Wat Pho, Wat Arun Travel guide

Hi lovelies,
My husband and I went to explore Wat Pho and Wat Arun December last year :)
and we would like to share with you some humble tips..
Feel free to share this post with your friends :)


What to wear to Wat Pho and Wat Arun:
For ladies, I would suggest you to bring along a long sleeve cardigan and wear a "light material" long pants and do remember to bring along a cap. Visiting Shrine requires all female to wear long pants/skirt, and wear clothes that covers your shoulder..if not you must rent a "sarong" to cover your legs.. For guys they are not so strick, a polo/T-shirt with three quarter pants is alright..

How to get there:
One of the cheapest and easiest way to reach Wat Pho is via the boat ride on the Chao Phraya River. The nearest BTS Skytrain station is Saphan Taksin Station. The Sathorn Pier is just 3 minutes walking distance from Saphan Taksin Station.

How much is the boat tickets:
We brought the one day river pass, which allows us to take unlimited number of boat rides..
It is
150 Baht per person.. there is only one booth selling the tickets.
The single way ticket is only around 10-25 baht (take the boat with orange flag (cheaper), because different flag there is different rate, if I am not wrong the blue flag is the tourist boat with tour guide, it will cost around 40baht per single trip), the single trip ticket is sold on the boat itself.
Here's a pic of our one day river pass..


Next question that many people will ask is..
Is it possible to explore Wat Pho, Wat Arun, Grand Palace and National museum in one day?

Initially we wanted to visit all (very ambitious and enthusiastic).. thus we brought the one day river pass.. however due to the overwhelming HOT weather.. we only manage to cover Wat Pho and Wat Arun.. In my opinion from this trip, I think it is quite hard to cover all the places in one day.. because you will definitely get exhausted from the heat (it is really no joke), and I think it is always nice to spend a longer time exploring one or two places, then rushing.. :) 

Wat Pho, Wat Arun, Grand Palace and National Museum ranking:
After reading trip advisor etc.. I would think among this 4, you can drop National Museum if you do not have sufficient time to cover all. Grand palace is about the beautiful architecture buildings, Wat Pho's main attraction to me is the reclining buddha, and lastly for Wat Arun is the fun and steep climb. Yup.. so depend on which you prefer :) 

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Wat Pho - The Temple Of The Reclining Buddha

This stop is Tha Tien Pier (Also numbered as N8). Opposite Tha Tien Pier on the other side of the river is another famous temple name Wat Arun or Temple of Dawn.From the pier it was a short walk through the market to Wat Pho. I brought my cap at the market because the weather was super hot.. haha.
There are many temples in Bangkok but one that you must visit, is Wat Pho! :)
Wat Pho is one of the Bangkok's oldest temple and it existed before Bangkok was established as the capital by King Rama. It was originally named Wat Photaram or Podharam from which the name Wat Pho is derived. This name of Wat Pho refers the monastery of the Bodhi tree inn Bodh Gaya, India where Buddha is believed to have attained enlightenment. It is classed as the highest grade of the first class Royal temple. The temple houses the largest collection of Buddha images in Thailand, including a 46m long Reclining Buddha. The temple is also the earliest centre for public education in Thailand, and still houses a school of Thai medicine. It is known as the
birthplace of traditional Thai massage which is still taught and practiced at the temple.
You can do your massage there! We didn't try because we prefer to spend time exploring the place :)

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Entrance Ticket to Wat Pho is 100Baht, the 100baht include a bottle of water :)
but trust me.. a bottle of water is not sufficient! The weather is killing HOT!

Opening hours: 0800 - 1700
**Thai massage available till 1800

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Here's us at Wat Pho :) Touristy pic :)

Love this pic above.. Us with the beautiful Stupa structure :)
We went to see the 15metres high and 46m long reclining buddha :) It is the largest reclining buddha in Thailand.

Us with the reclining buddha..
I have to borrow a sarong (free).. because I was wearing a romper that day..
They are not so strict with guys.. my hubby was wearing a three quarter pants and they let him in..


There are 108 bronze bowls in the corridor representing the 108 auspicious characters of Buddha. Visitors may drop coins in these bowls as it is believed to bring good fortune, and it also helps the monks to maintain the wat..
(Tips: You can purchase a bowl of coins at the entrance of the hall which you can drop in the 108 brown bowls..)

Me wearing another sarong..
Interior of the ubosot of Wat Pho

Argg.. super sunny!
Us <3

Phra Chedi Rai which contain the ashes of members of the royal family..


