10 Awesome Things to Do and See at The Grand Palace Bangkok – A Complete Guide For First Timers

The wife and I visited the Grand Palace in Bangkok one morning after breakfast at Kope Hya Tai Ke. While this is definitely a beautiful and majestic attraction, it was also super crowded and hot. Therefore, I have created this guide on things to do and see at Grand Palace, so that you can make the most of your visit instead of wandering aimlessly amidst the crowds in the scorching weather. Note that this is far from being a complete list, because the Grand Palace is a large complex. If you want a more complete experience, you can check out this 1.5 hour guided tour, a fuss-free experience that also includes shuttle bus transport to the palace.

Table of Contents

Five-Minute History of The Grand Palace
1. Phra Si Rattana Chedi
2. Phra Mondop
3. Phra Wiharn Yod
4. Demon Guardians
5. Ramakien Paintings
6. The Temple of The Emerald Buddha (Wat Phra Kaew)
7. Belfry
8. Phra Asadha Maha Chedi
9. Chakri Maha Prasat Throne Hall
10. The Temple of the Emerald Buddha Museum
Map of Grand Palace
Dress Code
How to Go Grand Palace
Where to Buy Grand Palace Tickets
Useful Tips
Conclusion

Five-Minute History of The Grand Palace

The Grand Palace is the official residence of Thailand’s king.

It was built in 1782 after King Rama I decided to shift the capital from Thonburi to Bangkok. Due to a lack of funds and time, the palace was originally built entirely out of wood.

Amazingly, this initial complex was completed in just one month!

Over the next few years, the wooden structures were gradually with masonry, using bricks salvaged from ruins in the old capital city of Ayutthaya.

Successive kings added new structures and buildings to the palace, and it eventually became the spectacular complex we see today.

By 1925, the King and Royal Family no longer stayed in the Grand Palace. With the abolition of absolute monarchy in 1932, all government institutions were relocated out of the palace too.

Today, the Grand Palace is best known for being a popular tourist attraction. Below I have listed down 10 popular things to see and do in the palace.

1. Phra Si Rattana Chedi

Phra Si Rattana Chedi is a shimmering gold stupa that enshrines the ashes of Buddha. It is one of the most iconic structures of the Grand Palace.

It was erected in 1855 by King Rama IV and is built in Sri Lankan architectural style.

As you can see from the photo above, this is a large majestic structure. I had to step back quite a bit to see the stupa in its entirety.

2. Phra Mondop

The Phra Mondop is a beautiful Buddhist library that houses sacred Buddhist scriptures. It was built by King Rama I in 1789.

This dazzling structure is covered in a weave of traditional Thai tiles and glittering gold medallions.

The outer walls of the library offer good photo opportunities. Personally, I felt that this was one of the most beautiful structures in the Grand Palace. This secretive building is never open to the public.

3. Phra Wiharn Yod

The Phra Wiharn Yod is a chapel containing many Buddha statues. It is designed in the shape of a Thai crown and is covered with colourful porcelain mosaic tiles from China.

4. Demon Guardians

The Demon Guardians are large majestic statues located around the Grand Palace. They are key mythological figures in the Ramakien, which is Thailand’s national epic.

There are six pairs of statues in total. Most of them face the direction of the Emerald Buddha (see no.6 below), symbolically protecting the Buddha from evil spirits.

I was impressed by the large size and intricate details of these statues and took many photos of them.

5. Ramakien Paintings

As I walked around the Grand Palace, I saw many beautiful paintings portraying scenes from Ramakien, Thailand’s national epic.

The immense artwork consists of 178 sections that goes around the Grand Palace in a clockwise direction, starting from the Dusit Maha Prasat Hall.

In a nutshell, the story depicts how King Rama saves his queen from Tosakanth (the king of demons).

6. The Temple of The Emerald Buddha (Wat Phra Kaew)

Can you spot the Emerald Buddha at the top?

The Temple of The Emerald Buddha (Wat Phra Kaew) is a famous temple that enshrines the Emerald Buddha (Phra Kaew Morakot), a highly revered Buddha statue carved from a single block of jade.

It is regarded as the most sacred Buddhist temple in Thailand.

The king changes the glittering gold cloak around the Emerald Buddha statue three times a year, corresponding to the summer, winter, and rainy seasons.

No one is allowed to touch the Emerald Buddha except for the Thai king, and in his stead, the crown prince.

When I first saw the statue, I was a little surprised by its small size (66cm tall). However, the large golden pedestal was resplendent. I spent a few minutes standing in silence to admire the beauty of the statue and the pedestal, before being jostled out by the crowds of tourists.

There is a small prayer space in front of the pedestal, but it is reserved for Thai locals only.

Note that for some reason you are not allowed to take pictures of the statue, but I couldn’t resist and snapped a quick contraband photo before leaving.

7. Belfry

The Belfry is a beautiful Thai-style bell tower covered in green and blue porcelain mosaic tiles. The bell is only rung on certain special occasions, such as when a new Supreme Patriarch of Thailand is nominated.

8. Phra Asadha Maha Chedi

There are eight Phra Asadha Maha Chedis in the Grand Palace, typically used to house the relics of Buddhist monks or nuns.

