Thailand · Temples

Temples of Thailand

A reference to Thailand’s temples written from the official record — the state temple registers, the Fine Arts Department’s national monument register, the Royal Gazette and UNESCO — with what the record shows kept visibly apart from what tradition holds.

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On the map

Where the temples are

132 of 185 temples are plotted. The others have no confirmed coordinate yet, so they are not shown as pins.

Why this exists

There is no serious English temple reference for Thailand

There are thousands of pages about Thai temples in English and almost all of them are the same page: a founding date nobody has checked, a superlative nobody has measured, and an entrance fee copied from another site that copied it from a third. The temples deserve better than that, and so does anyone planning a trip around them.

So this guide works from documents. The National Office of Buddhism and the Department of Religious Affairs registers give the official Thai name, the district and the royal class. The Fine Arts Department and the Royal Gazette give the monument registration. UNESCO covers the inscribed properties. The temple’s own publications and the Bureau of the Royal Household give what only they can. The Tourism Authority of Thailand is used for hours and access and never for history. Nothing comes from a blog, a listicle, a booking site or a review site — ten of those repeating each other is one unsourced claim repeated ten times, not ten sources.

The rule that matters most is that recorded tradition is not history. Thai temple histories are dense with foundation legends — a relic carried by a white elephant, an image found under cracked plaster, a hermit’s vision. They are real, important and worth telling, and they are not dated facts. Every page here keeps the two visibly apart, and where a date is not established it says so.

By province

185 temples across 29 provinces

Temples of Bangkok กรุงเทพมหานคร · 18 covered

Wat Phra Kaew — the Temple of the Emerald BuddhaวัดพระศรีรัตนศาสดารามSpecial class royal templeWat Pho — the Temple of the Reclining Buddhaวัดพระเชตุพนวิมลมังคลาราม ราชวรมหาวิหารFirst class royal temple, RatchaworamahawihanWat Arun — the Temple of DawnวัดอรุณราชวรารามราชวรมหาวิหารFirst class royal temple, RatchaworamahawihanWat Saket and the Golden MountวัดสระเกศราชวรมหาวิหารSecond class royal temple, RatchaworamahawihanWat Benchamabophit — the Marble Templeวัดเบญจมบพิตรดุสิตวนาราม ราชวรวิหารFirst class royal temple, RatchaworawihanWat Suthat and the Giant SwingวัดสุทัศนเทพวรารามราชวรมหาวิหารFirst class royal temple, RatchaworamahawihanWat Traimit — the Temple of the Golden BuddhaวัดไตรมิตรวิทยารามวรวิหารSecond class royal temple, WorawihanWat Ratchanatdaram and the Loha PrasatวัดราชนัดดารามวรวิหารRoyal class not establishedWat Bowonniwet Vihara — the king's monasteryวัดบวรนิเวศวิหารราชวรวิหารFirst class royal temple, RatchaworawihanWat Rakhang Kositaram — the Temple of the BellวัดระฆังโฆสิตารามวรมหาวิหารRoyal class not establishedWat Kalayanamit — the temple of the good friendวัดกัลยาณมิตรวรมหาวิหารSecond class royal temple, WoramahawihanWat Prayurawongsawat — the white chedi at the bridgeวัดประยุรวงศาวาสวรวิหารRoyal class not establishedWat Ratchabophit Sathit Maha Simaram — the Gothic hall inside a Thai templeวัดราชบพิธสถิตมหาสีมารามราชวรวิหารFirst class royal temple, RatchaworawihanWat Ratchapradit — the first monastery built for the DhammayutวัดราชประดิษฐสถิตมหาสีมารามราชวรวิหารFirst class royal temple, RatchaworawihanWat Mahathat Yuwaratrangsarit — where the canon was revisedวัดมหาธาตุยุวราชรังสฤษฎิ์ราชวรมหาวิหารFirst class royal temple, RatchaworamahawihanWat Thepthidaram — the princess's temple and Sunthorn Phu's kutiวัดเทพธิดารามวรวิหารThird class royal temple, WorawihanWat Chana Songkhram — the Mon monastery of the victoryวัดชนะสงครามราชวรมหาวิหารSecond class royal temple, RatchaworamahawihanWat Intharawihan — the great standing Buddha at Bang Khun Phromวัดอินทรวิหาร พระอารามหลวงThird class royal temple, Saman

