Dusit Zoo Rama V and Ratchawithi rds. 02/-0000 Daily 8am-6pm Admission charged The Dusit (also called Khao Din) Zoo is in a lovely park between the Chitralada Royal Palace and the National Assembly. Besides admiring the many indigenous Asian animals (including royal white elephants), you can rent paddleboats on the pond. Children can ride the elephants while their parents rest and snack at one of the zoo's cafés under broad shade trees.

Adventureland Seacon Square 904 Sri Nakarin Rd Regular bus #133 from Sukhumvit Soi 77. Mon-Fri 11am-9pm, Sat & Sun 10am-10pm; free entry Rollercoasters, go-karts, a "simulator" cinema and a rollerblade rink.

Dream World Nakhon Nayok Road, ten minutes' drive north of Don Muang Airport Regular buses #39 and #59 from Rajdamnoen Klang in Banglamphu to Rangsit, then songthaew or tuk-tuk to Dream World. Mon-Fri 10am-5pm, Sat & Sun 10am-7pm Admission charged Theme park with different areas such as Fantasy Land, Dream Garden and Adventure Land. Water rides and other amusements.

Magic Land 72 Phaholyothin Rd, about 2km north of Chatuchak Weekend Market, near Central Plaza Mon-Fri 10am-5.30pm, Sat & Sun 10am-7pm Air-con buses #2 from Silom Road, #3 and #9 from Rajdamnoen Klang Road in Banglamphu, and #13 from Victory Monument and Sukhumvit Road. Admission charged. Disneyland-style theme and amusement park, with fairground rides and water parks.

MBK Magic Land 8th Floor, Mah Boon Krong Shopping Centre at the Rama I/Phrayathai intersection Mon-Fri 10.30am-6.30pm, Sat & Sun 10.30am-8pm Centrally located amusements centre in downtown Bangkok, with indoor fairground rides.

Royal Barges On Klong Bangkok Noi, north of the Phra Pinklao Bridge, Thonburi Take a taxi over the Phra Pinklao Bridge or take a ferry to Tha Rot Fai ("Railway Landing"), walk west along the street parallel to and between the tracks and the klong until you come to a bridge over the klong, cross the bridge and follow the wooden walkway. Open daily 8:30-4:30 Admission charged These elaborately decorated sailing vessels, the largest over 50 yards long and rowed by up to 60 men, are used by the royal family on state occasions or for high religious ceremonies These splendid ceremonial barges, carved in the early part of this century, take the form of mythical creatures of the Ramayana. Most impressive is the red-and-gold royal flag barge, Suphannahongse (Golden Swan), carved from a single piece of teak and used by the king on special occasions.

Red Cross Snake Farm 1871 Rama IV Rd. At the corner of Rama IV Rd. and Henry Dunant 02/-0161 Daily 8:30am-4:30pm Admission charged. For a short, entertaining, and enlightening show, stop by the Thai Red Cross Snake Farm (the Queen Saovabha Memorial Institute) in the heart of Bangkok opposite the Montien Ho Established in 1923, the farm was the second facility of its type in the world (the first was in Brazil). There are slide shows and snake-handling demonstrations weekdays at 10:30am and 2pm; on weekends and holidays at 10:30am.

You can also watch the handlers work with deadly cobras and equally poisonous banded kraits and green pit vipers. They also demonstrate venom milking. The venom is later gradually injected into horses, which produce antivenom for the treatment of snakebites.

Wat Phra Keo (Temple of the Emerald Buddha) Grand Palace compound. Admission charged. Open daily 8:30-11:30 and 1-3:30. No building within the Grand Palace compound excites such awe as the adjoining royal chapel, the most sacred temple in the kingdom. This is the most ornate wat in Thailand, embellished with murals, statues, and glittering gold. Inside sits the Emerald Buddha, a venerated image carved from a single piece of jade 31 inches high.

Vimanmek Mansion Museum 193/2 Ratchavitee Rd. Dusit Palace grounds 02/281-8166 Daily 9:30am-4pm Classical Thai dance, folk dance, and martial art demonstrations are given daily at 10:30am and 2pm. Opposite the Dusit Zoo, north of the National Assembly Building Admission charged; free if you already have a 125B ticket to the Grand Palace and Wat Phra Kaeo Older children will enjoy the Thai dance and martial arts demonstrations. It is suggested that they not be expected to tour the 81 rooms of the mansion. Possibly, there can be a rotation system between parents so that the zoo, the mansion museum, and the demonstrations and dances can all be enjoyed at the level of tolerance and attention span of the children.

Wat Po Maharat Rd., near the river B 02/222-0933 Daily 8am-5pm; massages offered until 6pm About a half mile south of the Grand Palace Donation requested Wat Po (Wat Phra Chetuphon), the Temple of the Reclining Buddha, was built by Rama I in the 16th century and is the oldest and largest Buddhist temple in Bangkok. The compound, divided into two sections by Chetuphon Road, is a 15-minute walk south of the Grand Palace entrance. The northern area contains the most important monuments, and the southern portion is where resident monks live.

Most people go straight to the enormous Reclining Buddha in the northern section. It's more than 140 feet long and 50 feet high, and was built during the mid-19th-century reign of Rama III. The statue is brick, covered with layers of plaster, and always-flaking gold leaf; the feet are inlaid with mother-of-pearl illustrations of 108 auspicious laksanas (characteristics) of the Buddha.

Children will enjoy the giant Buddha statue and the surrounding garden which are filled with interesting statues.

Safari World 99 Ramindra Rd 9 kilometers from the city center in Miniburi. Take bus 26 from the Victory Monument to Miniburi From there a minibus service runs to the park Admission charged. Mon-Sun 9-4:30 170 acre complex with African animals living in the wild. An air conditioned Safari World coach drives visitors through the park to view monkeys, lions, rhinos, giraffes and zebras, plus a sea-life area with dolphins and sea lions.