When it comes to places that have it all, few cities can compete with Bangkok. Thailand’s vibrant capital offers a sensory overload of bright colors, pungent odors, eye-popping structures and streets teeming with cars, tuk-tuks and food vendors.
Sustainable Travel To Bangkok
While Thailand may have made its name as a budget travel destination, modern-day Bangkok is better known for its ultra-luxury hospitality, with no fewer than 181 Michelin-approved food spots, not to mention the world’s number one hotel 2024, according the World’s 50 Best Hotels ranking.
Yet, for all its superlatives, buzzy Bangkok is not often associated with sustainability. Traffic congestion, air, water and noise pollution, excessive plastic usage, flooding, and unsatisfactory refuse collection processes, are just some of the problems the Thai capital has to contend with.
Overtourism also poses a challenge to the city recently revealed as 2024’s most-visited city in the world, according to market research company Euromonitor International. The report placed Bangkok’s 2024 arrival numbers at 32 million, surpassing pre-pandemic levels.
Bangkok has been named the world’s most visited city in 2024, with 32 million arrivals.
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Bangkok’s Sustainable Future
Bangkok has multiple sustainability initiatives in the works, including Bangkok250, a project that seeks to make the inner city more ‘liveable’ by 2032, and Green Bangkok 2030, launched in 2019 as part of Thailand’s objective to reduce greenhouse gases by 20-30% by 2030. Meanwhile, at grassroots level, the city is brimming with climate-conscious creatives.
Like Deepanker Khosla, the visionary chef behind Bangkok’s trailblazing HAŌMA, known for its modern, sustainable approach to Indian cuisine. This exceptional fine-dining restaurant has not only been awarded a Michelin star and a Michelin Green Star, it also won the Sustainable Restaurant Award at Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants 2024.
Chef DK of Haoma says Bangkok’s green journey has to “begin somewhere”.
Photo Sahil Rattan
“Being self-sufficient and sustainable in a city like Bangkok may look like a far-fetched dream but we must begin somewhere to contribute to a better tomorrow,” says Khosla, affectionately known as Chef DK, adding:
“In the heart of Bangkok, young entrepreneurs are transforming the hospitality industry by blending innovative food initiatives with eco-conscious practices, creating hotels where sustainability is not just a trend, but a way of life—offering locally sourced, organic cuisine, zero-waste operations, and green initiatives that empower guests to experience luxury without compromising the planet’s future.”
Here are Chef DK’s top tips for eco-conscious travelers visiting Bangkok:
Best Sustainable Restaurants In Bangkok
Rock lobster in a creamy, tangy curry infused with tender coconut and South Indian spices, topped with caviar, at Haoma.
Image courtesy Haoma
Set in a leafy soi, or alley, not far from the bright lights of Sukhumvit Road, Haoma is like an oasis in the heart of Bangkok. Here, at Thailand’s first urban farm and zero-waste restaurant, sustainability is the driving force behind everything: from the produce sourced from its organic farm, to the rainwater harvested and reused in its aquaponics system, not to mention its commitment to supporting the local community.
And then there’s the food. Haoma’s tasting menus all about about reimagined Indian recipes made with homegrown Thai ingredients. Like the Chicken Kakori made with juicy minced chicken sourced from the restaurant’s farm or the lush rock lobster from Pranburi in southern Thailand, punched up with tender coconut and South Indian spices, and topped with sustainable borax-free Thai caviar for an undeniably luxurious finish.
Omelet made from organic eggs, shallots, and sweet basil, topped with tiger prawns.
Image courtesy Sorn
Not far from Haoma, charismatic self-taught Chef-Owner Supaksorn “Ice” Jongsiri can be found flexing his considerable culinary muscle at Sorn. His celebration of native, seasonal Thai produce sourced from a carefully curated network of suppliers from southern Thailand—from Tapi River prawns transformed into delicate prawn crackers, to Phuket lobster and blue swimmer crab from Samut Sakhon—has earned him global recognition. So much so that the 2025 Michelin Guide Thailand edition named Sorn as Thailand’s first and, so far, only three-star Michelin restaurant.
Warm Rainbow. A stock made of shells enriched with dried shellfish, served with crispy sticky rice cooked with gac fruit and shellfish, a puree made from preserved calamansi, several varieties of grilled and pickled chilies, fresh Vietnamese coriander, and seasonal mustard flowers.