Temples of Chiang Mai เชียงใหม่ · 6 covered

Wat Phra That Doi Suthep — the relic on the mountainวัดพระธาตุดอยสุเทพราชวรวิหารSecond class royal temple, RatchaworawihanWat Phra Singh — the Wihan Lai Kham and the disputed imageวัดพระสิงห์วรมหาวิหารFirst class royal temple, WoramahawihanWat Chedi Luang — the great chedi and the earthquakeวัดเจดีย์หลวงวรวิหารRoyal class not establishedWat Chiang Man — the oldest temple in the cityวัดเชียงมั่นRoyal class not establishedWat Suan Dok — the flower garden and the royal ashesวัดสวนดอกRoyal class not establishedWat Umong — the tunnels at the foot of the mountainวัดอุโมงค์ (สวนพุทธธรรม)Royal class not established

Temples of Phra Nakhon Si Ayutthaya พระนครศรีอยุธยา · 6 covered

Wat Mahathat — the relic temple and the head in the rootsวัดมหาธาตุRoyal class not establishedWat Ratchaburana — the crypt, the murals and the goldวัดราชบูรณะRoyal class not establishedWat Phra Si Sanphet — the palace chapel and the three chedisวัดพระศรีสรรเพชญ์Royal class not establishedWat Chaiwatthanaram — Prasat Thong's Meru on the riverวัดไชยวัฒนารามRoyal class not establishedWat Lokayasutharam — the reclining Buddha under the open skyวัดโลกยสุธารามRoyal class not establishedWat Yai Chai Mongkhon — the victory chedi and the working monasteryวัดใหญ่ชัยมงคลThird class royal temple, Worawihan

Temples of Sukhothai สุโขทัย · 6 covered

Wat Mahathat — the lotus-bud chedi at the centre of the first capitalวัดมหาธาตุRoyal class not establishedWat Si Chum — Phra Achana, and the inscription found inside the wallวัดศรีชุมRoyal class not establishedWat Sa Si — the island temple, and a name that appears in no inscriptionวัดสระศรีRoyal class not establishedWat Saphan Hin — the stone causeway and the standing Buddha above the forestวัดสะพานหินRoyal class not establishedWat Chang Lom — thirty-nine elephants holding up a mountainวัดช้างล้อมRoyal class not establishedWat Phra Si Rattana Mahathat Chaliang — the Khmer gateway and the Ayutthaya prang above itวัดพระศรีรัตนมหาธาตุเชลียงFirst class royal temple, Ratchaworawihan

Temples of Chiang Rai เชียงราย · 5 covered

Wat Phra Kaeo — where the Emerald Buddha came out of a broken chediวัดพระแก้วThird class royal temple, SamanWat Phra Singh — the Chiang Rai one, and the doors Thawan Duchanee drewวัดพระสิงห์Third class royal temple, SamanWat Rong Khun — the White Temple, and it is not an old oneวัดร่องขุ่นRoyal class not establishedWat Huai Pla Kang — the nine-tier chedi and the Guan Yin above the valleyวัดห้วยปลากั้งRoyal class not establishedWat Rong Suea Ten — the Blue Temple, and the image inside the imageวัดร่องเสือเต้นRoyal class not established

Temples of Nakhon Pathom นครปฐม · 6 covered

Wat Phra Pathom Chedi — the tallest stupa in Thailand, and the one whose age nobody can fixวัดพระปฐมเจดีย์ราชวรมหาวิหารFirst class royal temple, RatchaworamahawihanWat Phra Prathon Chedi — the Dvaravati stupa at the centre of the old city, with an Ayutthaya prang on its backวัดพระประโทณเจดีย์วรวิหารThird class royal temple, WorawihanWat Rai Khing — the image on the Tha Chin, and four state accounts of when the temple beganวัดไร่ขิงThird class royal temple, SamanWat Phra Ngam — the mound that gave up an inscription naming DvaravatiวัดพระงามThird class royal temple, SamanWat Klang Bang Kaeo — an ordinary monastery with an extraordinary museumวัดกลางบางแก้วRoyal class not establishedWat Bang Phra — the sak yant temple, described as its own records describe itวัดบางพระRoyal class not established