Medicine pavilion

Near Wat Po is the Grand Palace, we did not go there because we are more interested with Wat Arun :) Maybe will visit Grand Palace next time :)

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I looked super pale and tired after exploring Wat Pho..haha
At first I find Wat Pho super nice.. I love the beautiful architectural..
But after walking for sometime.. under the scorching sun.. I suddenly feel that everywhere looks the same (*excuse to rest).. haha
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Me with Wat Arun at the background..

Wat Arun - The Temple of Dawn

There are over 31200 Buddhist temples spread around Thailand. In Thai these are called wat.
Wat Arun or The Temple Of Dawn, is named after Aruna, the Indian God of Dawn. Sitting majestically on the Thonburi side of the Chao Phraya River, the legendary Wat Arun is one of the most striking riverside landmarks of Thailand.
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The main feature of Wat Arun is its
central prang (Khmer-style tower) which is encrusted with colourful porcelain. The height is around 66.8m (219 ft) and 86m (282 ft). The corners are surrounded by four smaller satellite prang.

Opening hours: 0800 - 1730
Location: Located on the west side of Chao Praya River (Opposite Tha Thien Pier)
Price: 50 Baht


Below is a pic of the central prang..pic taken from the Chao Phraya River..
One of the attraction of Wat Arun is that..
you can get to wear Thailand Traditional Costume and take photos..
Yup..so here's some pics of us in the Thai national costume.. I think the guy's costume quite funny though.. haha









The weather really very very hot! look at my pale face below..
Haha.. I still insist on exploring the Wat Arun! I always wanted to climb up the Prang :)
Remember to wear long pants if you visit Wat Arun!! Rental of Sarong need to pay $$$!
So I went to buy a long pants instead.. they sell me at a tourist rate! Expensive compared to Platinum malls etc..

Below is a image of Thotsakan, the green stone giant guarding the gates at Wat Arun along with the white stone giant Sahat Decha..

Yup.. very beautiful architecture..
Entrance..

Time to climb the Central Prang! Steep steps to the TOP!!
quite scary though.. especially when you are coming down.. I feel as though I will roll down anytime.. haha.. 


Spot me below.. lol








Cleared! Time to go to some aircon place to chill.. lol
Saw this cute elephant.. bye bye Wat Arun and Wat Pho..
I am melting! The weather is SO HOT.. cannot really enjoy despite the beauty of the architecture.. feeling sticky all over..

Anyway! Another tip for you!
Remember to flag for the boat!!! We waited there for very long.. but no boat came to us..
Until one of the Thailand local ask us to flag for the boat to come over..
Look at the boat.. is coming towards us..


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Finally.. Air con! The best invention!
Haha..
Last tip for you! We wanted to go for high tea at Mandarin Oriental Bangkok..
because I heard it is much cheaper than in Singapore.. but just because I was wearing a romper and my husband wear 3 quarter pants.. they don't allow us to go in -__-"
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For your reference (dress code):

The Lobby Lounge adheres to a smart casual dress code for all guests, including children. During the day, semiformal shorts, shirts, polo shirts and proper footwear are permitted. After 6:30pm, ladies are kindly asked to wear elegant attire and proper footwear, and gentlemen are kindly asked to wear a smart shirt, long trousers and closed shoes.
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Argg.. definitely going back for the high tea next time!
Look at the pic below.. I like the high tea place so much!


Hehe.. Till then..
Hope you find this post useful!
Gonna share with you my favourite Thai local food in coming blog post! Stay Tune!
For now see you at our instagram: @BigTreeandKoala :)


9 Responses so far.

  1. YuXin says:

    You look really sweet and pretty! Hope to see both of you in person! My model couple!

  2. Anonymous says:

    Thx for the info babe, I am trying the high tea! Will email you my comment abt the high tea in Madarin Oriental!

  3. Anonymous says:

    Oho the structure of Wat Arun still intrigues me and the beauty of Wat Pho in Thailand is still beautiful and I love visiting Rattanakoshin Reclining Buddha. statues.

  4. How much is the cost for the traditional costumes rent and photo in Wat Arun?

  5. Yeah, how much did you pay for the traditional outfit at Wat Arun?

  6. just to let everyone know that the Grand Palace will be closed on 1-2 December and 5-6 December 2016

  7. Unknown says:

    Excellent effort to make this blog more wonderful and attractive.
    Thailand Travel Agency

  8. Gyanguru says:

    Excellent blog and excellent pictures. If you ever plan to visit the land where buddha was born and see the mount everest, visit my page The Mountain Trails

  9. Siva says:

    Thanks a lot for sharing :) Very helpful

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