Wat Arun Bangkok

Bangkok Temple Wat Arun

Wat Arun is one of the best Bangkok temples to visit during your visit to Bangkok. Wat Arun is names after an Indian god. Aruna was the god that stood for the god of dawn. Wat Arun is therefore also known by many locals as the Temple of Dawn.

Wat Arun is located along the Mae Nam Chaeo Phraya. When you first approach this Bangkok temple you might make the mistake by assuming that the Wat Arun temple is made out of granite.

Once you get closer to Wat Arun you will notice the many tiles of which the outside of the temple is made. These mosaic tiles are simply stunning and cover all of the large walls of the Bangkok temple.

Wat Jaeng Bangkok

This popular Bangkok temple is in fact build on the land of a former Bangkok temple. Wat Jaeng was the name of the former temple which stood on the location of Wat Arun during the 17th century. Wat Jaeng not only acted as a Buddhist temple but was also the summer palace and the Kings temple of the King during that period.

King Thaksin used the Wat Jaeng as Bangkok had not been the capital of Thailand during his rule of the country. Thonburi was at that time the capital city of Thailand. 

The Emerald Buddha, now located in Bangkok, was also located at the Wat Jaeng. King Rama 1 was the Thai King who decided to move the much beloved Emerald Buddha to Bangkok and placed it in the Wat Phra Kaew Bangkok temple.

Wat Arun Prang Tower

One of the main features that you will notice first when visiting the Wat Arun will be its massive Wat Arun Prang tower. This style of tower originates from the Khmer architecture as they had been building towers with this shape and design.

The prang tower at Wat Arun was build during the beginning of the 19th century. The Thai King Rama II had started building the impressive tower at the Wat Arun and the tower was finally completed during the rule of King Rama III who was the son of King Rama II.

Once you get close to the tower at the Wat Arun, you will notice steep stairs going up the tower of this well known Bangkok temple.

If you walk up the stairs of the War Arun tower then you will end up at a great lookout spot which is about half way up the 82 meter tower. The look out point offers the temple visitors very nice views of the river as well as the city of Thonburi.

Not only is the tower at Wat Arun a great place to view the surrounding areas however the tower is also a real landmark.

During special festivals and religious events, the tower is lit up by hundreds if not thousands of small lights. The Wat Arun tower lights up the sky and can be seen from far away. It's really a sight that you should witness!

Wat Arun Buddha Image

The centre of importance of all temples in Thailand is of course the Buddha image or statue that all temples have. The Buddha housed in Wat Arun is spectacular and it's believed that King Rama II had in fact designed the Buddha image himself.

The inner walls of the Wat Arun temple are also a beautiful sight to see. The walls are covered by amazing murals which had been added during a later period. These murals at Wat Arun were made on request of King Rama V.

Visiting Wat Arun Temple

If you would like to visit the great temple of Wat Arun then please note that Wat Arun is open daily from 08:30 am until 17:30 pm. Entrance fee to the War Arun temple complex costs 20 Bath.

You can reach the Wat Arun by taking a ferry from the Bangkok side of the river at the Tha Tien ferry point. The ferries leave regularly so please don't worry about any schedule. The ticket for the ferry to Wat Arun costs around 4 Bath.