Temples of Lampang ลำปาง · 6 covered

Wat Phra That Lampang Luang — the most complete Lanna temple compound in ThailandวัดพระธาตุลำปางหลวงRoyal class not establishedWat Phra Kaeo Don Tao Suchadaram — where the Emerald Buddha stood for thirty-two yearsวัดพระแก้วดอนเต้าสุชาดารามRoyal class not establishedWat Pong Sanuk — the wooden Mount Meru, and the first temple in Thailand UNESCO gave a conservation awardวัดปงสนุกเหนือRoyal class not establishedWat Si Chum — the largest Burmese temple in Thailand, and the building that burnedวัดศรีชุมRoyal class not establishedWat Lai Hin — the seventeenth-century wihan the guidebooks skipวัดเสลารัตนปัพพะตาราม (วัดไหล่หิน)Royal class not establishedWat Bunyawat Wihan — the temple at the centre of the walled city, rebuilt by the last lord of Lampangวัดบุญวาทย์วิหารRoyal class not established

Temples of Phitsanulok พิษณุโลก · 6 covered

Wat Phra Si Rattana Mahathat, Phitsanulok — the temple of the Phra Phuttha ChinnaratวัดพระศรีรัตนมหาธาตุวรมหาวิหารFirst class royal temple, WoramahawihanWat Chulamani, Phitsanulok — the laterite prang where a king took the robeวัดจุฬามณีRoyal class not establishedWat Nang Phaya, Phitsanulok — the temple with a gazette entry and no historyวัดนางพญาRoyal class not establishedWat Ratchaburana, Phitsanulok — three-headed nagas on the eaves and three answers about its ageวัดราชบูรณะRoyal class not establishedWat Aranyik, Phitsanulok — the forest monastery outside the wall, and the least damaged temple in the cityวัดอรัญญิกRoyal class not establishedWat Chedi Yot Thong — the only Sukhothai lotus-bud chedi in Phitsanulokวัดเจดีย์ยอดทองRoyal class not established

Temples of Nakhon Si Thammarat นครศรีธรรมราช · 6 covered

Wat Phra Mahathat Woramahawihan — Thailand's newest World Heritage SiteวัดพระมหาธาตุวรมหาวิหารFirst class royal temple, WoramahawihanWat Sema Mueang — where the Srivijaya inscription was foundวัดเสมาเมืองRoyal class not establishedWat Wang Tawan Tok — the great southern Thai house that is the monumentวัดวังตะวันตกRoyal class not establishedWat Khao Khun Phanom — 575 rai of registered hill, and the King Taksin traditionวัดเขาขุนพนมRoyal class not establishedWat Moklan — the Shaivite sanctuary under a Buddhist templeวัดโมคลานRoyal class not establishedWat Chaeng — a registered monument with two official addressesวัดแจ้งRoyal class not established

Temples of Nan น่าน · 6 covered

Wat Phra That Chae Haeng — the relic hill of Nan, and the stupa of the Year of the Rabbitวัดพระธาตุแช่แห้งThird class royal temple, SamanWat Phumin — the cruciform hall, the four Buddhas and the whispering muralวัดภูมินทร์Royal class not establishedWat Phra That Chang Kham Worawihan — the elephant chedi and the oath of allegianceวัดพระธาตุช้างค้ำวรวิหารThird class royal temple, WorawihanWat Phaya Phu — where the registered monument is an image, not a buildingวัดพญาภูThird class royal temple, SamanWat Suan Tan — Phra Chao Thong Thip, and a city taken without a fightวัดสวนตาลRoyal class not establishedWat Phra That Khao Noi — the hill above Nan, where the chedi and the statue are five centuries apartวัดพระธาตุเขาน้อยRoyal class not established

