 | This article is missing information about history of the floating market in countries other than Thailand.(May 2022) |
A floating market is a market where goods are sold from boats. Originating in times and places where water transport played an important role in daily life, most floating markets operating today mainly serve as tourist attractions, and are chiefly found in Myanmar, Thailand, Indonesia, Vietnam, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, and India.
The 200-year-old floating market at Kuriana in Swarupkati has become a tourist spot. Guava floating market is a unique market. Hundreds of tourists from home and abroad visit the place every day to enjoy the beauty of the market and its surrounding landscape.
In Thailand, floating markets (Thai : ตลาดน้ำtalāt nāmlit. transl. water market) are well supported locally and mainly serve as tourist attractions. [1] One of their purposes is to allow domestic visitors and international tourists to be able to experience the culture of riverside shopping.
Historically, [2] the areas adjacent to the rivers were the first to be populated. Thus, most communities in Thailand were built at the sides of rivers. The waterways served as means of transportation and the center of economic activity, as well. Boats were mainly used for local and regional trade, bringing goods from those that produced to those that could barter and trade. Such ways of life of the riverside communities, especially in the Chao Phraya River Basin, increased the number of floating markets.
Floating markets became the hubs of the communities in the central plain of Thailand for centuries. [3] In the Ayutthaya Period (1350–1767), due to the existence of several adjoining canals that were suitable for trading, they helped to gain popularity for this type of market.
Early in the Rattanakosin Period (1782–1868), this kind of market was still lively with the crowds. Nonetheless, soon after the region grew and Bangkok began to develop, road and rail networks were increasingly constructed in place of the canals. This resulted in people choosing to travel by land instead of by water. Therefore, some of the floating markets were forced to move onto land, some were renovated, and some were closed down.
Originally, the term meaning floating market in Thai, used to be called (Thai : ตลาดท้องน้ำtalāt tĥxng nāmlit. transl. floor of the water market). Until in the reign of King Vajiravudh (Rama VI), therefore saying only talat nam. [4]
Amphawa floating market is not as large as Damnoen Saduak floating market [5] but it is more authentic, with visitors almost exclusively Thais. It is an evening floating market but some stalls are opened at noon too. The market operates on Friday, Saturday and Sunday from 1600 to around 2100 hrs. It is in Amphawa District, Samut Songkhram Province (72 km from Bangkok). Moreover, due to its popularity, the food stalls have grown from the riverbanks and stretched far into the surrounding buildings. Another popular activity in Amphawa District is to take a boat and watch the flickering fireflies at night, especially in the waxing-moon nights.
Damnoen Saduak floating market in Damnoen Saduak District is undoubtedly the largest and most well-known floating market among Thai and foreign tourists. It is located in Ratchaburi Province, about 100 km southwest of Bangkok. The market is open every day from around 0630 to 1100 hr, but the best time to visit is in the early morning. The market is crowded with hundreds of vendors and purchasers floating in their small boats selling and buying agricultural products and local food, which are mostly brought from their own nearby orchards. It is a very attractive place for tourists to see the old style and traditional way of selling and buying goods.
Don Wai floating market is not far from Bangkok, in Sam Phran District, Nakhon Pathom Province on the Tha Chin River. This market is famous for a variety of foods such as stewed Java barb in salty soup especially Chinese stewed duck. Moreover, it is not far from one of the most prominent temples of Nakhon Pathom, Wat Rai Khing, which can be reached by boat on the Tha Chin River. [6]
Khlong Hae floating market is the first and only floating market in Southern Thailand presently. Located in Hat Yai District, Songkhla Province, it is unique in that it blends between Buddhist Thai and Muslim cultures. [7]
Kwan Riam floating market is in Min Buri District, Bangkok, near Khlong Saen Saep; its name comes from the name of characters in a popular Thai romance-drama novel titled Plae Kao , as Khlong Saen Saep was used as the backdrop of this novel.
