Exploring Bangkok the way of the locals as we ride our bikes through narrow alleyways, brush up against shop houses, wave at smiling children and navigate canals via long-tail boats.

Two weeks ago when we went to the Travel Massive kickoff party for the TBEX conference in Bangkok, we met some amazing bloggers but we also got in touch with a few travel and adventure startup companies. It so happened that one of the co-founder (Chanmanee Phonphakdee) of Bangkok’s original bicycle tour company, Co Van Kessel approached us.

Call it destiny or fate (if you believe in that sort of thing) that we met because what they do aligned perfectly with our mission – to explore off-the-beaten paths of Bangkok. After a few minutes of talking, Chanmanee offered us a free pass for their Co-Combo, 5-hour bicycle/boat tour.

So anyways, without getting too much into the hows and whys, this post is all about my experience of the bicycle tour and exploring Bangkok’s hidden paths (to the tourists at least). Sadly, I had to do it alone because Kanika had a prior engagement and was testing her Halloween makeup skills.

Ready, set, go!

I had the choice to do a morning tour (7 am – 12 pm) or the afternoon one (1 pm – 6 pm) and since I’m a sucker for sunsets I decided to the do the latter. I arrive at Co Van Kessel office at about 12:30 and it looked like a busy, busy day for them. There were over 50 people, mostly German and Dutch. Are all these people going to be biking today at the same time? Yes, but we got split up into groups of 10.

After being placed in my group, we sat outside the office where the tour guides, Noona and Mook, welcomed us and explained some rules. Noona described the tour as a ‘talk less, see more’ kind of immersive experience. We were then taken to their garage where all the bicycles were park. They had 2 types – normal bikes with a basket or a mountain bike. I opted for the mountain bike (mainly because it’s cooler).

Exploring Hidden Paths of Bangkok by Bike & Boat

The tour began as we maneuvered our bicycles through a network of narrow alleys, surrounded by all kinds of shop houses. It was quite a balancing act as I had one hand on the handlebar and the other holding my camera. This is dangerous and not recommended but if I didn’t have my camera I would not have captured this incredible photo.

Coming across this old man was probably one of the top highlights of this tour. I have no idea about his story but his smile, despite the fact that he was literally living in a hole in a wall, really captivated me.

We would come in and out of these extremely narrow alleys till we reached China town, a bustling street lined with temples, shopping and food stalls. I had been to China town many times before but never in such an immersive experience. We biked through busy shopping streets as motorcycles honked behind and pedestrians dodged being run over. It was hectic but at the same time very interesting because we got to see how the true locals live their daily life.

Soon after, we reached a pier at the Chao Phraya River where we boarded an express ferry with our bikes. The ferry took us right across to the other side to the Thonburi district of Bangkok. Thonburi was a stark contrast from Chinatown and other parts of Bangkok I’m used to. It literally felt like we had crossed to another lifestyle. Everything here was calmer as if life had slowed down.

As we rode down relatively wider roads and alleys, we came across locals and children who were incredibly happy to see us as they yelled ‘Hello’, smiled, waved and even gave the occasional high five. The innocence and authenticity in them was astonishing. I thought to myself, this is the ‘real Bangkok’. The Bangkok I live in, the downtown city life is so superficial, bustling and infuriating at times.

Why are people across the river here so much friendlier? Maybe because they haven’t had run-ins with that many tourists in this side or maybe they just live a simpler life and experience lower blood pressures. LOL, I could only speculate.

Riding along, we came across several Buddhist temples and stupas, some of which I couldn’t explore properly because I got a call from a client.

We then rode our bikes deeper into the city and arrived at a Khlong (canal) pier where we boarded a local long-tail boat with our bikes parked at the back. I was completely impressed with the guy navigating the boat through the khlongs because it did not look easy.

The tour took us through the  khlongs of Thonburi, which was lined with homes, shops and restaurants at either side. We saw children swimming in the khlong, mothers doing laundry in the backyard and men in their workshops. I found this awe-inspiring. Living in Bangkok for so long and not realizing the life this side was a humbling experience. It fired my determination to rediscover the city and country even more.

We got on and off the boat a few times. This was truly an impressive combination package of biking and boat riding – a perfect setting for rural adventures. At about 3 pm, we arrived at a restaurant on the khlong where we had a traditional Thai-style meal: omelet, stir-fried vegetables, chicken with cashew nuts and chicken/tofu soup. We sat here for about 40 minutes, giving us the first opportunity to actually talk to each other. I introduced myself to 3 German guys and had interesting conversations about life in Bangkok.

After being stuffed, we continued our tour on the boat. We reached the northeast part of Thonburi where we got off and started riding our bikes through more villages, community homes and forest areas. I’ll let the pictures do the talking.

More children waved, more smiling faces and gentle hellos as we passed through their homes. It was rejuvenating almost to the point where I almost wish I could live in a place like this…ALMOST. Unfortunately I couldn’t get pictures of these amazing moments because we went by so fast and I was so engrossed in happiness, I didn’t even care to take any snaps.

The tour neared its end as we took our final boat ride through the khlong back onto the Chao Phraya River. Here the currents were rougher causing the boat to splash up down, dousing us with water on several occasions.

Tip: Don’t open your mouth. The water is dirty and you don’t want to swallow it. I’ve heard some scary stories of people getting very sick. 

But soon I had forgotten about the water splashing on us as I was able to see that sunset I was hoping for.

It started to get dark so we finally got off at a pier back across the river again and took a short bike ride to Co Van Kessel office.

5 things I loved about Co Van Kessel Tour

To sum it up, here are some the things I loved about the tour:

1. They blend professionalism, friendliness and customer service seamlessly.
2. Very knowledgeable about the different routes, hidden pathways and culture of the locals
3. Unique tours – according to them, no route is ever the same. You will always see something different.
4. Seeing different types of lifestyles and landscapes. It was never boring and there was always something that amused me or caught my attention.
5. Interacting with the locals was one of the best experience I had from the tour. I also love that the company works with the local community and making sure they give back to them.

It was really difficult doing a vlog as I could hardly get any footage while riding the bike so it would be a really cool value addition if Co Van Kessel would give the option of providing helmets with GoPro mounts so that people who have a GoPro (such as myself) can simply attach it and record their journey. Other than that, the experience was phenomenal and they did a really good job. I would seriously recommend this to everyone looking to do the non-touristy things in Bangkok.