5 iconic buildings in Bangkok

Bangkok’s main railway station was constructed in 1916, and features ornate Neo-Renaissance Italian architecture, with large stained glass windows and a soaring semi-circular interior. With a grand new rail terminus set to open outside the city in a few years, Hua Lamphong will eventually be turned into a railway museum and preserved as a classic.

This is Bangkok’s new tallest building, opened in 2016, standing some 314 metres in height. Its unique design resembles a prism, and it has a pixelated look, visible from almost everywhere in Bangkok. There are plans to open an observatory at the top of it.

Until recently (see MahaNakhon Tower above), Baiyoke II was the tallest building in Bangkok, at 309 metres, and it’s one of the tallest hotel buildings in the world. You can access the 84th floor rooftop observatory, which rotates and offers a dizzying panorama of the sea of skyscrapers all around.

Meaning ‘golden land’, venerating an ancient Buddhist kingdom, the cantilevered roof domes of Suvarnabhumi were constructed to look like floating waves, and are quite impressive viewed upon arrival into the airport. This is a remarkable piece of architecture, especially considering that it has been built on what was a real swamp.

Home to the UOB Bank headquarters, this building looks like a robot, with eyes, ears, and a body. It was designed by noted Thai architect Sumet Jumsai, who was asked to make something promoting the computer-age of banking. The structure is also Jumsai’s rebuttal to the post-modern architecture that has dominated Bangkok.