Soi Asoke are a few of the stops. These motorized longtails are much smaller and less stable than the river boats. You must be agile to jump on and off them. Using a klong taxi provides a fascinating glimpse of the city’s backside, but the water is black and malodorous.

ARRIVING BY CRUISE SHIP

There are three types of public buses. By far the most comfortable are the privately owned, air-conditioned gray-and-red microbuses. Most charge a flat fare of 30 baht, a few still charge 25 baht. Place your money in the box near the driver. No change is given. Once all seats are filled, no other passengers are allowed on board (a point definitely in the company’s favor). However, there’s no route map, and routes change often. Stops listed on the side of the bus are written only in Thai. Best way to utilize this inexpensive, comfortable mode of transport: Have someone write down your destination in Thai, then hand it to the driver, or to the people at the bus stop. Microbus owners are discussing the possibility of a bilingual route map.

Monday-Friday 9:30 am-3:30 pm. Banks do not close for lunch.

The baht used to be a very stable currency. From 1987-1997 it was pegged to a U.S. dollar-weighted basket of currencies, hovering around 25 baht to the US dollar. No longer. If Thailand continues to follow the regime prescribed by the International Monetary Fund, analysts forecast that by the end of 1998 the baht will settle somewhere between 38 and 42 baht to the dollar. Tourists need to check the rate daily and change money when their currency is on the upswing. Keep receipts of all exchanges.

Horizon Conference and Organizer Company rents audiovisual equipment and delivers. Monday-Saturday 9 am-5:30 pm. Near the Oriental Hotel, 359-61 New Rd., phone 233-1011. Conference and Secretarial Co., Monday-Friday 8:30 am-4:30 pm. Near the city center, 57/3 Soi Luang Suan, off Ploenchit Road, phone 252-3020.

Although it’s possible to hail a taxi on the street just about anywhere, you can easily order one, in English, by phone for a 20-baht surcharge: Call 319-8911. All taxis plying the street are now metered. Make sure the meter is on. Flagfall is 35 baht, with the fare increasing by an additional 6 baht for each kilometer beyond two kilometers. When the taxi is stopped in traffic, the meter switches to a clock, and the fare goes up 2 baht for every minute the speed is below 6 kph. Four passengers maximum; no additional charges per person. Tips are not required, but are often well deserved. Few drivers know much English, although they like to practice. It’s always a good idea to have the hotel clerk write down your destination in both Thai and English.

All major hotels listed in this profile have business centers where you can rent cellular phones. Average rate is 440 baht per day (two-day minimum rental), with rates decreasing the longer the rental period. Average rate for local calls is 10 baht a minute.

These really should be called “water buses,” since these boats ply regular routes—the Chao Phraya River and the city’s canals (klongs). They’re cheap and relatively efficient, because there’s less congestion on the waterway. Fares start at 5 baht on the Chao Phraya Express River Taxi. This is the preferred mode of transport if the pickup and drop-off points are convenient. Boats will not stop if no one asks, so tell the conductor your destination.

All hotels listed here have business centers where you can use a computer. All have rooms with IDD jacks in which you can plug a modem. But not many will have computers that you can rent and take to your room. The following are primarily repair and contract service companies, but they’ll rent computers for brief periods, if they have extras on hand. (In the current economic climate, this is likely.) Expect to pay a hefty security deposit.

For PCs: Tygre Systems, a company opened by young U.S. expatriate Ted Loh. Rentals are 1000 baht per day, decreasing depending on length of stay. Ted also troubleshoots computer problems. Seri Computer Center, 3rd Floor, Moo 6, Srinakarin Road, phone 746-0600. E-mail rental requests: 786288@ncp.primenet.com.

They include river jets (used as hotel and airport shuttles and for sightseeing—any travel agent or the Oriental Hotel can hook you up), as well as long-tailed boats (for trips up smaller canals).

There is little in the way of maps or information services in Bangkok detailing access for the disabled. Bangkok is a very difficult city for those who are mobility impaired, because sidewalks are uneven, broken, potholed, torn up or occupied by large vehicles. Motorcycles often use them.

These are three-wheeled contraptions that are half motorcycle and half golf cart. They offer exciting and unsafe-at-any-speed transportation. They’re more expensive than taxis, and since there’s no meter, you must bargain with the driver on price. Tuk-tuk drivers are sharp bargainers, and you could go broke using them exclusively.

The Ambassador Hotel and Convention Center is the oldest and most centrally located, although with major construction on Sukhumvit, it’s getting shabby. 171 Sukhumvit Rd., phone 251-0404, fax 253-4153.

