Wat Arun Temple in Bangkok

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On our second day in Bangkok, we planned to visit the Grand Palace.

The hotel concierge helped us get a taxi and specifically informed the driver to send us to the Grand Palace but as soon as we started our journey, the taxi driver told us that we will need to walk a bit to the Grand Palace as vehicles are not allowed into the area due to the daily prayers (during the mourning period) after the death of King Bhumibol Adulyadej that is on-going until October. 

It was mid day and the Sun was right above our head hence we did not want to walk under the scorching hot weather so we changed our plan and headed to Wat Arun instead. 

Wat Arun (or Temple of Dawn), locally known as Wat Chaeng, is situated on the west (Thonburi) bank of the Chao Phraya River.

The entrance fee to Wat Arun is 50 Baht for foreigners. 

Only Darling and I needed to pay the entrance fee. Ethan and Ayden went in for free. 

Wat Arun is probably the most recognizable landmark in Bangkok (after the Grand Palace).

It is one of the most remarkable temples in Bangkok as the design is unique to the other temples you can visit in Bangkok. 

The most captivating feature of this temple is its 70m tall spire (called prang) that towers over the Yai district and the Chao Phraya River. 

The colourful spires are beautiful close-up as well as from afar. 

The temple was undergoing some restoration works hence we were unable to climb right to the top.

Even if the restoration work is not in place, I doubt if I’ll be able to climb right to the top as the stairs here are pretty steep and for me to climb and getting down the stairs with my camera and tripod is extremely challenging. 

It was also extremely hot here. As shown in the picture above, the shadow indicates that the Sun is right above our head. Ayden walked around with that umbrella; not able to see anything in front of him 

The Daddy treated the boys ice-cream. Can you see how flushed Ethan is? That was how hot it was. 

Nevertheless, we still managed to get a good family picture here at Wat Arun despite all of us melting under the scorching heat. 

Wat Arun is beautiful during the day but is magnificent when the Sun goes down. It stands out; shining majestically in the heart of the city when it is illuminated in the evening. 

We managed to get a picture with the illuminated Temple of Dawn during our river cruise trip on our last day in Bangkok.

You can read about our river dinner cruise here.

Wat Arun
Opening hours: 8:00am-6:30pm
Entrance fee: THB 50