Temples of Lopburi ลพบุรี · 6 covered

Wat Phra Si Rattana Mahathat, Lopburi — the great prang opposite the railway stationวัดพระศรีรัตนมหาธาตุRoyal class not establishedPrang Sam Yot — a Khmer sanctuary of three towers, and what it was built forปรางค์สามยอดRoyal class not establishedWat Nakhon Kosa — three periods stacked on one base, and the excavation that found themวัดนครโกษา (ร้าง)Royal class not establishedWat Sao Thong Thong, Lopburi — two monasteries joined in 1915, and a hall nobody can agree was a mosque or a churchวัดเสาธงทองThird class royal temple, SamanWat Kawitsararam Ratchaworawihan — the royal monastery beside the palace, and a gazette status that is not registrationวัดกวิศรารามราชวรวิหารThird class royal temple, RatchaworawihanWat Lai — the stucco Jataka panels at Tha Wung, and the image the town pulls through the fieldsวัดไลย์Royal class not established

Temples of Phetchaburi เพชรบุรี · 6 covered

Wat Mahathat Worawihan, Phetchaburi — the five-peaked prang, and a temple with no known beginningวัดมหาธาตุวรวิหารThird class royal temple, WorawihanWat Yai Suwannaram — the teak hall a king gave away, and murals a king datedวัดใหญ่สุวรรณารามวรวิหารThird class royal temple, WorawihanWat Kamphaeng Laeng — a Khmer sanctuary inside a working temple, and two official counts of its towersวัดกำแพงแลงRoyal class not establishedWat Ko Kaeo Suttharam — the ordination hall whose paintings carry their own dateวัดเกาะแก้วสุทธารามRoyal class not establishedWat Phra Phuttha Saiyat, Phetchaburi — a reclining Buddha with the hillside for a wallวัดพระพุทธไสยาสน์ (วัดพระนอน)Royal class not establishedWat Mahasamanaram Ratchaworawihan — the temple King Mongkut lived in, and later renamedวัดมหาสมณารามราชวรวิหารSecond class royal temple, Ratchaworawihan

Temples of Nakhon Phanom นครพนม · 6 covered

Wat Phra That Phanom Woramahawihan — the stupa that fell in 1975, and what the record actually saysวัดพระธาตุพนมวรมหาวิหารFirst class royal temple, WoramahawihanWat Phra That Tha Uthen — the copy of Phra That Phanom whose own beginning is dated to a Tuesdayวัดพระธาตุท่าอุเทนRoyal class not establishedWat Phra That Renu Nakhon — the stupa lightning knocked down, rebuilt thickerพระธาตุเรณูRoyal class not establishedWat That Prasit — an old chedi with no beginning on record, and three restorations that are only an accountวัดธาตุประสิทธิ์Royal class not establishedWat That Si Khun — a stupa cased inside a newer one, and a preaching hall with French archesวัดธาตุศรีคุณRoyal class not establishedWat Mahathat, Nakhon Phanom — the town's own stupa, named an ancient monument four months ago and still undatedวัดมหาธาตุ (พระธาตุนคร)Royal class not established

Temples of Surat Thani สุราษฎร์ธานี · 6 covered

Wat Phra Borommathat Chaiya Ratchaworawihan — the best-preserved Srivijaya-form chedi in Thailand, and three state datings for itวัดพระบรมธาตุไชยาราชวรวิหารFirst class royal temple, RatchaworawihanWat Kaeo, Chaiya — the oldest standing building in the old town, and the boundary that took eighty-nine yearsวัดแก้วRoyal class not establishedWat Long, Chaiya — a sanctuary quarried for its bricks, and the eight-armed Tara found beside itวัดหลงRoyal class not establishedWat Wiang, Chaiya — the temple that held the Grahi Buddha of 1183 and the Chandrabhanu inscription of 1230วัดเวียงRoyal class not establishedWat Phatthanaram, Surat Thani — an ordination hall guarded by soldiers of the fifth reign, built as the town was being madeวัดพัฒนารามRoyal class not establishedWat Tham Singkhon, Khiri Rat Nikhom — a painted cave, a four-armed Vishnu and a Neolithic floor, registered as a whole mountainวัดถ้ำสิงขรRoyal class not established