You’ll know them by the young men in fluorescent vests who hang around intersections and the driveways of hotels and shopping centers. They offer a viable, though dangerous way of getting around. In a city where traffic often sits for half an hour before creeping up a few inches, motorcycle drivers can get you to your destination in good time. However, drivers defy traffic laws, good sense and even the laws of gravity. You must bargain the fare, which won’t be cheaper than a taxi. Hire only the driver who lends you a helmet. (Check the neck of your motorcycle driver for a blue line and triangle peeking out above his collar. If you spot these tatoos, choose another driver. Many young Thai men go to occult shamans who ceremonially tattoo their backs, chests and necks with protective symbols that, the young men believe, make them immune to danger.)

The following hospitals provide 24-hour service. All have some English-speaking staff. They’ll accept credit cards and fill out insurance forms. In terms of equipment and sanitation, Bamrungrad and Samitivej look the most like Western hospitals. All have dental clinics. If you’re involved in a traffic accident requiring hospitalization, you are supposed to be taken to a “police hospital,” such as the one across from Erawan Shrine. Insist on being taken instead to one of these safe and clean hospitals:

This can be a good way to get around, and it’s always an adventure. But don’t expect Thais who are driving to give right-of-way to pedestrians. Even if they see you, that doesn’t mean they’ll slow down or stop. When you’re not scanning for traffic, keep your eyes glued to the ground ahead of you: Uneven sidewalks, open trenches and exposed sewer drains have been known to incapacitate more than the occasional pedestrian. Keep in mind, too, that in the tropics where heat and humidity are usually high, a midday jaunt of more than 15 or 20 minutes will leave you looking and feeling more than a bit soggy and limp.

The hospitals listed above have 24-hour pharmacies. Most other pharmacies close by 10 pm. Quality is generally reliable, especially for drugs manufactured in Thailand by Western companies. Registered pharmacists can read English and speak some English; if they’re located near hotels and tourist areas, they’ll speak it better. The clerks manning pharmaceutical counters in supermarkets and department stores are not pharmacists.

Conference and Secretarial Co. arranges group meetings of any size. Monday-Friday 8:30 am-4:30 pm. Near the city center, 57/3 Soi Luang Suan Ploenchit, phone 252-3020.

Stamps can be purchased at hotels. The main post office, near the Oriental Hotel, is the only post office that can clear international parcels. Packages need to be open so that customs officials in the post office can check the contents. There’s a 24-hour telecom annex on the grounds providing the highest-tech and probably cheapest international service in Thailand, connecting you instantly with a long-distance operator in Europe or Australia or North America. Post office is open Monday-Friday 8 am-4 pm, Saturday 8 am-noon. 1156 Charoen Krung Rd. (New Road), phone 233-1050.

Check with your hotel: most have messengers. The fee shouldn’t be more than 100 baht for a document. Additional possibilities: GDM Co., offering pickup service. Minimum (within city limits) 100 baht per kilogram. Daily 8 am-5 pm. On the east side, 360/23-23 Rama III Rd., Yannawa, phone 185-3512. World Pak will pick up. Minimum (within city limits) 100 baht for up to 2 kilograms. 24-hour delivery to other Thai cities. Daily 9 am-6 pm. Near the Landmark Hotel, 3/3 Sukhumvit Soi 24, Sukhumvit Road, phone 258-6796.

There are three English-language newspapers: The Bangkok Post and The Nation are general-interest dailies. Business Day is a conservative business daily, heavily subsidized by the Singapore Straits-Times. Many hotels and outlets provide the International Herald Tribune, The Asian Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, the British International Express, The Weekly Telegraph, The Sydney Morning Herald and Weekend Australian.

Bangkok has yet to jump on the bandwagon when it comes to full-service, 24-hour copy centers.

The most useful source, even at 100 baht per issue, is the monthly magazine Bangkok Metro, available at your hotel (and perhaps free for guests), as well as at the bookstores named above. In the listings at the back are objective, capsule reviews of restaurants, bars, clubs and music venues. You’ll also be able to find out what’s showing at art galleries and who’s on at live music venues.

Girl Friday Business and Secretarial Services offers complete business services, including faxing and photocopying. Monday-Saturday 9 am-5 pm, extended hours available. Near the city center, 107 Silom 9, N. Sathorn Road, phone 233-9293.

The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) is always a good starting point, whether your question deals with a festival date or a bus route. Unfortunately, TAT phone numbers seem to change very frequently. If those cited below don’t work, try dialing 13 for directory assistance:

World Translation Center provides interpretation and document translation in English, German, French, Chinese and all Southeast Asian languages. Monday-Friday 8:30 am-5 pm. On the west end, near the Oriental Hotel, 271 Silom Rd., phone 251-7545.