Dusit is a relatively modern and untouristed area north of Ko Rattanakosin. Established during the reign of the celebrated Rama V, King Chulalongkorn, to escape the cluttered surroundings of Ko Rattanakosin, it's mainly an administrative center. It's connected to Ko Rattanakosin and Banglamphu by Ratchadamnoen road ('Royal way for walking') which leads directly from the Dusit area palaces to the Grand Palace. It's only about 4km long, but in modern day Bangkok's heat and pollution, walking it is quite a challenge.
The elegant 81-room Vimanmek Palace, also known as Vimanmek mansion, is Dusit's top attraction, and it is billed as the largest golden teakwood mansion in the world. It was constructed in 1900 by the still revered King Chulalongkorn, Rama V, and was used as the royal palace for a short period. It housed Rama V's substantial number of wives and children (100+), but was abandoned in 1908. It was revived in 1982, the 200th anniversary of the founding of Bangkok, by Queen Sirikit. It's European in style, reflecting Rama V's general love of things western, and is filled with an amazing collection of pieces of art, jewelry, antiques, paintings and photos from Europe and elsewhere. Also in the compound are the Royal Carriage Museum and the Abhisek Dusit Throne.
A little to the south of Vimanmek, on Ratchadamnoen Nok road, is a statue of King Chulalongkorn. On the anniversary of his death, 23 October, the surroundings are thronged with devotees to the King, who died in 1910. Nearby is Suan Amporn, a large park used frequently for royal social functions. Also round here is Ananta Samakom, the National Assembly building. This is another previous residence of King Chulalongkorn, but is closed to the public.
About 500m away, across Rama V road, lies Chitralada Palace (พระราชวังจิตรลดา), home to the much-loved King Bhumibol and Queen Sirikit. It was built by Rama VI, and the grounds are huge, substantially bigger than, for instance, Lumphini park, Bangkok's biggest park. Much of them are used for farming projects and research most of the time (these are to try and help the Thai's dependent on agriculture, and have large amounts of his own money invested in them). The Palace is low profile, partially obscured and is closed to visitors. The grounds are surrounded by a moat and high fences.
Bangkok's zoo, also known as Dusit Zoo is between Vimanmek and Chitralada Palace. It's a reasonable way to spend some time, with more than 300 types of mammals. Highlights include Asian animals such as rhinos, orangutans, elephants and monkeys. There's a lake in the middle also, with paddle boats available for hire. There are some restaurants inside also. It's a bit let down by the poor conditions some of the animals are kept in - Safari World, north east of Bangkok, is really a better place for animal spotting if you have time.
Around 1km south down Rama V road lies the popular Wat Benchamabophit, built with Carrara marble meaning it's also know as the 'Marble Temple' (no doubt also because Benchamabophit is not the easiest word for non-Thai speakers to pronounce correctly). This is the most recent of Bangkok's major temples, constructed around the same time as Vimanmek, and was a favorite of Rama V. The decoration of the bot is ornate and impressive, and inside it there are 53 Buddha images. Outside, there's a huge bodhi tree (The tree under which the Buddha attained enlightenment). Early morning is the best time to visit when activity is generally in full swing as it's one of very few temples where the people come to the wat to give food to the monks, rather than the monks going out themselves. The present king, Rama IV, spent time as a monk here.
Details
Vimanmek Palace is free to enter if you've already been to Wat Phra Kaew (200B), and kept the ticket. Otherwise it's 50B (20B for children). Tickets are sold between 9.30am and 3.15pm everyday. Being a royal palace, appropriate dress is required. Visitors must be shown around by a guided tour, these are free and last for about 1 hour. There are shows everyday of traditional Thai dancing at 10.30am and 2.00pm every day. http://www.palaces.thai.net/ is the official Thai Palaces site, and has an interactive guide to Vimanmek.
Dusit Zoo is open everyday from 9.00am to 6.00pm, it costs 20B per adult, 10B per child. As the zoo is popular with Thai's, it can be very crowded on weekends. Wat Benchamabophit charges 10B per person, it's open from 08.00am
This area is not particularly easy to reach by public transport, and it's probably best to use a taxi or tuk-tuk to get here. Ordinary bus number 70 stops on Uthong Nai road, which is between Vimanmek Mansion and Dusit Zoo. Ordinary buses 18, 28 and 108 and aircon number 16 stop on Ratchawithi road, slightly north. Ordinary buses 56, 72, 99, 110 and aircon bus 9 all stop nearby also. River transport isn't really the best option either, as the nearest piers Tha Thewet and Tha Wasukri are still a couple of kilometers away, and there's no buses near the piers.
