In the 1970s Khao San Shining Rice Road in Bamglamphoo, one of the city's older neighborhoods, became Grand Central Station for the international collection of backpackers making their way through Asia and around the world. In the '80s and '90s it got even bigger, packed with cheap guesthouses and restaurants. This century it's made a move toward trendiness, with the addition of better accommodation, good restaurants and a proliferation of funky bars popular with young Thais. The street is closed in the evening and a night market and often a party atmosphere takes over. And if you like water fights, arguably the world's biggest and wildest is here on April 13 and 14 during the Thai New Year, Songkran.

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