Temples of Kanchanaburi กาญจนบุรี · 6 covered

Prasat Mueang Sing — the westernmost Khmer sanctuary in Thailand, and a Mahayana Buddhist oneเมืองสิงห์ (ปราสาทเมืองสิงห์)Royal class not establishedWat Chai Chumphon Chana Songkhram — Kanchanaburi's royal monastery, and a mondop dated in its own plasterวัดไชยชุมพลชนะสงครามRoyal class not establishedWat Thewasangkharam — the northern temple of Kanchanaburi, with a third-reign ordination hall and its muralsวัดเทวสังฆารามRoyal class not establishedWat Khun Phaen — a late Ayutthaya temple in the old city, named in the 1920s after a character in a poemวัดขุนแผนRoyal class not establishedWat Pa Lelai, old Kanchanaburi — a mondop built around a cracked-open Buddha, and a temple that was called Wat Pha Okวัดป่าเลไลยก์Royal class not establishedWat Ban Thuan — an ordination hall with Chinese porcelain in its gable, registered and bounded in a single actวัดบ้านทวนRoyal class not established

Temples of Nakhon Ratchasima นครราชสีมา · 6 covered

Prasat Hin Phimai — the largest Khmer sanctuary in Thailand, and Buddhist from the startปราสาทหินพิมาย (เมืองพิมาย)Royal class not establishedPrasat Hin Phanom Wan — a Hindu sanctuary that became a working wat, with eight inscriptions in itปราสาทหินพนมวัน (วัดพนมวัน)Royal class not establishedWat Phra Narai Maharat — the city temple of Korat, registered twice under two different namesวัดพระนารายณ์มหาราช (สถานพระนารายณ์)Royal class not establishedWat Thammachak Semaram — a Dvaravati reclining Buddha cut from sandstone blocks, and the wheel that lay before its faceพระนอน วัดธรรมจักรเสมารามRoyal class not establishedWat Na Phra That, Takhu — a library over water, a painted door from the Kaki story, and a stupa built by Vientiane settlersวัดหน้าพระธาตุ (ตำบลตะคุ)Royal class not establishedPrasat Hin Mueang Khaek — three Shaivite towers facing north, and the province's best-documented boundaryเมืองแขก (ปราสาทหินเมืองแขก)Royal class not established

Temples of Ubon Ratchathani อุบลราชธานี · 6 covered

Wat Thung Si Mueang — a scripture library standing in a pond, and two registrations fifteen years apartวัดทุ่งศรีเมืองRoyal class not establishedWat Supattanaram Worawihan — a Thai roof on a European body on a Khmer base, and the first Dhammayut temple in UbonวัดสุปัฏนารามวรวิหารThird class royal temple, WorawihanWat Maha Wanaram — Phra Chao Yai Inthaplaeng, and seven inscriptions that date him to the hourวัดมหาวนาราม (วัดป่าใหญ่)Third class royal temple, SamanWat Chaeng, Ubon Ratchathani — an ordination hall that won a conservation prize, and NOT the Wat Chaeng in Chachoengsaoวัดแจ้งRoyal class not establishedPrasat Ban Ben — three brick towers on one laterite platform, Shaivite, and named after a creeperปราสาทบ้านเบ็ญ (ปราสาทหนองเบ็ญ)Royal class not establishedWat Thung Si Wilai — a naga-sheltered Buddha two state bodies date differently, and a boundary drawn in two piecesวัดทุ่งศรีวิไลRoyal class not established

Temples of Udon Thani อุดรธานี · 6 covered

Wat Phra Phutthabat Bua Bok — a footprint under a copy of Phra That Phanom, and the temple the World Heritage listing does not nameวัดพระพุทธบาทบัวบกRoyal class not establishedWat Phra Phutthabat Bua Ban — the sīma site that carries half of a World Heritage property, and a footprint copied over a footprintวัดพระพุทธบาทบัวบานRoyal class not establishedWat Pho Si Nai — the burial pit left open at Ban Chiang, and Thailand's first open-air museumวัดโพธิ์ศรีในRoyal class not establishedWat Phothisomphon — the province's Dhammayut royal monastery, built beside a salt marsh because the town had only one templeวัดโพธิสมภรณ์Third class royal temple, SamanKu Kaeo — a laterite Khmer enclosure the department reads as a hospital chapel, with a Lan Xang stupa built on top of itกู่แก้วRoyal class not establishedWat Si That Pramancha — a Lan Xang stupa found in the scrub in 1915, with lotus sema whose inscription is lostวัดศรีธาตุประมัญชาRoyal class not established