Each of them has a different colour to represent different Buddhist branches.

These chedis were built during the reign of King Rama I. They are also known as “prangs” or towers.

It was to miss these large towers as I strolled around the complex. They are quite beautiful and are covered in Thai-style motifs.

9. Chakri Maha Prasat Throne Hall

The Chakri Maha Prasat Throne Hall is a three-storied royal building used for holding state banquets. It was built in 1877 during the reign of King Rama V.

I was intrigued by this structure because its lower portion is built in classic European style while the roof is decorated with traditional Thai spires.

I did some googling and found out that this is because a British architect had originally planned to build three European-style domes on top of the building. However, at that advice of his regent, King Rama V had them changed to spires instead.

10. The Temple of the Emerald Buddha Museum

The Temple of the Emerald Buddha Museum (Wat Phra Keo Museum) showcases the temple’s history and artifacts related to the Emerald Buddha.

The air-conditioned building also serves as a welcome escape from Bangkok’s hot weather. Outside the museum, we saw some old British army cannons.

Map of Grand Palace

Click to enlarge

Using the official Grand Palace map, I have created a map above listing down the attractions mentioned in this article. Please refer to the yellow circles only.

I did not indicate the locations of the Demon Guardians (No 4), Ramakien Paintings (No 5), and Phra Asadha Maha Chedi (No 8) because these attractions are spread around the palace.

Dress Code

Do note that the Grand Palace has an extremely strict dress code. If your attire is deemed to be inappropriate you will need to rent (THB50 with THB100 refundable deposit) or buy (THB100) clothes at the palace. Below are the clothing restrictions:

• No sleeveless shirt
• No vest
• No short top
• No see through top
• No short hot pants or short pants
• No torn pants
• No tight pants
• No bike pants
• No mini skirt
• No jeans*

*I wore jeans during my visit and didn’t encounter any issues.

How to Go Grand Palace

Entrance of Grand Palace

By Metro
Take the metro to the new Sanam Chai MRT Station on the blue line. From the station, walk for 15 minutes or take a 10-minute Grab ride to the Grand Palace.

By Boat
Take the metro to Saphan Taksin BTS Station and walk to the adjacent Sathorn Pier. From the pier, take the “orange flag” (THB15), “green flag” (THB20) or “no flag” (THB13) boat to Tha Chang Pier (N9). You can buy the boat ticket at the pier or on the boat. After alighting at Tha Chang Pier, walk straight for 5 minutes along the large white wall on your right, and you will reach the palace entrance!

Where to Buy Grand Palace Tickets

The queue in the middle is for collection of online tickets

You can buy tickets (THB500) either directly at the Grand Palace or online. There is no difference in the price between the two methods.

I bought my tickets online, and had to collect the physical copies at the Grand Palace on the day itself.

According to online forums, buying tickets online will let get you into the Grand Palace faster. That wasn’t the case for me though.

I went at around 10.30am on a Sunday, and actually waited longer to collect my online tickets than people who bought tickets directly in another queue.

Perhaps it was because there were two queues to buy tickets directly while there was only one queue (the middle queue) for collection of online tickets.

Useful Tips

Toilet near the ticket office

1. If you have a keen interest in the Grand Palace, you can consider taking this 1.5 hour guided tour, which includes shuttle bus transport to the palace.

2. Go EARLY to avoid the crowds. The palace opens at 8.30am. We went at 10.30am and the place was already swarmed with tour groups.

3. Alternatively, go in the late afternoon. Some people have mentioned in online forums that the palace was relatively empty when they went at around 2pm (the palace closes at 3.30pm). Perhaps it’s because most tour groups usually arrive in the mornings.

4. If you wish, you can rent a personal audio guide for THB200.

5. Refer to the map above to see the toilets’ locations. There is one toilet near the ticket office, which is a convenient pit stop before you start your palace tour.

6. Thankfully, we did not see any touters or scammers when we were walking to the Grand Palace entrance. It seems that these annoying folks have finally been banned from the area. However, when leaving the palace, we did encounter one touter who kept pestering us to engage her transport services. We simply ignored her and walked away.

7. The Grand Palace ticket also grants access to two other attractions: the Queen Sirikit Museum of Textiles and the “Khon-Thai Classical Masked Dance” show at Sala Chalermkrung Royal Theatre. We did not check out these attractions though.

Conclusion

I am happy to have visited the Grand Palace in Bangkok, which is a gorgeous attraction that is steeped in history. However, the wife and I only spent about one hour exploring the complex because the scorching Bangkok weather and swarms of tourists were simply too overwhelming. This was not helped by the fact that the Grand Palace does not allow cooler clothing like singlets and shorts. I’m glad to have checked this iconic Thai attraction off my list, though I doubt I will return for a second visit. You can check out the official Grand Palace website for more details on its history, architecture, opening hours, etc.

The Grand Palace
Address: Na Phra Lan Road, Grand Palace, Phranakorn, Bangkok 10200, Thailand
Opening Hours: Daily 8.30am to 3.30pm
Phone: +66 2 623 5500

This article is part of our completely free and fantastic Ultimate Bangkok Travel Guide. Why spend days researching when all your holiday information is simply a click away?