Bangkok is such a huge, sprawling city that it can be hard to know where to start exploring. “The Big Mango” is known for its vibrant nightlife and club scene, but what to do during the hot, humid days?

There are plenty of cool places to hang out – most with air-conditioning, of course! – while the sun’s still out in order to make the most of the city’s scenery, sip the perfect espresso, take in some culture, eat delicious vegan food, or browse shelves brimming with interesting books. Here are five of the coolest places to hangout in Bangkok during the day.

Bangkok Tree House

Hidden away from the busy streets and pollution of downtown Bangkok on the city’s so-called Green Lung, the Bangkok Tree House is not only a great place to spend the night, but also the perfect place to escape the city for the day and hang out closer to nature. Come here and rent a bike to explore the surrounding swamp area from raised cycle paths and the nearby floating market. Stay after sunset to have the chance to take a boat out onto the river, to see swarms of fireflies jostling for space on bushes in the water with the stars overhead, and forget that you’re in one of South East Asia’s busiest cities.

Rocket Coffeebar

A hipster’s wet dream, this cosy café serves up perfect little coffees in a Scandinavian-inspired interior, along with pretty good food, including some vegan options. There is a strong focus on high quality food and drink, as well as using farm-to-table methods of sourcing ingredients and providing traceability for their coffee so that you can really see what goes into creating your cup of liquid joy. Service is super-friendly, and there is speedy WiFi if you need to bang out some work there.

Bangkok Art and Culture Centre

A very cool public space in downtown Bangkok, this cultural centre is home to various events, exhibitions, and shops. There are occasional film screenings, art exhibitions from local artists, and musical and theatre performances, as well as an interesting array of shops selling art supplies, gifts, and memorabilia. There’s also an art library full of students diligently studying, which serves as a good place to come and work if you are a digital nomad. Architecturally, the building is quite interesting, lacking straight lines and designed instead to provide flexible, open, and welcoming spaces.

Broccoli Revolution

This achingly cool vegan restaurant in Sukhumvit serves up some excellent Mediterranean-inspired fare. If you tire of Thai food in Bangkok and want something fresh and innovative, a meal here will not disappoint. With everything from creatively-flavoured hummus dishes and burritos, to salads and more typically Thai dishes like tofu satay, everything is fresh and delicious. They also do some mean freshly squeezed juices and amazing vegan cakes from Veganerie. It’s not the only great vegan restaurant in town though; check out these five highlights from vegan Bangkok for more.

Dasa Books

Open every single day of the year from 10am until 8pm, this secondhand bookshop has thousands of books in a huge range of categories and languages, as well as some music. The space is nicely designed with lots of clean lines and open space contrasting with the busy bookshelves, and there are several places to sit, including in the café area where a basic range of drinks is available. They sometimes host events to meet authors; but otherwise, it’s just generally a cool place to hang out for an afternoon.

Have you ever been to Bangkok? If so, what’d you think? If not, would you like to go? Any additional suggestions for daytime hangouts in The Big Mango? Let us know your thoughts in the comments!

Get your hands on our Bangkok shirts right here. Join us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Pinterest for more.