Temples of Khon Kaen ขอนแก่น · 6 covered

Phra That Kham Kaen, Wat Chetiyaphum — the stupa the province is named after, and two state bodies who cannot agree how old or how tall it isพระธาตุขามแก่น (วัดเจติยภูมิ)Royal class not establishedPrasat Pueai Noi — a Hindu Khmer sanctuary that the register files under three different districts, and the Buddhist temple built beside it in 1929ปราสาทเปือยน้อยRoyal class not establishedKu Prapha Chai — one of the 102 hospital chapels named in the Ta Prohm inscription, with a gold foundation plate still in its thresholdกู่ประภาชัย (กู่บ้านนาคำน้อย)Royal class not establishedThe sim of Wat Chai Si at Ban Sawathi — hup taem of Sinsai inside and out, and an ordination hall women may not enterสิมวัดไชยศรี (อุโบสถ)Royal class not establishedThe sim of Wat Sa Bua Kaeo at Ban Wang Khun — the Lao Ramayana on all four outer walls, captioned in Tham Isan script, by three named paintersสิมวัดสระบัวแก้ว (อุโบสถ)Royal class not establishedThe wooden ho trai of Wat Si Chom Chuen — a scripture library on four posts in the middle of a pond, whose only dated object is an embroidered clothหอไตรไม้ วัดศรีชมชื่นRoyal class not established

Temples of Phuket ภูเก็ต · 6 covered

Wat Chalong (Wat Chaiyathararam) — Phuket's most visited temple, a monk who broke an 1876 rebellion, and a founding date the record does not giveวัดฉลอง (วัดไชยธาราราม)Royal class not establishedWat Phra Thong (Wat Phra Phut) — a gilded Buddha image half-buried in the ground, and a register entry the department has left almost entirely blankวัดพระทอง (วัดพระผุด)Royal class not establishedWat Phra Nang Sang — the White-Blood Princess legend, a founding year two state bodies give nine years apart, and a department file that records a running dispute over its own boundaryวัดพระนางสร้างRoyal class not establishedWat Mongkhol Nimit — Phuket Town's third-class royal temple, a gold Buddha image the department's own record both reveals and reports melted by fireวัดมงคลนิมิตรThird class royal temple, SamanWat Khosit Worawiharn — a forest monk's temple gazetted in 2018, and a department transliteration that gives it a royal grade its own Thai name does not carryวัดโฆษิตวิหารRoyal class not establishedWat Khanan — three brick chedis villagers still believe hold the bones of soldiers from Phuket's 1785 defence, on the site of a temple that no longer standsวัดแขนนRoyal class not established

Temples of Krabi กระบี่ · 6 covered

Wat Kaeo Korawaramวัดแก้วโกรวารามThird class royal temple, SamanWat Tham Suea (the Tiger Cave Temple)วัดถ้ำเสือRoyal class not establishedWat Khlong Thom and the Khuan Luk Pat bead moundวัดคลองท่อมRoyal class not establishedWat Maha That Wachiramongkhon (Wat Bang Thong)วัดมหาธาตุวชิรมงคลRoyal class not establishedWat Maha That Laem SakวัดมหาธาตุแหลมสักRoyal class not establishedWat Tham Prasat Nalakhiringวัดถ้ำปราสาทนาฬาคิริงRoyal class not established

Temples of Songkhla สงขลา · 6 covered

Wat Matchimawat WorawihanวัดมัชฌิมาวาสวรวิหารRoyal class not establishedWat Pho Pathamawatวัดโพธิ์ปฐมาวาสThird class royal temple, SamanWat Chathing Phraวัดจะทิ้งพระRoyal class not establishedWat PhakhoวัดพะโคะRoyal class not establishedWat Khu Taoวัดคูเต่าRoyal class not establishedWat Mahattamangkhalaram (Wat Hat Yai Nai)วัดมหัตตมังคลารามRoyal class not established

