Lumpini Park – The Ultimate Guide On Things To Do In Bangkok’s Green Oasis

Lumpini Park, also called Lumphini or Lumpinee, is Bangkok’s first and most central park. It is a beautiful green lung and a must-visit if you are in Bangkok!

Lumphini Park is quite extensive, covering 58 hectares. It has Bangkok’s first public library and dance hall. Lumpini Park is Bangkok’s third-largest public park, after Suan Luang Rama IX Park and Vachirabenjatas Park (also called Suan Rot Fai). It is a popular place to go for a run or walk among the locals and tourists, especially during the weekends when around 10 000 people visit Lumpini Park each day.

Lumphini Park is a great place to head if you need some “nature” and peace and quiet. It has a nice and quiet atmosphere and is the perfect place for a picnic or relaxation and people watching. If you are in for a workout, Lumpkin Park is a great and popular place to run, walk, do some weight lifting or aerobics (free aerobic classes inside the park from around 17:00 until 19:00).

We visit the park every time we come to Bangkok, both for relaxing, going for a walk, and working out. It is a lovely green and peaceful lung in the middle of the hectic metropolitan city.
The park’s name Lumpini comes from Buddha’s birthplace, Lumbini in Nepal.

A music festival (both Thai and Western music) is held at Lumpini Park on Sundays from January until April (17:30-20:00). Also, the Palm Garden inside the park is where Bangkok Symphony Orchestra and other bands held their annual Concert In The Park during winter. It is an excellent classical music concert well-worth attending if you happen to be in Bangkok during the winter months.

Lumpini Park has several times been occupied by political demonstrations and used as the ground for right-wing political gatherings, both in 2006 and 2013/2014. We were in Bangkok when it was occupied in 2013/2014, and the park reminded us of a camping site or a festival area with tents covering the park.

Lumpini Park Guide – Bangkok’s Central Park

Here we give you a guide on Lumpini Park, Bangkok, with a complete list of things to do and see, opening hours, parking, entrance, and how to get there:

Lumphini Park – Things To Do & See

The map above: Things to see and do in Lumpini Park – Bangkok’s central park

You can enter Lumpini Park from all its sides. The main entrance is on the park’s southwest side, just across the street from Si Lom MRT Station (the Bangkok underground).  You can also take the underground to the Lumphini MRT Station. The closest Skytrain station is Sala Daeng BTS (a 5-min walk from Lumpini Park).

You will easily spot the Lumpini Park main entrance as it has a big open space in front of it, where you also find street food vendors selling cold drinks and snacks. The food vendors usually set up their tables outside the park from about 17:00/5 pm. You can find them at both the southwestern and northwestern entrances.

There are several paved pedestrian roads around the park, with a total length of approximately 2,5 km. This is the perfect place for running, walking, bicycling, and rollerblading. However, officially you are only allowed to bicycle between 10 am and 3 pm/ 15:00.

The best time to visit Lumpini Park is early in the morning or late in the evening when the sun has cooled down, and the temperature is not that hot.

Smoking is not allowed in the park; the same goes for dogs.

The park is very clean and nicely decorated with flowers, trees, and sculptures. You will find benches all around the park, perfect for relaxing, reading, meditating, people watching, or just sitting down and listening to the birds and watching the lizards. There are more than 30 species of birds in the park, and it is a popular place to go birdwatching.

You can also have a cozy picnic in Lumpini Park.

The park also houses different buildings, like the Bangkok Elder Citizens Club in the Lumpini Hall, where activities for the elderly are held, Home of Hope, a refuge for homeless children, and Lumpini Youth Center, which has sports activities for children and youth.

Here is a list of the best things to do and see in Lumphini Park: 

King Rama VI Monument

Lumpini Park was built in the 1920s, by King Rama VI (King Vajiravudh, the sixth monarch of Siam, 1910 – 1925), as part of his royal property. It was declared Bangkok’s first public park in 1925 by the King himself.

At the time Lumphini Park was constructed, it was on the outskirt of the city, while now it is in the middle of the Business District of Bangkok.

