Siam Amazing Park, Bangkok

Park entry always includes the buffet meal, there's no need to pay for it separately and no need to decide on it in advance. It's served in a dedicated hall between 11:30 and 14:00, and it's unlimited.

The difference between the two tickets is the transport only. The entry ticket costs 1,050 THB for an adult and 800 for a child, and you make your own way there. The ticket with transport costs 1,850 and 1,450, and includes pick-up and drop-off from the hotel.

When it's worth taking the transport. The park is in Minburi, in northeast Bangkok, about 45 minutes to an hour from the city center. For a family of four the difference is about 2,400 THB, and it's usually cheaper to book a taxi or Grab round-trip. The transport is worth it for those who prefer not to deal with it after a full day in the water, and for those staying in an area where it's hard to catch a taxi in the evening.

The ticket with transport requires at least two participants, and it operates in the Bangkok area only. The pick-up time is sent to you separately before departure.

The ticket includes Unlimited international buffet, no pork, and it's part of the price in either of the two options without it.

The buffet is served in a dedicated hall during set midday hours. Those who are late miss it, so it's worth planning the day's schedule around it, not the other way around.

For those coming with children, this is convenient: no need to leave the park, and no argument about what to eat. And for those who eat little, it's simply part of the price.

For anyone who keeps kosher will not find a solution here. The pork-free buffet is not kashrut, and the kitchen is shared.

The ticket includes entry to all areas and a buffet. What's not included is personal expenses, drinks beyond the buffet, souvenirs, and professional photos at the rides.

Lockers and towels Rented on-site for a separate fee. It's worth bringing a towel from the hotel and saving.

Parking for a private car is available on park grounds.

Siam Amazing Park is located in the area of Minburi, in northeast Bangkok, about 45 minutes to an hour's drive from the city center, depending on traffic. It's not on the light rail line, so a taxi or private car is the practical way.

The park is open all year, and the water area is active even in the rainy season, rain in the area comes in short bursts, and most visitors simply wait in the shade for it to pass.

Weekdays are significantly quieter than weekends and holidays. During Thai holidays, Songkran in April and Loy Krathong in November, the park is full, and queues for the popular rides reach half an hour.

It's worth bringing a swimsuit already worn from home or changing on arrival, so as not to waste time at the start of the day.

The park's water area is built around A wave pool covering 13,600 square meters, which was registered as a Guinness World Record as the world's largest wave pool. The number is hard to imagine until you get in: the far edge looks like a coastline, not like a pool wall.

The water is fresh, not salty, and the waves are activated in cycles, periods of calm sea and then a series of waves reaching chest height. At the shallow end, the water reaches the ankles, and this is the area where families with toddlers concentrate.

Around the pool there's a strip of sand and sun loungers, and this combination, sand, waves and an open horizon, is what makes people call it a "sea" and not a "pool".

Early afternoon hours are the busiest. Those who arrive at opening get almost the entire area to themselves for the first hour.