Bangkok, Thailand, is an extremely busy city, with a busy airport. A constant stream of planes transport a steady flow of passengers to their next destination. But a question I bet you’ve never asked yourself is “Where do the planes go to die?” I never have, that’s for sure. The answer is Bangkok’s Plane Graveyard, of course! Only nesting a few now flightless birds, it is a rather small cemetery but these once soaring planes sit decrepit in anticipation of visitors.

Such a busy city makes the more secret gems a little more difficult to find. Overgrown, somewhat abandoned, and once-majestic airborne aircraft, I was sold on Bangkok’s Plane Graveyard! This has Thailand written all over it – literally, as the decaying Boeing 747’s decals fade by excessive sun exposure.

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Hidden places come with their challenges; I guess that’s why they are hidden, right? Like usual, logistics proved to be my largest hurdle. Despite the dregs of Reddit, and backpacker word of mouth, very few people – including taxi drivers – know where these planes are laid to rest! Getting to Bangkok’s Plane Graveyard sure turned out to be an adventure!

 

Getting to Bangkok’s Plane Graveyard

Two mates from Australia and I set out from our hotel, along Ram Buttri Street. We decided on the more scenic, and aquatic route of the Bangkok taxi ferries. A short tuk-tuk ride to Phanfa Leeland Pier, near the temple of Wat Saket’ and we soon found ourselves on a taxi boat heading north.

For 11 Baht ($0.45 AUD) we boarded a hard wooden-seat longboat. A cheap and fun experience, although sitting on the edges may get a little wet! These long tail boats are lined with clear plastic sheets attached by a simple pulley system and rope. Locals would anticipate the wake from passing boats in these narrow canals that produce violent surges of swell against the banks. This aggressive slamming into the boat caused water to spray up and into the plastic protectors.

Unfortunately, the boat docked all too early, and as this was the final stop we got directed towards another boat. It is definitely possible to ride the ferry’s all the way to Wat Sri Bunruang Pier, which is around 200 meters from Bangkok’s Plane Graveyard. However, with the sun sinking into the horizon and our destination still far away, we took to the streets and hailed a taxi.

Driver number one looked at my phone as if the clear 16km route was written in Egyptian Hieroglyphs. With a confused shake of his head, he drove off into the Bangkok rush hour. Driver number two took my phone, obviously asking himself why anyone would want to go specifically to the side of highway Ramhamheng Road. There was no well-known attraction anywhere near this dropped pin. Slightly puzzled he agreed and we were off!

To ease confusion slightly, Maps.Me app directed our driver through mostly gridlocked traffic. Unfortunately Thai isn’t a language option on the app. However, the sudden English voice was enough to grab our drivers attention and guide him through the chaotic rush hour.

The whole 16km took around half an hour in the congested traffic and by now the sun was nearing the horizon. Jokes were beginning to be made about today being the “warm-up” ride and tomorrow we would finally make it to the elusive plane resting grounds!

Luckily though as the taxi pulled up, the so-called “golden hour” for photographers was upon us. With the taxi fare of 100 Baht ($4 AUD) paid for, we approached Bangkok’s Plane Graveyard gate which was chained and padlocked.

 

Exploring Bangkok’s Plane Graveyard

A few local families call the shells of some planes home. Whether this is opportunistic or just a place to live, the family charges a small “entrance fee”. Online stated the fee to be around 50 Baht, but we were slapped with a 200 Baht fee ($8 AUD) to enter Bangkok’s Plane Graveyard. Though it’s a pretty steep fee in comparison to a lot of Bangkok attractions, and haggling may have reduced this cost, we all paid without question. Not only were we running out of time, but this could very well be the only means that an obviously impoverished family may eat or not tonight. To me, the term ‘haggle’ means to find a price deemed fair by both parties, and looking at the majestic planes just beyond the gate, I think this was fair.

Entering Bangkok’s Plane Graveyard as the only tourists, the stale, still air lingered like an eerie perfume. Climbing through these ransacked hollow shells only intensified this feeling. Scavengers have removed everything possible from Bangkok’s Plane Graveyard; I’m sure in extremely resourceful ways! Our footsteps echoed through the carved out cabin, no seats remained at all.

Shuffling through dark corridors, ladders and staircases made this once commercial 747 tin can feel haunted. Pillaged cockpits with dead circuit boards leaking electrical cables gave no life to the hollows of the aircraft. Once upon a time, these aircrafts lived in the skies, now destined to rust over time or be picked clean by scavengers.

Two other aircraft lay in this cemetery, cut into pieces and waiting for us to explore! Climbing on the wings where it says “Do not stand”, feels rebellious! We didn’t waste this once in a lifetime opportunity! No tombstones are present in Bangkok’s Plane Graveyard, very little documentation of the planes in general. We checked for manufacturing dates but came up empty-handed.

In the end, our timing was perfect! Sunset gave beautiful, soft colors for pictures and still allowed enough visibility to see and explore the site. We spent around one hour wandering around Bangkok’s Plane Graveyard, so check the sunset time as appropriate!

One more suggestion – be wary of the long grass! I wandered off the path a little too far for an interesting photo spot… but lurking within the long grass hid bindis/farmers friends/freeloaders, hundreds of them! They attached to my long pants, and it took hours to pick them off, one by one!

 

Bangkok’s Plane Graveyard Info

The boat from Phanfa Leeland Pier took us roughly 20% of the journey and cost 11 Baht ($0.35 USD). A taxi ride cost 100 Baht ($3 USD) per person and due to Bangkok’s insane rush hour, took around half an hour to get the rest of the 16km trip.

Maps.me is usually my main form of directions while traveling; I have hundreds of places pinned from Asia. Basically the same deal as Google Maps, but completely offline as long as you download the maps before hand over Wifi.

 

Bangkok’s Plane Graveyard Map

 

Bangkok’s Plane Graveyard Tips

Sunset was beautiful – especially for photographers – as the soft light lit the planes stunningly! Remember to account for Bangkok rush hour if you plan to make it to Bangkok’s Plane Graveyard for sunset.

Have the route mapped out on your phone before hailing a taxi – most will not have heard of Bangkok’s Plane Graveyard.

Thailand is a beautiful country with plenty of amazing sights to see. Check out this post if you’re interested in seeing more places in Thailand off the beaten track, or a full 3-day itinerary of Bangkok!

As Bangkok’s Plane Graveyard is a little out of the way, it was surprising that we found somewhere to have dinner so easily. A hundred meters down the road roughly (towards downtown Bangkok) we found a restaurant called  “I LOVE Green”. I highly recommend eating here! Side note, “a little spicy”, is extremely spicy – you have been warned. Visit this link for a short and sweet rundown on Thailand’s food and culture.

Bangkok is full of places to stay, and it can get overwhelming when looking online for the best fit. Here is a great resource to find the best hostels in Bangkok!

 

Bangkok’s Plane Graveyard Highlights

• Hit up sunset, if at all possible! Stunning!
• Say hello to the locals calling Bangkok’s Plane Graveyard home! Friendly children are all too interested in what is special about giant metal and fiberglass shells!
• Just down the road is “I LOVE Green” Restaurant was amazing and cheap. Plus extremely friendly staff!

 

If abandoned places tickle your fancy like it does mine, check out Ho Thuy Tien, Hue’s Abandoned Water Park in Central Vietnam!

 

Have you visited Bangkok’s Plane Graveyard or something similar? What did you think?! Did you love it as much as I did? Leave a question and/or comment below! 🙂

 

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