The beating heart of Chinatown, this avenue is the centre of the gold trade, which is renowned for being pure here and is traded in about a hundred shops with gleaming fronts. At no 251 you will see a fine early-20C jewellery store with an Italian-style façade. The Chinatown Hotel (no 526), from the same period, features curved lines. Business never stops here, as you can tell by the illuminated signs and open-air restaurants that keep Thanon Yaowarat buzzing into the early hours.