This is the premier site to visit in Bangkok. Not only is it visually stunning, it also encapsulates so much of the Thai culture.

Getting There

The best way to get to the Grand Palace and Temple of the Emerald Buddha is by water taxi. The Taksin pier is at the end of the Skytrain, so whether you are coming from one of the river hotels or one of the hotels in the Sukhumvit or Silom areas, the water taxi is the way to go.

Water taxis have orange, yellow or no flag, which indicates which stops they make. There is a sign board at each stop, telling you which stops each type of boat makes. The Grand Palace and Temple of the Emerald Buddha is located between the Tha Tien (N8) and Tha Chang (N9) stops. You can disembark at either stop. The water taxi fare is collected by a woman shaking a container of coins. Depending on which type of water taxi you've boarded and where you boarded, the fare will be in the 14-25 baht range.

Water taxis are used by locals to commute, so this is a genuine Bangkok experience. I love watching life along the river and on the river!

When you get off the water taxi and walk down the dock, you come through a small market area and unto the street. You may find a tuk tuk driver or a "helpful" local standing by to tell you that the Palace is closed for the morning or that it's a Buddhist holiday and you can't see the Emerald Buddha until later. The driver is, of course, happy to take you to other Wats in the meantime. STOP! The Grand Palace and Temple of the Emerald Buddha are open 365 days a year.

There is a dress code for entering this complex: no shorts, no tank tops or sleeveless tops, no flip flops. You are asked to dress respectfully and behave respectfully here. This is both the holiest site in all of Thailand as it is the shrine of the Emerald Buddha, and it is the site most associated with the King of Thailand, the world's longest reigning monarch and beloved by the Thai people.

There are official guides available here if you would like to hire one. Whether or not you choose to employ a guide, do read the sections on this Grand Palace and the Temple of the Emerald Buddha in a good guidebook before you go. It will greatly enrich your experience of this site.

Historical accounts of the Emerald Buddha go back to 1434 in Chiang Rai, Northern Thailand where lightning struck a chedi (the name for a stupa in Thailand) where a stucco Buddha was housed. Due to the damage, this Buddha image was moved to an abbot's house. The abbot noticed that the stucco had flaked off to reveal a green tint underneath. The stucco was removed completely and the Emerald Buddha was revealed.

Chronicles of the Emerald Buddha have been found not only in Thailand (Chiang Mai), but also in Laos, Burma and Cambodia, giving some indication of the travels this special Buddha image made throughout the Buddhist kingdoms of SE Asia. The chronicles are filled with legendary stories passed down orally through the ages since the Buddha's paranirvana, or death.

According the the chronicles, the Emerald Buddha was created by the Buddhist sage, Nagasana, at the time of Siddhartha Gautama, or the historical Buddha's death about 543 B.C. to encourage continued flourishing of Buddhism. Lord Indra, the Aryan god of thunder and battle and the celestial architect Visukamma, procured the stone out from under the watchful eyes of a thousand genii on Mount Vipulla. Visukamma became the sculptor and the Emerald Buddha was born.

The Chronicles trace its movement from India to Sri Lanka to Burma to Cambodia to Northern Thailand to Laos and finally to Bangkok in the late 18th century.

The origins of the jade Buddha, known as the Emerald Buddha, are clouded in mystery. For many years, art historians assumed that the jade image was carved in India. Closer study by more recent art historians tracing both the legends surrounding the Emerald B and examining the image itself have posited that the Emerald Buddha was carved in Sri Lanka.