Maeklong Railway Market Thailand

Maeklong Railway Market Thailand is in Samut Songkhram province.

On one of the days that we were let out of school early, Christina and I went to my apartment to drop off my belongings and then hopped on the ferry near the Mahachai fish market and began our journey to the Maeklong Railway Market Thailand that sits in Samut Songkhram. I lived about a ten-minute walk from the fish market so it wasn’t too much of a detour.

The Maeklong Railway Market, also called Hoop Rom Market (umbrella-closing), is a 39 in. (1000 mm) railway.

It runs through Wongwian Yai, Bangkok, and Samut Songkhram. It stretches to be about 42 miles (67 kilometers) long! It runs in the center part of Thailand. The vendors are attached to the railway, which is why it’s sometimes called the “life-risking” market.

The Market has one of the largest fresh seafood markets in all of Thailand.

From the Mahachai Pier, we took a ferry to Tha Chalom Pier. From Tha Chalom, we made our way to the Ban Laem train stop. It was only about a fifteen-minute walk from the ferry stop to the train station.

Tha Chalom is a delightful town in Samut Sakhon. You can cross the Tha Chin River to get there from Mahachai. We took the ferry which was less than ฿10. I think the ferry was usually ฿6/7 You can also drive but I think that the ferry is much quicker. The town is not very populated, from what I’ve seen.. At least compared to Mahachai where there is non-stop traffic. I only went there a few times while I lived in Thailand though.

A few of the Thai teachers at our school brought us to Tha Chalom once during our lunch break. We drove there and I got some Pad Thai. Deliciousness.

Once we got to the train station, we paid and then had to wait for the next train.

We found a street food vendor and decided to stop and grab some food. Then we just strolled around the tracks until the train came. Walking along the tracks, we saw some cutie kittens.

The train ride to the Maeklong Railway Market was pretty cool but as always, scorching hot. Ah, Thailand. There were some fans on it that functioned though. But for ฿10 (~$.30) can you even complain? Well, yes. But should I? We saw some salt farms along the way. I wish we could’ve actually seen the salt, but hey, the views were still captivating.

My head was turned toward the window the entire time. Fascinating. If you put your hand out of the window, you’d be touching the trees or sometimes even houses.

The best part is when you reach Hoop Rom Market and all of the vendors move their items and tents that are along the railroad track:

When you see this happen, you understand why the market is life-risking. They sell anything and everything at the market. From pig heads to earrings.

Once we got some coconut water to hydrate and saw many farangs. I bought a cute handmade fan.

On the way back from the infamous Railway Market, we visited the temple that you can see across the pond from Mahachai. It’s called Wat Laem Suwannaram. We walked up the steps and started taking pictures. Then, some dude saw us and took pictures of us. So sweet.

The Maeklong Railway Market Thailand was a fascinating experience. I can see why it is so attractive to tourists. If you are ever in this part of Thailand, the market should be on your list! Even if you’re not, add it to the list! It is easily accessible from Bangkok.

It is truly an incredible experience and well-known throughout Thailand!