TBJ TRAVELS: Bangkok Diaries 4: Shopping In Thailand (Platinum Mall) + Bangkok Hauls + Khob Kun Ka, Bangkok!

Goodbyes are always the hardest and I hate to say that this is our last blog post for my Bangkok vacation. :( At least I'm writing about retail therapy, something that makes everyone happy, today so the goodbye won't be that bad after all! :)

Aside from food, Bangkok is also known as one of Asia's shopping capitals; It is because Thailand is one of the biggest manufacturers of clothing and that's why a lot of people go here to shop and for business retail matters as well (read: wholesale). Today, we'll go through some of the top shopping destinations in Bangkok.

CentralWorld is a mall at the Pathumwan district that houses a mix of upscale and affordable brands.

There is a street food fair at the mall grounds when we visited. CentralWorld is the mall to go to if you're looking for a wide range of affordable and premium brands to choose from.

Click READ MORE for more must- visit shopping destinations in Bangkok plus check out my hauls!

Siam Paragon is right behind CentralWorld, but it's a bit of a walk from the latter. We walked it anyway to save money!

Inside Siam Paragon

Siam Paragon is a high- end mall with brands such as Prada, Miu Miu, Louis Vuitton, Chanel, Ladurée, and more. I went here to window shop. LOL!

I was overjoyed to see Jo Malone at Siam Paragon because I've been wanting to repurchase my favorite Nectarine Blossom and Honey. I bought one and little did I know that I was in for some luck because Jo Malone was on a week- long sale when we were there so I got the perfume at a handsome discount. 

Normally, a bottle of 50ml Jo Malone in Bangkok is around 3,300 Baht or around P3,800.00+.

Boots! Yay! I grew up with Boots as mom's pasalubong every time she went to Bangkok that's why I was so happy when I finally got to see it in actual! :)

Boots is a beauty store/pharmacy and I remember and love them the most for their yummy bath products.

NO7 is Boots's exclusive makeup brand. I wanted to purchase a certain foundation, but too bad, the shade I wanted was out of stock. :p

They said if you want to shop 'til you drop in Bangkok, head to Platinum Mall, which is perhaps the biggest Divisoria I've ever seen.

Platinum is located beside CentralWorld and is a huge, sprawling structure comprised of about 5 or 6 floors with a maze- like arrangement of a ton of clothes, accessories, shoes, and bags stalls. It's the type of maze that you'd want to get lost in. :D

The mall is pretty organized: there's an allotted floor for each category to help shoppers maximize their time. Restaurants are located at the ground floor.

It's a fashion jungle at Platinum Mall

Most online sellers in the Philippines source their products from this mall. Price for a piece of clothing, say, a top is about 450 Baht or roughly around P500.00+ and price can go lower if you do wholesale. Haggling was never a problem as I experienced that most of the sellers would automatically slash off 50 Baht from each item just to sell something since competition is stiff.

I fell in love with these kaftans!

Bangkok clothing, in general, is cheap but quality is okay from the design down to the material used. The only problem I encountered was most clothes were designed to fit petite and skinny people. If you've got a big butt and you cannot lie (lol!) like me, I would advice that you go and buy bottoms such as jeans and shorts from somewhere else, unless you want to buy loose bottoms such as a gartered skirt.

Unfortunately, fitting of clothes is not allowed by almost all vendors at Platinum Mall.

Since I'm not skinny and I cannot try on clothes, I decided to wander into the accessories section and purchased a new case for my iPhone, and it costs around 280 Baht only.

Pink Pvssy is an accessories brand that's pretty popular in Bangkok.

A random stall with funky clothing. I bought an interesting dress here with two slits on the side, albeit it was ill- fitting so I gave it away. :p

Platinum Mall is a great place to shop in if you're required to dress up all the time because clothes here are really cheap. However, the biggest obstacle, especially for lean and curvaceous women, is the general sizing of the clothes, which is XXS to Medium; The "no fitting policy" didn't help as well, but you can still find some great clothes if you look hard enough. If you're on the curvaceous, tall, and lean side, take it from me: don't be tempted to hoard clothes because chances are, 70% of them won't fit your body nicely. Just go for the safe ones. I know, it sucks, but it's for your wallet's safety :p

Here are my hauls from Platinum Mall:

Super cute pouches from Pink Pvssy, which I gave away as souvenirs to my family plus fancy earrings. A Thailand Snow Globe for my mother because she collects snow globes from around the world and the classic souvenir, a refrigerator magnet. :p

Safe clothes such as a gartered floral skirt (Ugh! I should've bought more of this because it has such a beautiful cut! :p), Kaftan, a gray dress, and a furry pullover.

A fancy iPhone case with cascading hearts. :D

Here are my hauls from Siam Paragon:

Jo Malone Nectarine Blossom And Honey, Pranali Hydrating Massage Oil, and 6-Pc. Ladurée Macaron box.

From Boots: My favorite 3-Minute Mask from the Cucumber skin care line plus I'm trying out the Cucumber Eye Makeup Remover Gel, Body Wash products, Bio Oil (it's cheaper in Bangkok!), Siang Oil for mom, and Soap And Glory Kick Ass Concealer in Medium.

I also got my mom a souvenir from Jim Thompson, this lovely, authentic Thai Silk shawl.

For food and other souvenirs, I got them at Suvharnabhumi International Airport. 

Souvenirs at Suvharnabhumi Airport are classified into stores: Tastes of Thailand for food and Memories of Thailand for trinkets, shirts, and miscellaneous souvenirs.

Spotted these authentic Bird's Nest food products and price starts at 6,000 Baht. Wow, never knew that these could get that pricey!

Here are the food souvenirs I got. Coconut Crispy Rolls is a popular product; don't leave without it when you visit Bangkok!

Khob Khun means "Thank You" in Thai and same with Sawasdee, they use Ka and Krab to express politeness as well.

So that concludes my Bangkok diaries. Hope you enjoyed it. :)

Got your own Bangkok experiences/tips to share? Share them with us!

Check out my other Bangkok Diaries:

BANGKOK DIARIES 1: Sawasdee Ka, Thailand + Temple Hopping (Wat Arun and Wat Pho)

BANGKOK DIARIES 2: Erawan Shrine, Jim Thompson, Lumphini Park

BANGKOK DIARIES 3: Eating Around Thailand + Top Restaurants In Bangkok + Chatuchak Market