Where is Pratunam Market in Bangkok? It is in the Pratunam neighborhood of Ratchathewi district, in central Bangkok, beside the Pratunam intersection where Phetchaburi Road crosses the start of Ratchaprarop and Ratchadamri Roads. The market spreads north of Phetchaburi Road toward Baiyoke Tower II, the 88-story hotel tower on Ratchaprarop Road that makes the area easy to spot from almost anywhere nearby.
Pratunam is Thailand's best-known clothing wholesale district, so "Pratunam Market" usually means the whole cluster of covered markets, arcades and street stalls around the intersection rather than one building. Here is how the area is laid out and the easiest ways to get there.
Where Pratunam is on the map
Pratunam is both an intersection and the neighborhood named after it, in the Thanon Phaya Thai subdistrict of Ratchathewi. The name means "water gate": King Chulalongkorn (Rama V) built a water gate here in 1905 to control water on Khlong Saen Saep, the canal that still runs through the area.
The key landmarks around the market:
- Pratunam Market, on the north side of Phetchaburi Road, on the Ratchaprarop Road side of the intersection, in the lanes below Baiyoke Tower II.
- Baiyoke Tower II, at 222 Ratchaprarop Road, home of the Baiyoke Sky Hotel and an observation deck on the 77th floor.
- Platinum Fashion Mall, on Phetchaburi Road a short way west of the intersection, a multi-story mall of small clothing shops. Our guide to where Platinum Mall is covers it in detail.
- Ratchaprasong, south along Ratchadamri Road, the next major intersection, with CentralWorld and the Erawan Shrine.
What Pratunam Market sells
In 1961 Pratunam was still a traditional produce market. Ready-made garment production grew up around it, and it became a center for clothing sold both wholesale and retail, to Thai shops, to foreign buyers and for export. That remains its character: clothing for resellers and individual shoppers alike, along with bags, shoes and accessories.
Because much of the trade is wholesale, some sellers are set up for bulk buyers, so ask whether a stall sells single pieces before you start choosing sizes. If you are shopping for a business, see our guide to buying wholesale clothes in Bangkok.
How to get to Pratunam Market
Airport Rail Link: Ratchaprarop station
The closest rail station is Ratchaprarop on the Airport Rail Link, which Wikipedia describes as serving the Pratunam area. It sits on Ratchaprarop Road, about 300 meters north of the market in a straight line. That makes Pratunam unusually easy to reach straight from Suvarnabhumi Airport, and in the other direction the line runs to Phaya Thai for the BTS.
BTS Skytrain: Chit Lom
From the BTS Sukhumvit Line, Chit Lom station is about 1 km south of the market in a straight line. From the station, head to the Ratchaprasong intersection, then north along Ratchadamri Road past CentralWorld to the Pratunam intersection. Our guide to buying a BTS ticket explains fares and cards.
By canal boat
The Khlong Saen Saep boat service stops at Pratunam Pier, which is useful if you are coming from the Old City end of the canal near Wat Saket and the Golden Mount, or from further east along the canal.
By bus, taxi or Grab
Many city bus lines stop at Ratchaprarop and Pratunam. By taxi or Grab, "Pratunam" or "Baiyoke Tower" is enough of a destination. Note that the Pratunam overpass, Bangkok's first, was scheduled to be demolished in 2026 for construction of the MRT Orange Line, so expect roadworks and traffic changes around the intersection.
Nearby: combine Pratunam with the rest of the area
Pratunam sits in one of the densest shopping areas in the city. You can walk south to the malls around Ratchaprasong, and the Siam malls are a short BTS ride away. Our guide to things to do in Pratunam has ideas for the rest of the day, and the Bangkok shopping section covers other markets and malls.
For a view over the whole district, the observation deck of Baiyoke Tower II, directly behind the market, looks down on Pratunam and across the city.
Sources: Pratunam (Wikipedia), Baiyoke Tower II (Wikipedia), Ratchaprarop station (Wikipedia), Platinum Fashion Mall. Checked September 26, 2026.
In the Pratunam neighborhood of Ratchathewi district, central Bangkok, on the north side of Phetchaburi Road by the Pratunam intersection, below Baiyoke Tower II on Ratchaprarop Road.
Ratchaprarop station on the Airport Rail Link, about 300 meters north of the market. On the BTS Skytrain, Chit Lom is about 1 km to the south.
Yes. The Airport Rail Link runs from Suvarnabhumi Airport to Ratchaprarop station, which serves the Pratunam area.
No. Platinum Fashion Mall is a separate indoor mall on Phetchaburi Road, just west of the Pratunam intersection. Both are part of the Pratunam clothing district.
"Water gate". The name comes from a water gate built in 1905 under King Chulalongkorn to control water on Khlong Saen Saep.
Yes. The Khlong Saen Saep canal boat stops at Pratunam Pier.
