Khet Phra Nakhon

The Grand Palace (Thai: พระบรมมหาราชวัง, ) is a complex of buildings at the heart of Bangkok, Thailand. The palace has been the official residence of the Kings of Siam (and later Thailand) since 1782. The king, his court, and his royal government were based on the grounds of the palace until 1925. King Bhumibol Adulyadej (Rama IX), resided at the Chitralada Royal Villa and his successor King Vajiralongkorn (Rama X) at the Amphorn Sathan Residential Hall, both in the Dusit Palace, but the Grand P…

Wat Arun Ratchawararam Ratchawaramahawihan (Thai: วัดอรุณราชวราราม ราชวรมหาวิหาร ) or Wat Arun (Thai: [wát ʔarun], "Temple of Dawn") is a Buddhist temple (wat) in Bangkok Yai district of Bangkok, Thailand, on the Thonburi west bank of the Chao Phraya River. The temple derives its name from the Hindu god Aruṇa, often personified as the radiations of the rising sun. Wat Arun is among the best known of Thailand's landmarks. The first light of the morning reflects off the surface of the temple with…

Khlong Saen Saep (, Thai: [kʰlɔ̄ːŋ.sɛ̌ːn.sɛ̀ːp]) is a canal (khlong) in central Thailand, connecting the Chao Phraya River to Prachinburi Province and Chachoengsao. A portion of the canal is used for public transport by an express boat service in Bangkok. The 72 km long canal passes through 21 districts and is connected to more than 100 smaller canals. History The Saen Saep Canal was built on the order of King Rama III during a conflict between Siam and Annam over Cambodia in order to establish …

Wat Pho (Thai: วัดโพธิ์, Thai: [wát pʰōː]), also spelled Wat Po, is a Buddhist temple complex in the Phra Nakhon District, Bangkok, Thailand. It is on Rattanakosin Island, directly south of the Grand Palace. Known also as the Temple of the Reclining Buddha, its official name is Wat Phra Chetuphon Wimon Mangkhalaram Rajwaramahawihan(Thai: วัดพระเชตุพนวิมลมังคลารามราชวรมหาวิหาร; Thai: [wát pʰráʔ tɕʰê:t.tù.pʰon wíʔ.mon.maŋ.kʰlaː.raːm râːt.tɕʰá.wɔː.ráʔ.má.hǎː.wíʔ.hǎːn]). The more commonly known name…

Wat Phra Kaew (Thai: วัดพระแก้ว, , Thai: [wát.pʰráʔ.kɛ̂ːw]), commonly known in English as the Temple of the Emerald Buddha and officially as Wat Phra Si Rattana Satsadaram, is regarded as the most sacred Buddhist temple in Thailand. The complex consists of a number of buildings within the precincts of the Grand Palace in the historical centre of Bangkok. It houses the statue of the Emerald Buddha, which is venerated as the country's palladium. Construction of the temple began in 1783 under the o…

The Rama VIII Bridge (Thai: สะพานพระราม ๘, , Thai: [sā.pʰāːn pʰráʔ rāːm pɛ̀ːt]) is a cable-stayed bridge crossing the Chao Phraya River in Bangkok, Thailand. It was built to alleviate traffic congestion on the nearby Phra Pinklao Bridge. Construction of the bridge took place from 1999 to 2002. The bridge was opened on 7 May 2002 and inaugurated on 20 September, the birth anniversary of the late King Ananda Mahidol (Rama VIII), after whom it is named. The bridge has an asymmetrical design, with a…

Chulalongkorn University (CU, Thai: จุฬาลงกรณ์มหาวิทยาลัย, ), nicknamed Chula (Thai: จุฬาฯ), is a public and autonomous research university in Bangkok, Thailand. The university was originally founded during King Chulalongkorn's reign as a school for training royal pages and civil servants in 1899 (B.E. 2442) at the Grand Palace of Thailand. It was later established as a national university in 1917, making it the oldest institute of higher education in Thailand. During the reign of Chulalongkorn'…

