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Damnoen Saduak Floating Market

TRIPRATCHABURI

The best-known floating market, about 100 km southwest of Bangkok. The question everyone has is what the boat should cost: here are the prices a third-party guide gives, and the pier to avoid.

OPEN
07:00
CLOSE
—
ENTRY
Free

Every day · Review-based

THIS WEEK

    Usual days, with holidays and alcohol ban days. Not a promise for a given day.

    Checked 30 October 2026

    A boat loaded with bananas and fruit at Damnoen Saduak Floating Market

    Boat prices: what to pay

    One hour, bought inside the market, as a third-party guide gives them (review-based). There is no official price list.

    ItemPrice
    Shared boat฿400 / a person
    Private boat, up to 6฿2,000 / a boat
    Asked at the pier 1 km away (avoid)฿2,000 / a person

    Review-based · Prices from touristbangkok (third party), read 30 October 2026; Thairath (October 2023) reported that the market has no official boat price list.

    If you would rather go with a guide

    Tours usually include the boat at Damnoen Saduak and the 11:10 train at Maeklong. Usually ฿700–฿800 a person (October 2026); prices change on the seller’s site.

    If you book through an affiliate link, this site may earn a commission; the price is the seller’s. The timetables and prices above are not affected by it.

    Where
    Damnoen Saduak district, Ratchaburi, about 100 km southwest of Bangkok. (Wikipedia)
    Hours
    Every day from 07:00; busiest 08:00–10:00 when the tours arrive, quieter around midday. Sources disagree on the close (Wikipedia: active until noon). (touristbangkok.com; Wikipedia)
    Getting there
    Minivans from Mo Chit, Ekkamai and the Southern Bus Terminals, 1.5–2 hours, ฿60–80; then about 15 minutes on foot from the stop (touristbangkok, third party). Or a tour with Maeklong. (touristbangkok.com)
    Costs
    No entry fee. Boats bought inside the market, one hour: about ฿400 a person shared, about ฿2,000 for a private boat for up to six (review-based). No official price list (Thairath). (touristbangkok.com; Thairath (October 2023))
    Getting there

    By tour or minivan from Bangkok

    Open in Google MapsThe one-day routeAll day trips

    Show this to a driver

    ตลาดน้ำดำเนินสะดวก

    The Thai name, as its map listing or its own pages write it (see sources).

    Avoiding the pier scam and the fake market

    Taxis and vans often stop at a pier about 1 km from the market, where staff ask up to ฿2,000 a person for an hour and say a boat is the only way in. It is not: the market is free and walkable (touristbangkok, third party).

    Nearby there is also an imitation market that refuses entry without an overpriced boat tour and offers animals for photos. It is not Damnoen Saduak.

    Buy the boat inside the market. If a price is much higher than the ones above, walk on.

    Weekend evening market

    Daily News reported an evening floating market at Yuwanda Pier opening in October 2025: Saturdays and Sundays from 16:00, with free boat rides. Whether it still runs is checking; no later report was found.

    With Maeklong Railway Market

    Leave Damnoen Saduak by about 10:00 to be at Maeklong for the 11:10 train, which comes in and goes out again at 11:30. Most tours combine the two this way.

    Entry, paying and safety

    Entry
    Free. You can walk the canal banks without a boat.
    Paying
    Cash for the boat and the stalls; agree the price, the time and whether it is per person or per boat before you step in.
    Safety
    If a driver stops at a pier about 1 km from the market and staff say a boat is the only way in, it is not true: the market is a walk away.
    Alcohol ban days
    Nothing changes on alcohol ban days: these are food markets, not bars. Alcohol ban days

    Questions

    How much is a boat at Damnoen Saduak?
    About ฿400 a person shared, or about ฿2,000 for a private boat for up to six, for an hour (review-based; there is no official price list).
    Is there an entry fee?
    No. The market is free and you can walk the banks without a boat.
    What time should I go?
    It opens at 07:00. Go early: from about 08:00 to 10:00 the tour groups fill the canals.
    Is there an evening market?
    An evening market at Yuwanda Pier on Saturdays and Sundays from 16:00 was reported in October 2025; whether it still runs is checking.

    BEFORE YOU GO

    Before you go

    1. Bring cash

      Small notes for food, boats and fares. Thai QR payments need a Thai bank app.

    2. Start early

      Damnoen Saduak is best before 08:00, and the train-only route to Maeklong starts at Wongwian Yai before 09:00 for the 11:10 train.

    3. Plan the way back

      The last train back from Maeklong leaves at 15:30. After that, or from Amphawa at night, you return by minivan, car or tour.

    Money Exchange