Taling Chan floating market, also in Bangkok is located near Khlong Chak Phra in front of Taling Chan District Office adjacent to the Southern Railway Line. The market is open only on Saturdays, Sundays, and public holidays. Visitors can also take a boat from here to other attractions in this area, such as other floating markets or pay homage to Luang Pho Dam, an ancient sacred Buddha image at a nearby Wat Chang Lek temple. The market is also one of six no-smoking areas in Bangkok's project in 2019. [8] [9]
Si Pak Floating market or Pattaya Floating market. Another charm of Pattaya is the 4-region floating market, cultural and tourist attractions. It is the center of a variety of activities regarding Conservation of art and culture. 4 regions floating market had Collect all 4 good products here blended perfectly. The source of local handicrafts and cultural tourist attractions combined into one place, considered a new shopping area with unique selling points. [10] [11]
The floating markets in Indonesia are a collection of vendors selling various produce and product on boats. Floating markets initially are not created as tourist attractions, but as necessities in Indonesian cities that have large river especially in several cities and towns in Kalimantan and Sumatra. However, they have been promoted in the tourism itinerary, especially in Kalimantan cities. For example, the Siring floating market in Banjarmasin, and Lok Baintan floating market in Martapura are both located in South Kalimantan.
A floating market exists in Srinagar in Jammu and Kashmir on the Dal Lake that operates daily, with vendors selling produce grown on the banks of the lake. [12]
A floating 'mall' operates in the Kerala backwaters, offering subsidised rates on sales. Named Floating Triveni Super Store, it was launched in 2012 by the Kerala State Co-operative Consumers Federation. [13]
A floating market was opened in Patuli, Kolkata, on a canal adjacent to the Eastern Metropolitan Bypass in January 2018. It features more than 200 vendors and 100 boats selling fish, fruit and vegetables. [14] However, the market is struggling to stay open with declining sales. [15] The lighting used by the municipal authorities and shopkeepers is reported to have driven away migratory birds from the region. [16]
Floating markets (chợ nổi in Vietnamese) have existed in Vietnam for many generations. Archaeologists have found evidence that extensive trading networks likely existed in Vietnam's river deltas from as far back as 4,500 years ago. [17] [18]
With a rich system of rivers, Mekong Delta is the place where many weekly floating markets take place. This is an opportunity for small traders to exchange goods, and tourists can experience with the locals. Some of the famous floating markets in this area are Cai Rang Market, Long Xuyen Market, Cai Be Market, etc.
Ideally, the floating market's produce and fruit are normally grown from nearby gardens or local orchards. [19] Such produce comprises assorted tropical fruits [20] and vegetables, such as Guava, banana, jackfruit, rambutan, mango, pineapple, dragon fruit, carambola, fresh coconut, and durian.
Local dishes are cooked and prepared by the vendors from their floating kitchens located on their boats. They offer various kinds of food ranging from traditional Thai meat to vegetarian dishes such as papaya salad (som tum). Boat noodles and traditional Thai dessert (khanom wan Thai) such as mango sticky rice and coconut rice dumplings (khanom krok) are also available for tasting.
Hundreds of locally produced goods are available for purchase; bargaining is common. Examples of these types of merchandise include:
A khlong, alternatively spelt as klong commonly refers to a canal in Thailand. These canals are spawned by the rivers Chao Phraya, Tha Chin, and Mae Klong, along with their tributaries particularly in the low-lying areas of central Thailand. The Thai word khlong is not limited to artificial canals. Many smaller rivers are referred to as "khlong" followed by the name of the stream.
Damnoen Saduak is a district (amphoe) in western Thailand in Ratchaburi province. The central town is known for its floating market held every day till noon on a khlong not far from the district office.
Taling Chan is one of the 50 districts (khet) of Bangkok, Thailand. Its neighbours, clockwise from the north, are Bang Kruai district of Nonthaburi province and Bang Phlat, Bangkok Noi, Bangkok Yai, Phasi Charoen, Bang Khae, and Thawi Watthana Districts of Bangkok.
Phasi Charoen is one of the 50 districts (Khet) of Bangkok, Thailand. The district is bounded by other Bangkok districts : Taling Chan, Bangkok Noi, Bangkok Yai, Thon Buri, Chom Thong, Bang Bon, and Bang Khae.