Siam Paragon (Thai: สยามพารากอน) is a shopping mall in Bangkok, Thailand. It is one of the largest malls in Thailand, along with IconSiam, CentralWorld and CentralPlaza WestGate. Siam Paragon includes a range of specialty stores and restaurants as well as a multiplex (15 large screen cinemas), the Sea Life Bangkok Ocean World aquarium, an exhibition hall, the Thai Art Gallery, and an opera concert hall. It also has a bowling alley and karaoke centre. It is a joint venture by Siam Piwat, the comp…

Victory Monument (Thai: อนุสาวรีย์ชัยสมรภูมิ, ) is a military monument in Bangkok, Thailand. The monument was erected in June 1941 to commemorate the Thai victory in the Franco-Thai War. The monument is in Ratchathewi District, northeast of central Bangkok, at the center of a traffic circle in the intersection of Phahonyothin, Phaya Thai and Ratchawithi roads. Design The monument is entirely Western in design. This is in contrast with another prominent monument of Bangkok, the Democracy Monument…

The Jewelry Trade Center is a 59-story mixed-use skyscraper located in the Silom Road gemstone district of Bangkok, Thailand. Designed by Hellmuth, Obata and Kassabaum, the building was completed in 1996. At it is currently the eighth-tallest building in Thailand. It was the tallest building in Thailand when it was completed. The center is the largest center for selling, sourcing and distributing jewelry in Bangkok and one of the largest such centers in Asia. It contains a fully equipped gem-…

State Tower is a skyscraper located on Silom Road, Bang Rak business district, Bangkok, Thailand, adjacent to Charoen Krung Road. Built in 2001, it has a floor area of . State Tower has 68 floors and is tall, making it the 8th tallest building in Thailand. It is also the tallest mixed-use building in Thailand. Conceived by Thai architect Professor Rangsan Torsuwan in the early 1990s and designed by Rangsan Architecture, the massive building is characterised by its thirty-meter tall golden rooft…

The Chatuchak Weekend Market (Thai: ตลาดนัดจตุจักร, pronunciation), on Kamphaeng Phet 2 Road, Chatuchak, Bangkok, is the largest market in Thailand. Also known as JJ Market, it has more than 15,000 stalls and 11,505 vendors (2019), divided into 27 sections. Chatuchak Market sells many different kinds of goods, including plants, antiques, consumer electronics, cosmetics, pets, fresh and dry food and drinks, ceramics, furniture and home accessories, clothing, and books. It is the world's largest …

The Democracy Monument (Thai: อนุสาวรีย์ประชาธิปไตย) is a public monument in the city center of Bangkok, capital of Thailand. It occupies a traffic circle on the wide east–west Ratchadamnoen Avenue, at the intersection of Dinso Road. The monument is roughly halfway between Sanam Luang, the former royal cremation ground in front of Wat Phra Kaew, and the temple of the Golden Mount (Phu Kao Thong). Commissioning The monument was commissioned in 1939 to commemorate the 1932 Siamese coup d'état (als…

The Erawan Shrine, formally the Thao Maha Phrom Shrine (Thai: ศาลท้าวมหาพรหม; ; 'shrine of Lord Maha Brahma'), is a shrine in Bangkok, Thailand, which houses a statue of Phra Phrom, the Thai representation of Brahma, the Hindu god of creation. The name might also refer to Mahabrahma, the ruler of the Brahma realm in Buddhist cosmology. The deity is popularly worshipped outside of a Hindu religious context, but more as a representation of guardian spirits in Thai animist beliefs, nevertheless the…

The National Stadium of Thailand (Thai: สนามกีฬาแห่งชาติ or กรีฑาสถานแห่งชาติ) is a sports complex located in Pathum Wan District, Bangkok. Founded in 1937 with the construction of Supachalasai Stadium (; ), its main venue, the complex has since expanded and now consists of multiple stadia and sporting facilities. History The stadium construction started in 1937 in the original area of Thai Windsor Palace that demolished in 1935. The Department of Physical Education entered into a 29-year lease …

Queen Sirikit Park is a botanical garden in Chatuchak District, Bangkok, Thailand. Covering an area of 0.22 km2, it is part of the larger Chatuchak Park complex. It was established in 1992 and named after Sirikit, Queen of Thailand to celebrate her 60th birthday. It contains many fountains and pools where lotus flowers bloom. The park has a high biodiversity in an ecosystem which has a great variety of plants and butterflies. There is a great variety of banana cultivars, a great variety of palm …

