Silom is Bangkok's financial spine, a corridor of bank towers and office blocks that empties out at lunchtime into some of the best street food in the city. By night the area splits in two: the broad boulevard hosts night-market stalls and rooftop bars, while the narrow lanes of Patpong host the city's most famous, and most touristy, red-light scene.
The neighbourhood is also pleasantly green at its western end, where Lumphini Park offers a jogging track, paddle boats, and resident monitor lizards. Bangrak, the riverside stretch toward the Chao Phraya, hides excellent old restaurants and the city's snake farm at the Red Cross Institute, where antivenom is produced and milking demonstrations are held.
Silom is well served by both the BTS Skytrain and the MRT subway, making it one of the easiest districts to reach and to leave.