Photo Tada Hengsapkul
Texas-born Chef Riley Sanders is another champion of local, seasonal Thai produce. Michelin starred since 2019, Canvas uses 100% Thai ingredients sourced from small farms, local markets, and sustainability focused suppliers. One of Sanders’ favorite things about being a chef in Thailand is sharing these ingredients with his guests, “elevating them to an art form, inspired by their unique qualities”. His latest 28-course tasting menu is entitled ‘Oomph,’ to leave you in no doubt as to the intensity of the flavors.
Kill the Kapi with Herbs. Kapi (fermented shrimp paste) tamed with herbs, using organic, homegrown lemon basil and mint, freshly picked from Baan Tepa’s garden and transformed into an aromatic herb oil, with citrusy notes from the lemon basil, and paired with local horse mackerel.
Photo Pantila Debhakam
Bangkok’s only other Michelin Green Star restaurant (apart from Haoma), Baan Tepa is led by Chef Chudaree “Tam” Debhakam who is cooking up a storm in her magnificent family home. Her exquisitely crafted dishes—like the black squid ink with lemongrass, or the tender lamb curry with pickled condiments—are made from seasonal ingredients sourced from independent, organic Thai suppliers, along with herbs and vegetables from the restaurant’s organic garden.
Where To Drink In Bangkok
Cow at Mahaniyom.
Photo JTran Photos LLC
You’ve heard of nose-to-tail restaurants but what about nose-to-tail cocktails? Quirky, forward-thinking Mahaniyom is set inside 100 Mahaseth, an eatery that takes single ingredients and uses them in multiple ways. The bar does the same, mixing drinks based on everything from Cacao to Squid, Orange or Cow. Like Corn, made from corn kernels, corn silk, corn husk and corn milk, mixed with Thai young chili cordial and served with toasted dehydrated corn.
Where To Shop In Bangkok
There is more to Bangkok’s shopping scene than luxury malls and floating markets.
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Just a short stroll from Haoma, Patom is a sustainable coffee shop and retail outlet. Its organic farm supplies herbs, vegetables and fruits for the Patom line of fully traceable organic body care products. The organic produce can also be sampled in Patom’s sustainably designed café set in a verdant garden in the leafy Thong Lor district.
With a studio and store in the Bang Kapi district, Folkcharm makes clothing and accessories from organic cotton. The 100% Thai village-grown, chemical-free cotton is hand-spun using traditional handloom weaving methods and carefully tailored for a soft, durable finish. The brand also allocates 50% of its profits to supporting the local community.
What To Do In Bangkok
Bangkok’s skyline seen from the jetty in Bang Krachao .
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Bang Krachao
Chef DK describes Bang Krachao, a manmade island in Bangkok’s River of Kings, as the “green lung of Bangkok”. It is easy to get to: hop on board a small boat from Wat Klong Toei Nok Pier and enjoy a five-minute cruise to this urban jungle full of wetlands and mangroves. Bang Krachao is best explored by bike with a stop for lunch at Ounjai riverside restaurant.
Take the slow route along Bangkok’s canals and visit the Phra Buddha Dhammakaya Thep Mongkol, a giant 69-meter Buddha statue located at Wat Paknam Bhasicharoen temple.
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Skip the loud, polluting long-tail boats that plow up and down the Chao Praya and, instead, take the slow route along the local waterways on a classic wooden canal boat. Catch glimpses of everyday life and peek inside hidden temples as your boat slowly chugs along, before stopping off at the Khlong Bang Luang Artist Village and Wat Paknam with its giant golden Buddha. Private tours with English-speaking guides are available.
Where To Stay In Bangkok
With The Siam’s vintage riverboat ready to drop you off anywhere on the Chao Praya River, you will never need to contend with Bangkok traffic.
Image courtesy The Siam
Compared with the hustle and bustle of central Bangkok, a stay at this Art Deco gem by Bangkok-based hotel design guru Bill Bensley feels a world away. Things seem to move more slowly at The Siam—except the service, of course, which is lightning fast. And while the verdant riverside location may seem a little remote, the hotel’s vintage riverboat will get you from A to B faster than trying to navigate Bangkok’s endless traffic jams. Since 2019, the Siam has been part of the ‘Refill Not Landfill’ initiative, eliminating single-use plastics like straws, to-go boxes and cups, and replacing plastic water bottles with refillable containers.
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