Wat Phra Si Sanphet
The three white chedis of the royal palace, in a row on the same terrace since 1492.
Duration
30 min – 45 min
Best time
At opening
Open
Every day
Entry price
To confirm
This was the palace temple, with no monks: it served the court's ceremonies, as Wat Phra Kaew does today in Bangkok, which was directly modelled on it. The three aligned bell-shaped chedis hold the ashes of three kings.
It carried a sixteen-metre standing Buddha covered in a hundred and seventy kilos of gold. The Burmese set fire to it in 1767 to melt the metal down, and nothing of it remains. The three chedis were re-erected and are the park's visual landmark.
Getting there
Inside the old royal palace grounds, north-west of the historical park. Ten minutes by bicycle from Wat Mahathat.
What the price covers
paid entry, rate to be checked on site
Rules on site
Shoulders and knees covered: this is a royal site, and it is checked at the gate. The brickwork is uneven and the ground is rough between the bases.
Other places in Ayutthaya
Wat MahathatThe Buddha head held in a fig tree's roots, and the beheaded chedis around it.
Wat ChaiwatthanaramA Khmer temple on the riverbank, eight chapels around a thirty-five-metre prang.
- Bang Ian Night MarketThe locals' evening market, two streets from the ruins and without a single souvenir stall.