Central (Bangkok) > Reviews > The centre of my world...

Author's product rating:   

Prices	Good
Is it worth visiting?	Excellent
Transport links	Excellent
Family Friendly	Good

Advantages:	High end department store, centrally located and air conditioned !
Disadvantages:	Don't expect market prices  -  but you definitely get what you pay for .

Recommend to potential buyers:

yes

Full review

Although part of the attraction of Bangkok is haggling with traders in the marketplace down to twenty pence or so, it's also lovely to experience the high end of shopping Bangkok.
Central has two branches; the one that I'm reviewing is on Soi Lang Suan (easily reached on Bangkok's swift and cheap Sky Train by the Silom line.)
Central hosts floors and floors of beautiful jewellery and clothing (both Western and Thai,) cosmetics, an entire floor devoted to shoes and handbags, and an amazing Food Court and supermarket. Most designer Western brands can be found in Central (DKNY, Kate Spade and Calvin Klein but to name a few) but despite the fact that they're imported, they are still around 20 - 30% cheaper than England. There's also a 5% discount for all tourists when you produce your passport, that's good for a month. Some might find the (over)eagerness of the shop assistants a little stifling, (my sister likened it to stalking) but they really do mean well - rather than ask you to walk over to a till, they'll run back and forth from the till to you with your purchases - they're extremely helpful and kind. Tipping is definitely advisable at this point!
The Food Court in Central is absolutely amazing - located on the top floor, you can sample anything Eastern (Korean, Malaysian, Japanese, Thai itself) as well as Italian and Indian (which is otherwise nearly impossible to track down in Bangkok.) As with most food in Bangkok, it's inexpensive and you sit in the most beautiful surroundings; a marble fountain bubbles in the middle of the dining area whilst everything is kept scrupulously clean and tidy.
Once the heat and the craziness of Bangkok gets to you, consider Central to be a shopping haven with beautiful surroundings, helpful shop assistants and even a chicken tikka massala when it's all got too much for you...