Temples of Buriram บุรีรัมย์ · 6 covered

Prasat Phanom Rungปราสาทพนมรุ้งRoyal class not establishedPrasat Mueang Tamปราสาทเมืองต่ำRoyal class not establishedPrasat Khao Plai BatปราสาทเขาปลายบัดRoyal class not establishedPrasat Nong Hongปราสาทหนองหงส์Royal class not establishedWat Khao Phra AngkhanวัดเขาพระอังคารRoyal class not establishedPrasat Khao KradongปราสาทเขากระโดงRoyal class not established

Temples of Sisaket ศรีสะเกษ · 6 covered

Prasat Sa Kamphaeng Yaiปราสาทสระกำแพงใหญ่Royal class not establishedPrasat Sa Kamphaeng Noiปราสาทสระกำแพงน้อยRoyal class not establishedPrasat Ban Prasat, Huai Thap Thanปราสาทบ้านปราสาท (ห้วยทับทัน)Royal class not establishedPrasat Ta Lengปราสาทตาเล็งRoyal class not establishedPrasat Tham ChanปราสาททามจานRoyal class not establishedWat Maha PhuttharamวัดมหาพุทธารามThird class royal temple

Temples of Surin สุรินทร์ · 6 covered

Prasat SikhoraphumปราสาทศีขรภูมิRoyal class not establishedPrasat Phum PonปราสาทภูมิโปนRoyal class not establishedPrasat Yai NgaoปราสาทยายเหงาRoyal class not establishedPrasat Ban Phluangปราสาทบ้านพลวงRoyal class not establishedPrasat Mueang ThiปราสาทเมืองทีRoyal class not establishedWat BurapharamวัดบูรพารามThird class royal temple

Temples of Chonburi ชลบุรี · 6 covered

Mueang Phra RotเมืองพระรถRoyal class not establishedKhok Phanom DiโคกพนมดีRoyal class not establishedWat Ang Silaโบราณสถานวัดอ่างศิลาRoyal class not establishedWat Yai Intharamวัดใหญ่อินทารามThird class royal temple, SamanWat Khao Bang SaiวัดเขาบางทรายThird class royal temple, SamanWat YansangwararamวัดญาณสังวรารามวรมหาวิหารRoyal class not established

Temples of Roi Et ร้อยเอ็ด · 6 covered

Ku Kasingกู่กาสิงห์Royal class not establishedKu Phon Rakhangกู่โพนระฆังRoyal class not establishedKu Phra Konaกู่พระโกนาRoyal class not establishedPrang Ku, Roi Etปรางค์กู่Royal class not establishedKu Mueang Buaกู่เมืองบัวRoyal class not establishedWat Burapha PhiramวัดบูรพาภิรามThird class royal temple, Saman

Temples of Samut Prakan สมุทรปราการ · 6 covered

Wat Phra Samut Chediวัดพระสมุทรเจดีย์Royal class not establishedWat Phaichayon Phonsep Ratchaworawihanวัดไพชยนต์พลเสพย์ราชวรวิหารSecond class royal temple, RatchaworawihanWat Prot Ket ChettharamวัดโปรดเกศเชษฐารามThird class royal templeWat Klang WorawihanวัดกลางวรวิหารSecond class royal temple, WorawihanWat Bang Phli Yai Naiวัดบางพลีใหญ่ในRoyal class not establishedWat AsokaramวัดอโศการามRoyal class not established

Temples of Nonthaburi นนทบุรี · 6 covered

Wat Chaloem Phra Kiat WorawihanวัดเฉลิมพระเกียรติวรวิหารSecond class royal temple, WorawihanWat Poramaiyikawat WorawihanวัดปรมัยยิกาวาสวรวิหารSecond class royal temple, WorawihanWat Khema Phirataram RatchaworawihanวัดเขมาภิรตารามราชวรวิหารSecond class royal temple, RatchaworawihanWat ChomphuwekวัดชมภูเวกRoyal class not establishedWat PrasatวัดปราสาทRoyal class not establishedWat ChaloวัดชลอRoyal class not established
What is coming

