Wat Arun - Temple of the Dawn, Bangkok

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Wat Arun or the Temple of Dawn is one of the popular and easiest to locate through the Chao Phraya River Express boat. The temple is decorated by bits of multi-colored porcelain and consists of 20 story prang or pagoda. Entrance fee: 50Baht, opens 8-5pm.

You can walk through the very steep stairs of the main prang which will give a very good view of the Chao Phraya River.
There are lots of souvenirs on the side of the main attraction. There are keychains, shirts, pens, caps, hats etc. Actually, I find the souvenirs here less cheap than those of mini stores near the Platinum Mall.

The besy way to come here is by boat, to the Tha Tien by the Chao Phraya River Express boats. You can just transfer from 1 boat to another, fare is 2Baht.

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Located on the banks of the Chao Phraya River, Wat Arun is one of the more famous temples of Bangkok. Called the Temple of the Dawn due to its catching of the morning light, the wat is one of the newer temples in Thailand, built in the early 19th century. Still, it evokes the same architectural style and significance of much older temples (such as those seen in Sukhothai). The temple is a great place to get an up-close look at the architecture of the temples, and commands a terrific view of Bangkok.

While Wat Arun is likely included on many city tours, taking the river taxi yourself gets you a nice tour of the river, and is less expensive. The visitor's fee for foreigners is 50 Bhat, and you can climb all the stairs up to the upper terrace.

for "shining light"

Wat Arun, often called “The Temple of Dawn”, is one of the most remarkable visual identities of Bangkok. The imposing Khmer-style “prang” or tower is 104 metres tall and decorated with bits of porcelain that was used as ballast by boats coming from China.

Flowers...and flowers, the pattern of all temple wall is flower, so cute for a holy place....girls will love it!!!

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The central spire has a height of approximately 70 feet, built of brick and covered with pieces of Chinese porcelain and glazed ceramic. These products were available because Chinese ships carrying Thai products to China needed ballast material while travelling without cargo back to Bangkok to reload. When loaded with cargo, the porcelain and ceramics were discarded and appropriated by the builders of the wat. Figures of demons and half - humans support the different layers. Construction was completed in the early 18th Century during the reign of Rama III. Details of the figures and ceramics are on this page.

Wat Arun rises to 82m and can be seen from the river. It really is stunning and a close up inspection shows you the detail and intricacy of the porcelain mosaics and decorative Hindu figures. Its an 18th century creation and the central tower is symbolic of Mt Meru which is the centre of the universe in Hindu and Buddhist mythology.

Its open from 8.30am to 5pm with an admission of about 30B.

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My time here at Wat Arun was short…and we visited later in the afternoon and the light wasn’t the best for taking photos, the sun behind the temple, my intention to return another time earlier in the day was never to be reality, not on this particular visit to Bangkok.

Wat Arun is located on the west bank of the Chao Phraya River, its known as a symbol of Bangkok and has been located here in various incarnations since before Ayutthaya was the capitol of Thailand.
From its high central spire or prang you have a terrific view of the river and on the opposite shore, not too far from Wat Arun you can see another important Temple, Wat Pho.

Before it was moved to the Wat Phra Kaeo, at the Grand Palace complex, the Emerald Buddha was revered here until the late 1700’s. Wat Arun is truly a marvel and beautiful architectural wonder and to see the detail in the construction is all the reason that you need to visit here. It really is something spectacular to see and is so highly revered that its image is permanently on display on EVERY 10 Baht coin of Thailand.

The main 79 meter high tower or prang is surrounded by four smaller Prangs and as a grouping symbolically represents the “terrestrial representation of the thirty-three heavens”, a Buddhist concept. The prang itself as a structure is symbolic of the Mount Meru, a sacred mountain in Hindu and Buddhist religions that is considered the “center of the Universe”.

All of the prangs are meticulously decorated with tiny pieces of ceramic that arrived in the country as ballast in the holds of trading vessels from China and the central prang has narrow stairways that lead to various platforms or terraces where you can stop and view the surroundings…be careful though…the stairs are QUITE steep!

The compound of Wat Arun is quite large and as you’ll find in most of the Temples throughout Bangkok and Thailand, there are many other smaller areas and shrines for worship. I found during my little tour a small oasis of shade that was fenced off and being used by a couple of Monks that were cooling off from the mid afternoon heat. I wanted to join them…but didn’t, and after asking, they allowed me to photograph them there.

There are plenty of opportunities to take some great photos but I would advise you to arrive in the morning to have the best light of the day to photograph here.

The Ubosot area is off to the side of the prangs and I only visited the outside of it. Yaksha (demons) guard the entranceway to the Ubosot area, a green one on the left, a white one on the right hand side of the entrance. The main entrance was closed off and so in fact Im not sure that it’s possible to enter the Ubosot.

Access to Wat Arun is easy if you will venture here yourself, or if you choose to explore by organized tour, I would imagine that all Tour Boats will make this a stopover on they’re itinerary.

To get here on your own…by boat…which is most fun I think…get yourself to the Tha Tien Pier (Pier Stop 8)…located close to Wat Pho…Here you can catch a smaller boat for a small charge and it will cross the river to the pier at the Wat where you can simply walk to the entrance.
If you are using buses to get here….busses 1, 25, 44, 47, 62 and 91 will do the job.

The Wat is accessible from 0830 -1730 and the cost to enter is only 50 baht…or the equivalent of about $ 1.50 USA.

Visiting here was certainly a memorable experience of my visit to Bangkok and I would definitely advise you to include some time in your itinerary here to see this for yourself.

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Wat Arun also known as The Temple of Dawn is a Buddhist temple (wat) in the Bangkok Yai district of Bangkok, Thailand, on the west bank of the Chao Phraya River. You can take the ferry (15 Baht) for less than 5 minutes rides to this Temple which is just across the river. The full name of the temple is Wat Arunratchawararam Ratchaworamahawihan. This is the most famous temple in Bangkok and if you climb to the top you can have the most spectacular sights of the Chao Phraya River and some part of Bangkok. The entrace fee is 50 Baht. Please dress up politely, no sleeveless shirt, no short pants or skirts and no slipper inside the temple.

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A visit to the Wat Arun temple is a must while in Bangkok. We got there during our cruise on the Chao Phraya river, and I have noticed that most of the cruises stop there. Wat Arun is the only Buddhist temple I've ever seen, and it is just the way I've always imagined it.
The main tower is wonderfully and minutely decorated with thousands of statues and other decorations, that you can appreciate while climbimng the steep stairs to get to the top. Besides the main tower, the temple is made up of several pagodas and a beautiful garden. I litteraly fell in love with the Wat Arun temple, and I was so sorry we were only given 30 minutes to visit it, since our boat was leaving...
The entrance ticket costs 50 baths and you can spend there unlimited time, unless you are forced to hurry because your boat is leaving.
Be sure you have some water with you, since climbing the temple in hot season will make you very thirsty!