Amphawa is a district (amphoe) of Samut Songkhram province, at the northwestern tip of the Bay of Bangkok.
Khlong Damnoen Saduak is a canal in western central Thailand. It links the Tha Chin and Mae Klong rivers, and has a length of approximately 35 km. The canal was built by order of King Mongkut. It was finished in 1868.
Khlong Phasi Charoen is a canal west of the Chao Phraya River in the Thonburi area of the Bangkok conurbation. The canal links the Tha Chin River to Khlong Bangkok Yai. It starts at Khlong Bangkok Yai near Wat Paknam Bhasicharoen, Bangkok and ends south of Wat Ang Thong, Tambon Don Kai Di, Krathum Baen District, Samut Sakhon Province. It is approximately 24 km (14.9 mi) long.
Pak Khlong Talat is a market in Wang Burapha Phirom Subdistrict, Phra Nakhon District, Bangkok, Thailand, that sells flowers, fruits, and vegetables. It is the primary flower market of Bangkok and has been cited as a "place of symbolic value" to Bangkok residents. It is on Chak Phet Road and adjacent side-streets, close to Memorial Bridge. Though the market is open 24 hours, it is busiest before dawn, when boats and trucks arrive with flowers from nearby provinces. Its location by Chao Phraya River near the southern end of Khlong Lot, hence the name 'Pak Khlong Talat', literally means "the market on the mouth of the canal".
Amphawa Floating Market is a floating market and a tourist attraction in the Amphawa District of Samut Songkhram Province, located in one of the branches of the Mae Klong river. Amphawa district is about 50 km away from Bangkok, making Amphawa floating market a popular tourist attraction in Thailand. The market is near “Wat Amphawa Chetiyaram” temple.
Damnoen Saduak Floating Market is a floating market in Damnoen Saduak district, Ratchaburi province, about 100 kilometres (62 mi) southwest of Bangkok, Thailand. It has become primarily a tourist attraction, attracting domestic and foreign tourists. It is often considered the most famous floating market.
Wat Nang Chi Chotikaram or Wat Nang Chi Worawihan (วัดนางชีวรวิหาร), simply known as Wat Nang Chai (วัดนางชี) is a Thai Buddhist third-class royal temple in Bangkok.
Ayothaya Floating Market is a cultural and shopping destination in Phra Nakhon Si Ayutthaya Province, central Thailand. It is less than 2 hours from Bangkok by car and train. The market has operated since May 2, 2010.
Khlong Lat Mayom Floating Market is a floating market of Taling Chan District, Bangkok apart from Taling Chan and Wat Saphan Floating Markets.
Wat Champa is an ancient Thai Buddhist temple in Bang Ramat Sub-District, Taling Chan District, Bangkok's Thonburi side.
Khlong Chak Phra is a khlong (canal) in Bangkok's Thonburi area. It separates from Khlong Bangkok Noi at front of Wat Suwan Keree and terminates at the confluence of khlongs Mon and Bangkok Yai. It serves as a demarcation line between Bangkok Noi and Taling Chan Districts all the length. The course is about 10–15 m wide and 5.45 km long. Khlong Chak Phra is a natural waterway, which was the result of dissection of the Chao Phraya River's original route through Bangkok during the medieval Ayutthaya like Khlong Bangkok Yai and Khlong Bangkok Noi.
Khlong Chak Phra is one of the six khwaengs (sub-districts) of Taling Chan District in Bangkok's Thonburi side. It is the location of the district office.
Bang Nok Khwaek is a tambon (subdistrict) of Bang Khonthi District, Samut Songkhram Province, central Thailand.
Lak Ha is a neighbourhood belonging to Ban Phaeo District of Samut Sakhon Province and Prasat Sit Sub-district, Damnoen Saduak District of Ratchaburi Province, western central Thailand.
Wat Chantharam Worawihan is a historic third-level royal monastery in the Worawihan type in Bangkok.
