Wat Pho and other Bangkok, Thailand Things to Do Tips

Stunning temple complex just to the South of the Grand Palace compound. The most unique feature is that the chedis and lots of the other buildings are covered with multi-colored tile floral decoration, a truly unique feature (rivalled by Wat Arun across the river).

Wat Pho also features a huge reclining Buddha with amazing mother of pearl inlays in his soles and the renowned and recommended (and 100%) traditional massage school.

I liked the atmosphere in Wat Pho a lot. It gets lots of visitors but still way less than Grand Palace and it is far more harmonious architecturally and thus more intimate. An easy walk from Grand Palace and an etappe on your way to Wat Arun.

Beware of Tuktuk drivers on the Grand palace side of the Wat Pho complex telling you it is closed for some festivity and will open later which information is combined with a kindly offer to take you to some far away wat in the mean time that you couldnt have cared about less. THEY ARE LYING: walk around the complex to the entrance on the south side. It will be open during the hours indicated in your guide book.

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Phone: 02-221-991
Address: Tha Tien Pier, Chao Phraya River, Bangkok
Directions: The entrance to Wat Pho is on Chetuphon road. Entrance is 20B. It's open every day, opening hours are from 08.00am to 5.00pm, with a break from 12.00pm to 1.00pm.
Website: http://www.discoverthailand.com/

A must see in Wat Pho is the huge reclining Buddha. At first it seems like visitors are being funnelled on their way to the statue as if it was the embalmed Lenin himself, but this is just for the usual slipping out of your shoes and putting them in a shelf: After this ritual you can visit at your own pace again. The most admired part is the feet with their mother of pearl inlays. All toes are the same length, by the way. A big red sign says "Dont Touch" so guess what is apparently irresistible for most visitors (actually the locals!) to do anyway?

Another ritual awaits you on the back side of the statue, so have 20 B handy: "buy" a bucket of small change (actually, make a donation of 20 B and receive a bucket of small change) and distribute the coins in the bowls lined up in the corridor. It brings good luck.

Every now and then a guy collects all the small change from the bowls and puts them back into the process. A perpetuum mobile.

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Phone: 02-221-991
Address: Tha Tien Pier, Chao Phraya River, Bangkok
Directions: The entrance to Wat Pho is on Chetuphon road. Entrance is 20B. It's open every day, opening hours are from 08.00am to 5.00pm, with a break from 12.00pm to 1.00pm.
Website: http://www.discoverthailand.com/

Wat Pho houses a venerable Thai massage school where the pupils are "unleashed" on willing temple visitors to practice what they have learned.

It is all perfectly decent, friendly, well visited by locals and tourists alike, inexpensive (though more so than the abundant high street options of less predictable quality and nature) and absolutely recommendable before, during or after a long day of visits in BKK. I recommend the 1,5 h massage with herbs (the herbs are sponged on your body in form of a fragrant hot lotion during the process. The lotion is a bit sticky and will stain your clothes so wear something washable). I believe it cost 300B. They have foot massages too.

In the end you are released into the remainder of the day well relaxed and with a cup of pleasant herbal tea to sip outside.

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Address: Wat Pho, 150m to your right from the entrance.
Directions: They also have a second location outside the Wat but I could not find the address anymore.

Wat Arun's name pays tribute to its patron goddess Aruna which equals Aurora (dawn goddess). The temple looks very khmer in structure (except for the decoration) but it hails from the 18th to 19th century. The decoration is 19th century (reign of King Mongkut = Rama IV).

The temple is actually most interesting from up close and less from a distance, or rather: one first needs to go real close and the step back again a little to fully appreciate it.

However, the view of the main pagoda as a whole from this distance already gives you an idea of what to expect: the temple is simply surprising and one wonders how its builders conceived its stunning ornamental plan (more on that below).

I spare you pictures taken from the river: from such distance the temple looks comparably plain (unless you get very favorable light), nothwithstanding the fact that the river vista made it onto the 10 Baht coin.

Unfortunately the pagoda can only be climbed until a lower level.

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Phone: 02-466-3167
Address: Tha Tien Pier, Chao Phraya River
Directions: From this pier take a cross river ferry to Wat Arun.

The temple is quite unique in that its intricate decoration bears a surprise the closer u get. First, strikingly enough, it reminds you of Wat Pho with its glazed flower tiles but when u get closer you realize that the decoration consists mostly of thousands of plates and saucers of various multicolored sets of china, arranged in the shape of flowers.

The china was actually brought to Thailand as a weight in trading ships which were supposed to be loaded in Bangkok, so it seems to have been a cheap building material. But it is very effective indeed.

The flower ornaments supposedly represent the vegetation on mythological Mount Meru, home of the gods.

Entrance 20 or 30B

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Phone: 02-466-3167
Address: Tha Tien Pier, Chao Phraya River
Directions: From this pier take a cross river ferry to Wat Arun (3B single trip)

I like this detail picture a lot as this is one of the nicest preserved flower mosaics I came across on the temple ground. And of course it was aptly adorned with a real flower. Just perfect.

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Phone: 02-466-3167
Address: Tha Tien Pier, Chao Phraya River
Directions: From this pier take a cross river ferry to Wat Arun.

Another detail of the tiled main chedi.

The simplicity and yet visual complexity of the patchwork decoration makes it so effective. The very idea of using plates and saucers!!!

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The wihans of Wat Arun are less interesting that the main pagoda and smaller chedis.

What I found striking was the row of slot machine like buddha shrines at the back of the (actually beautifully painted) wihan on the left (your back to the river).

VT Globerover just informed me that they are "oracle machines", so your donation gets you a personal oracle. Not bad!

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The various figurines (here temple dancers, but u also find monkeys and demons) supporting or guarding the chedis are also covered with tiles and pieces of china.

Here the designs are more dictated by the statues and the tile pieces are oftentimes just small colored disks. Thus, I find the true tableware-made flower ornaments more original.

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This is a view of one of the four smaller prangs which are just as nice as the large one. Together with the large prang they symbolize mythological Mount Meru, the gods' residence.

The shape of the prang looks a bit neo-Khmer.

It comes complete with a rider's statue of the wind god Nayu in the upper niche

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Phone: 02-466-3167
Address: Tha Tien Pier, Chao Phraya River
Directions: From this pier take a cross river ferry to Wat Arun.