Wat Phra That Doi Saket ‘The joyful religious place for all hearts’
Today you will get to know about another tourist attraction in Thailand, Wat Phra That Doi Saket. This is an enourmous temple, located in the suburban area of Chiang Mai.
Temples have been being respectable places of Thai people for centuries, because they’re religious places of Buddhism. Most of Thai people respect Buddhism. Therefore they respect temples too.
There are temples in every provinces of Thailand, especially a very very historic town like Chiang Mai. Chiang Mai has been molded with valuable and old stories for so long. There is on wonder why it has so many temples.
Wat Phra That Doi Saket is one of those. The temple looks glorious and sparkling with golden color tone. It is located nearby a community area. A part of the temple is next to Doi Saket market. There are many people around there, which you can join them. You may start with walking and shopping in the market first, then go up along the steep Naga stairway until you reach the temple. However, if you don’t think you can walk all the way, then you better grab a car instead. With that, you can drive up to the temple directly, without feeling exhausted at all.
What is the most wonderful thing of Wat Phra That Doi Saket? This probably be its location. You’re right. The word ‘doi’, in English means ‘mountain’. Therefore the name of the temple must have something to do with a mountain. Yes! It is located on a mountain. That’s why many tourist love to go sightseeing there. There are many beautiful sightseeing spots around the temple. You can just stand on the hill and look down the below the town. It’s increbicle too see things in small sizes from such height like this.
As it has been informed, the temple is very big. Therefore you may not know where to go or where to start first. So, here are some interesting attractions of the temple.
- The Chedi : This is the storage of Lord Buddha’s hair relics. It is 1,000 year old and respected by people in Doi Saket County.
- Chaturamook Vihara : There is a statue of Hanuman keeping the moon in his mouth, located nearby the stairway. Beside, the indoor area is full of murals, all tell the stories about Buddhism
- The Ubosot : It was built in Thai-Lanna style with ancient concrete and bricks. This one has width at about 6 metres and length at about 22 metres.
- Lan Pho : This lot is used for holding cultural and traditional activities.
- Salarai on Lan Pho : This is a simple-style pavilion made of ferro-concrete. It appears in Thai traditional style and has only one floor. The width is about 4 metres and the length is about 15 metres.
- Phutthachan Building : This 2-storied buillding was built just about 19 years ago, with ferro-concrete and bricks. The portrait of Phutthachan is displayed on the lowest floor, in order that tourist want to pay respect to.
How to get there
Wat Phra That Doi Saket is located at Ban Choeng Doi, Choeng Doi District, Doi Saket County, Chiang Mai, Thaland
In order to get there, you need to drive along the path No.118(Chiang Mai-Doi Saket). Get out of the town for 16 kilometres. Soon you will find the temple on the mountain. Then just turn right and go pass the market until you reach your destination.
Nearby Places
The Tweechol Botanical Garden is part of the Horizon Village & Resort property that I stayed in. If you are around Doi Saket district, the garden is worth to explore. It has one of the largest collections of plants in Thailand collected over the years.
Mae Kampong is a beautiful mountain village, only about an hour’s drive from Chiang Mai. The village is located at around 1300 metres altitude so temperatures are pleasant year round. A sparkling stream runs through the village. The village is set in the midst of a largely untouched forest and is the base of Flight of the Gibbon, the first zipline in Chiang Mai province.
Leave A Comment