A statue of  King Rama VI is located at the entrance on the southwest side of the park. The statue is often decorated with bright orange flower garlands.

Lumpini Park Lake

In the middle of the park, you will find a big artificial lake. The lake has a small island in the middle with walking paths and benches. It is a popular area for feeding the birds or having a picnic by the lake.

You can rent cute little swan boats and paddle around the lake (40 Baht for 30 min). They also rent out small rowing boats.

Lumpini Clock Tower

In the southeastern end of Lumpini Park, you will find a Chinese-style clocktower. The clocktower is a beautiful photo spot where the bright white tower sticks out among the park’s greenery.

The clock tower was constructed in 1925 for the Siamrath Phipitthapan Trade Fair, the same year as the park opened to the public. It was designed by the Italian architect Mario Tamagno (1877-1941).

Lumpini Park Children’s Playground

A children’s playground is located in the central area of Lumpini Park. Great fun for the kids! Also, the swan paddle boats on the lake are a fun activity to do with your kids.

Lumpini Park Library

Bangkok’s first public library is located in Lumpini Park – Bangkok Library Lumpini Park. The library has been open to the public for more than 50 years and still welcomes people of all ages, especially children.

Here you can borrow books and movies for free, most of them are in Thai, but you will also find some English books (especially children’s books). The library has over 30 000 titles for lending.

The library is open every day except Mondays and public holidays, from 08:30 am until 20:00/8 pm (it closes 17:00/5 pm on Sundays).

Lumpini Park Swimming Pool & Tennis Court

Inside Lumphini Park, you will find an outdoor swimming pool, gym, baseball court, football field, and two tennis courts. These are all run by the Lumphini Youth Center, and you must register there to get access to these facilities (bring your photo ID like your passport or driver’s license).

The Lumpini Park Fitness Center/ Lumphini Youth Center opened in 2011, and the membership is only 40 Baht = US$ 1,20 per year. So it must be Bangkok’s cheapest gym.

Work Out In Lumpini Park

Lumpini Park is a great place to work out, go for a run, or a walk. It is one of the most popular places to work out in Bangkok as it is free of charge and one of few places in the city with some greenery.

The park offers training facilities and workout equipment where you can do pull-ups and different strength training.

You will also find some big open paved spaces, and also some with green grass. These are popular for badminton.

A small area of the park also features some manuals and weight lifting equipment to do strength training.

Each afternoon there are free aerobics classes in the park (from around 5 pm to 7 pm). These are very popular, and hundreds of men and women (primarily women) of all ages join in, dancing and jumping to the music. If you want, you can jump in and attend the aerobics; no registration or booking is required. It is free as well.

You can also see people practice Tai Chi in the park, and if you ask nicely, you might be able to join in.

You can go cycling in Lumpini Park only during the day, between 10:00 and 15:00/3 pm.

If you happen to go for an afternoon walk, run, or aerobics, you will notice that at 6 pm/ 18:00, all of a sudden, EVERYBODY stops running and stands completely still. Don’t worry, this is normal! Each afternoon at 6 pm, the King’s anthem gets played over the speakers all over the park, and everybody stops and pays their respect. So remember to stop when you see everybody else stand still and don’t freak out. 🙂

Lizards In Lumpini Park

Although you will probably spot birds and street cats in the park, Lumpini Park is also famous for giant lizards. The lizards stroll around the green lawn around the lake and also swim around in the lake.

The lizards in Lumpini park are Water Monitor Lizards. They can be huge – between one and three m in length! We have never seen lizards in the size of three meters, but we have seen several in Lumpini Park between one and two meters long.

It is estimated to be around 400 Monitor Lizards in Lumpini Park! They do occasionally pop up on the streets of Bangkok, especially the streets around the many water canals in the city, but most of them live in the wild in Lumpini Park.

So there is a big chance that you will see some of them. But don’t worry, they are peaceful and not of any danger to humans. They must not be confused or compared with the Komodo dragons, which are a different lizard species. We saw Komodo Dragons in Komodo National Park in Indonesia, and they are gigantic compared to the lizards in Lumpini Park.

