Amphawa Floating Market

Amphawa Floating Market is an evening floating market located on the Amphawa Canal near the Mae Klong River in Amphawa District, Samut Songkhram Province, about 80 km southwest of Bangkok. Established as a community market to promote local canal-side trade, it is known for wooden shop-houses, boats selling grilled seafood and Thai snacks, and evening firefly boat tours. It operates primarily on weekends and is a well-known cultural and culinary destination in central Thailand.

Visitors can expect a canal-side market along Amphawa Canal with wooden shop-houses and walkways on both banks connected by bridges. Vendors sell food from moored boats and stalls, especially grilled seafood, Thai sweets and snacks. The area is busy in the late afternoon and evening with boat traffic, dining areas along the water, small shops selling souvenirs and local products, and long-tail boats offering canal and firefly-watching tours after sunset.

Amphawa is a historic canal community dating to the Ayutthaya period, located near the Mae Klong River. The area is known as the birthplace of King Rama II (born 1767 in Amphawa) and retains traditional riverside settlement patterns. The floating market was revived in the early 2000s as a community initiative to preserve canal-side trading culture and wooden shop-house architecture.

The market reflects traditional Thai water-based commerce and riverside lifestyle of the Mae Klong basin. It showcases local culinary traditions, especially seafood, and community-based tourism centered on canal life, temple fairs and evening firefly watching, which are part of the cultural identity of Amphawa.