Bangkok to Ayutthaya Day Trip: Exploring Thailand’s Historic City

There are many different places that you can go to for a side-trip when visiting Bangkok and one of those is Ayutthaya. In this blog post, I will share the highlight of our third day in Thailand, our side-trip from Bangkok to the UNESCO World Heritage Site, the Historic City of Ayutthaya. A day trip to the Historic City of Ayutthaya offers an unforgettable experience for those who are interested in seeing historic sites.

Brief History of the Historic City of Ayutthaya

The Historic City of Ayutthaya was founded in the 14th century and flourished until the 18th century during the Siamese Kingdom. Back then, it served as the Siamese Kingdom’s centre of economy, politics, religion, and diplomatic ties. It was built in a strategic location, far and protected from the expanding Arab and European nations and other surrounding nations’ warships, plus equidistant between India and China, two nations that were vital in its trade relations. Aside from these, the historic city also had an advanced and unique water management system being amidst three rivers. Unfortunately, in the 18th century, the Burmese army destroyed the city which led to its desertion. Nowadays the Thai government and non-government organizations continue to protect the historic city of Ayuttahaya through both national and local laws, and continues to work on plans, projects, and further research for its rebuilding and preservation.

Some Tips when Visiting the Historic City of Ayutthaya

Going around the Historic City of Ayutthaya can be hot and humid. It’s best to wear light clothes, comfortable shoes, apply sunscreen, and take a bottle of water with you as go from one site to another. This way, you’d stay comfortable and enjoy the day sightseeing and listening to the histories of each temple ruins from a tour guide, like we did with Trip Guru. It is also best to spend a full day for this day tour to cover at least the highlights of the Historic City.

Another important reminder is to remember to be mindful and respectful of the sites. Avoid posing at certain areas of the stupas, prangs, and Buddha statues as shown in the photo below. Despite it being deserted, this historic city of Ayutthaya remains to have centuries-old temples that should still be respected.

Some of the Temples around the Historic City of Ayutthaya

Wat Phra Si Sanphet

We were immediately greeted by a large reclining Buddha at the entrance then, further into its grounds is the temple itself— an imposing central stupa with two seated Buddha’s on its sides.

During our visit we climbed up to the central stupa, which I remember was a relatively quick and easy climb as the steps were not too high apart from one another. However, some of the steps had become narrow that it would still be advisable to go slow as you go up to avoid accidents. 

At the top and inside the stupa is a wishing well surrounded by a few seated Buddha statues. Here we had the chance to pose with the Buddha statues. 

After a few minutes of appreciating the well, the statues, and the view from the top, we then headed back down to the base and went to a shaded area where we rested for a few minutes then posed for some pictures with the surrounding smaller Buddha statues.

Wat Mahathat

Wat Mahathat is most famous for the Buddha head that has become entwined with a Banyan tree’s large roots. We headed straight to this icon as soon as we arrived only to be surprised that there was already a line of tourists waiting for their turn to have their photos taken with it. When our turn came, like the others before us, we sat on the ground in front of the root-entwined Buddha head and had our pictures taken.

After this, we went to the prang of Wat Mahathat, took photos, and went around its grounds. Here, we noticed how most of the bodies of the seated Buddha statues were cut in half or completely broken. Our tour guide then explained that we would find these often around the historic city as this was the way of the Burmese army then to desecrate the Buddhist temples of Siam.

Wihan Phra Mongkhon Bophit

From ruins of the historic city of Ayutthaya we then visited an existing shrine, Wihan Phra Mongkhon Bophit. This shrine keeps one of the largest bronze Buddha images of Thailand. Its total height was almost 17 meters.

At the entrance, we took off our shoe as a sign of respect, just like in other Buddhist temples. There were many other tourists and locals who came to pray so we went around its building quietly and mindfully while admiring the size of the Buddha image. 

Wat Chaiwatthanaram

Our last stop was at Wat Chaiwatthanaram, another iconic place to visit in the historic city of Ayutthaya mainly for its Khmer style prang that resembles the ones found in another ancient city of Angkor Wat. Our visit was brief at that time as the surrounding prangs were being restored.

Thoughts from the Day Trip around Ayutthaya

We left the Historic city of Ayutthaya late in the afternoon feeling exhausted from all the walking around the sites we visited, including our first stop at Bang Pa-In Palace. And while sitting in the van on the way back to Bangkok, I remember realizing how impermanent and fragile things are regardless of a city’s grandiosity, advancement, and sophistication. I wondered how historic sites like this, a thriving cosmopolitan that flourished for centuries could be reduced into a deserted place in a matter of a year like how the Historic city of Ayutthaya is now. 

Visiting the Historic city of Ayutthaya is an amazing experience for me, being that I am always at awe at how hard-working and creative the people were during the old days to be able to build such a great city when technology and knowledge was much more limited compared to what we have now. Sometimes, it also makes me wonder how different things would have been if cosmopolitans like the Historic city of Ayutthaya continued to exist today.