The order this is being built in

Prominence first, province by province, and a province is finished before the next one starts. Bangkok comes first and will take about three runs. Then Chiang Mai, Ayutthaya, Sukhothai and Si Satchanalai, Chiang Rai and Nakhon Pathom; then Lampang, Phitsanulok, Nakhon Si Thammarat, Nan, Lopburi, Phetchaburi, Nakhon Phanom, Surat Thani, Kanchanaburi, Nakhon Ratchasima, Ubon Ratchathani, Udon Thani, Khon Kaen, Phuket, Krabi, Songkhla, and Buriram and Sisaket for the Khmer sanctuaries.

A word on those last two. Phanom Rung, Phimai and Muang Tam are Khmer sanctuaries, built Hindu and later used for Buddhist worship. They are not wats, and this guide will call them what they are and say when the use changed, because filing them as Buddhist temples is a factual error rather than a shorthand.

FAQ

Thailand's temples: common questions

What makes a temple a royal temple in Thailand?

Royal monasteries are graded by the state, and the grade is an official fact rather than a description. There are three ordinary classes — first, second and third — each with sub-ranks such as Ratchaworamahawihan, Ratchaworawihan, Woramahawihan and Worawihan, and a temple's full formal name usually ends in its sub-rank. A few sit outside that ladder: the Fine Arts Department records Wat Phra Kaew as a special-class royal monastery with no sub-rank and no resident monks, because it is a chapel royal inside the Grand Palace rather than a monastery. Where we could not read an official register, this guide leaves the grade blank rather than guessing at it.

What does it mean when a temple is a registered ancient monument?

Registration under the ancient monuments legislation is a legal act announced in the Royal Gazette by the Fine Arts Department, and it brings the building under the department's protection. It is a documented fact with a citation, which is why this guide records it. Note the distinction we keep: a site can be carried in the department's national register and treated as a monument without a gazette registration entry, and a gazette announcement that nobody has read is not the same as one that has been read. Each page says which of those three situations applies.

Why does this guide refuse to give some founding dates?

Because most Thai temple foundation stories come from chronicles rather than from documents, and the two are not the same kind of claim. A page that says a chronicle places the founding in a given year, while the earliest securely dated structure is the chedi, is telling you something true. A page that says founded in that year is making a claim the evidence does not support. So every temple record here has a record-shows half and a tradition-holds half, and it is entirely normal for the first to be empty. When a date is not established, saying so is the finding.

Are the entrance fees on this site current?

Treat them as a starting point and check at the gate. Thai temple admission is often two-tier, with Thai nationals free or paying less, and this guide states both figures plainly where they are published. But the official sources are not always consistent — Wat Pho's own website carries three different prices and three different closing times on three different pages — and fees move. Where no official source publishes a figure at all, as at Wat Saket, this guide leaves the field empty rather than repeating a number from a travel site.

Which temples are covered so far?

The guide is being built province by province, starting with Bangkok, which will take about three runs. Six temples are live: Wat Phra Kaew, Wat Pho, Wat Arun, Wat Saket and the Golden Mount, Wat Benchamabophit and Wat Suthat with the Giant Swing. Chiang Mai, Ayutthaya, Sukhothai and Si Satchanalai, Chiang Rai and Nakhon Pathom follow, then Lampang, Phitsanulok, Nakhon Si Thammarat, Nan and the rest. A province is finished before the next one starts, because a half-built province hub is worse than an absent one.

Next

Read before you visit

Most of these are working monasteries, not attractions. The guide to Buddhism and temple etiquette in Thailand covers dress, footwear, ordination-hall access and behaviour around monks, and sacred places in Thailand sets the wider context.

Planning around them: the Thailand city guides, which Thai visa route fits your situation, and residences and rentals across Thailand if you are thinking about more than a trip.

BAANLYY LLC is a Nevada company and a listing portal. It does not represent any temple, and nothing on these pages is legal or religious advice. Registrations, fees, hours and access change; confirm anything you are relying on with the authority concerned.