Wat Pathum Wanaram (Thai: วัดปทุมวนาราม) or Wat Pathum for short is a Buddhist temple in Bangkok, Thailand. It is located in the Pathum Wan District, between the two shopping malls Siam Paragon and CentralWorld, and across the street of Siam Square. History The temple was founded in 1857 by King Mongkut (Rama IV) as a place of worship near his Sa Pathum Palace. At the time of its founding the area was still only rice fields, only accessible via the Khlong Saen Saeb. The temple is a third clas…

Centara Grand & Bangkok Convention Centre at CentralWorld is a hotel located in Pathum Wan District, Bangkok, Thailand. It is the flagship of Central Group's Centara Hotels and Resorts. Facilities The hotel includes a swimming pool, choice of restaurants and bars, fitness centre, spa, jacuzzi, sauna and steam rooms, business centre, two floodlit tennis courts and indoor parking. The Bangkok Convention Centre at CentralWorld has over 10,000 square metres of function space. The CentralWorld lifest…

CentralWorld (Thai: เซ็นทรัลเวิลด์, styled as centralwOrld) is a shopping plaza and complex in Bangkok, Thailand. It is the ninth largest shopping complex in the world. The complex, which includes a hotel and office tower, is owned by the company Central Pattana. In 2006, after three years of design and renovation, CentralWorld was expanded to of shopping mall and of complex, topping nearby rival Siam Paragon in terms of size. History World Trade Center Originally called the World Trade Center…

The Robot Building (, Thai: [tɯk̚˨˩.hun˨˩.jon˧], ), located in the Sathorn business district of Bangkok, Thailand, houses United Overseas Bank's Bangkok headquarters. It was designed for the Bank of Asia by Sumet Jumsai to reflect the computerization of banking; its architecture is a reaction against neoclassical and high-tech postmodern architecture. The building's features, such as progressively receding walls, antennas, and eyes, contribute to its robotic appearance and to its practical funct…

Sanam Luang (Thai: สนามหลวง, Thai: [sā.nǎːm lǔa̯ŋ]; lit: 'royal turf') is a open field and public square in front of Wat Phra Kaew and the Grand Palace, Bangkok, Thailand. Sanam Luang is in the Phra Nakhon District, the historic center of Bangkok. In the Royal Chronicle it was written that, "In front of Wat Mahathat, Sanam Luang lies between the Royal Palace and the Front Palace. When royal cremation was held at the Phra Men Ground, the pyre set up in the centre with the Royal Palace Pavilion t…

Queen Sirikit National Convention Center (QSNCC) (Thai: ศูนย์การประชุมแห่งชาติสิริกิติ์) or also known simply as Queen Sirikit Convention Center, is a convention center and exhibition hall in Bangkok, Thailand. The center is regarded as a public asset according to the Thai Ministry of Finance's Treasury Department. However, it has been managed by N.C.C. Management & Development Co., Ltd., a private firm, since its opening in 1991. The QSNCC was built to host events, especially conferences and e…

MBK Center, also known as Mahboonkrong (Thai: มาบุญครอง; , Thai: [māː.būn.kʰrɔ̄ːŋ]), is a large shopping mall in Bangkok, Thailand. At eight storeys, the center contains around 2,000 shops, restaurants and service outlets. In 2009, MBK Center management reported daily visitor numbers of more than 100,000, half of whom were young Thai people and a third foreign visitors. History MBK was the largest shopping mall in Asia when it opened in 1985. It is on land leased from the adjacent Chulalongkorn …

Wat Benchamabophit Dusitvanaram (Thai: วัดเบญจมบพิตรดุสิตวนาราม; ) is a Buddhist temple (wat) in the Dusit District of Bangkok, Thailand. Also known as the marble temple, it is one of Bangkok's best-known temples and a major tourist attraction. It typifies Bangkok's ornate style of high gables, stepped-out roofs and elaborate finials. Construction Construction of the temple began in 1899 at the request of King Chulalongkorn after building his palace nearby. The temple's name literally means 'the…