The Asian Water Monitor Lizard is a giant varanid lizard found all over South and Southeast Asia. They live close to freshwaters, like lakes, canals, and rivers, and are excellent swimmers. Monitor lizards are among the world’s most giant reptiles.

Their diet is fish, frogs, birds, crabs, snakes, tiny turtles, young crocodiles, and crocodile eggs. If they get a hold of a cat, dog, or chicken, they will eat them too. In Lumpini Park, they will also find food scraps and garbage. The Asian Water Monitor Lizard is categorized as a “least concern species,” which means it is not regarded as threatened, and there are plentiful of these lizards in the wild.

In Thai, the word for the water monitor lizard is “hia” (เหี้ย). However, the word “hia” is also often used as an insulting word meaning bad/ evil things or people and is regarded as bringing bad luck. Therefore, the lizards are often called “silver-and-gold” ((ตัวเงินตัวทอง) in Thailand to avoid this bad word.

Opening Hours Lumpini Park

Lumpini Park is open all year round, from 05:00 am until 21:00/9 pm. Opening hours might differ on public holidays.

Is Lumpini Park Free?

Lumpini Park is free to enter, with no entry ticket.

How To Get To Lumpini Park?

You can take the Bangkok metro/ underground MRT to Si Lom MRT Station or Lumphini MRT Station. Or you can take the Skytrain to Sala Daen BTS Station. Lumpini Park is just a short walk from all three of these stations.

Is There Parking At Lumpini Park?

There are two big parking lots next to Lumpini Park; one at the north side of the park (along Sarasin Road) and one at the west side (along Ratchadamri Road). See the map on top of this article.

Where To Stay In Bangkok

Bangkok offers a wide selection of accommodation for all budgets, and you will have plenty of choices when it comes to finding the right place to stay.

Bangkok is pretty affordable when it comes to accommodation, so you can get some really good deals and even find five stars hotels very cheap compared to other places in the world. However, accommodation prices do vary greatly with the season.

Below are some of our favorite hotels in Bangkok.  We have stayed at all of the hotels below.

Avani Riverside

If you’d like to stay along the river without breaking the bank, the Avani Riverside hotel is a great alternative to the usual riverside luxury hotels. Rooms are super comfortable with fantastic views overlooking the Chao Phraya River and the fantastic rooftop infinity pool is probably our favorite in Bangkok.
Click here for latest prices

Hotel Muse Bangkok

Hotel Muse is a cool and unique boutique hotel, perfectly located in the center of Bangkok within easy walking distance of Chit Lom Skytrain station. The rooms are elegant with a classic Thai inspired decor, comfortable beds and gorgeous bathrooms with a deep bathtub.. There is a rooftop bar, a pool and a fitness center. We spent Christmas here a few years ago, and was very happy with our choice of hotel.
Click here for latest prices
Casa Nithra
If you’re looking for a mid-range option close to Bangkok’s famous Khao San area, then the Casa Nithra comes highly recommended. The rooftop swimming pool is lovely, the rooms comfortable and the breakfast has plenty of options. It’s located in a quiet area, yet Khao San is just an easy walk away.
Click here for latest prices

Hotel Icon
Hotel Icon is a small hotel centrally located on Sukhumvit road. The rooms are fresh and modern, big and comfortable with all the usual comforts such as flat-screen tv, aircon, and free Wi-Fi. The rooftop swimming pool is great!
Click here for latest prices

⇒ For more accommodation options and tips on which areas of Bangkok that suit you best, read our complete guide to where to stay in Bangkok.

Travel Guides

We used the Lonely Planet`s Thailand travel guide on our trip. You can get that and other great books by clicking on the pictures below which will take you to Amazon.com (affiliate links):

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Have you been to Lumphini Park? What do you think of it? Have you been to other parks in Bangkok or around the world that you liked? Please leave a comment in the comment area below. We’d love to hear from you! If you like this and find it useful, please share it on social media. Thank you! 🙂