Wat Chalong

A Review of Phuket’s Most Important Temple ✓

Wat Chalong, officially called Wat Chai Thararam, is the largest, most revered and most visited Buddhist temple in Phuket. It was built at the beginning of the 19th century. Chalong Temple is one of the Must-See places in Phuket, and we recommend combining it with a visit to the nearby Big Buddha of Phuket, as they are relatively close.

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Most Thai people make merit in the central temple by offering lotus flowers and adding a small piece of gold paper to the monks’ statues inside.

Once in a while, you will hear loud explosions of firecrackers coming from a brick oven-like construction. That’s another way to make merit, supposedly to show gratitude when one of your wishes comes true. One person stands by to light the firecrackers for you; the big ones are pretty scary but make fun photos.

A dozen small shops sell souvenirs and tourist goods on the temple side. Strangely, the shops selling religious items are outside the temple grounds, next to the gate.

There are occasional funfairs displaying lots of food, plenty of favourite Thai games, and big-stage performances. It’s always fun, noisy, and entertaining and will undoubtedly give you exciting opportunities to take fun photos and insight into Thai life.

Inside the Chedi

The tallest building on the temple grounds is a 60-meter-tall stupa (chedi) sheltering a bone fragment of Lord Buddha. Beautiful paintings retracing the most significant Buddha’s life steps decorate the walls and ceilings of the temple. Each floor is also full of large, donated golden statues.

The chedi (stupa) of Chalong Temple is built on three floors, so feel free to climb to the top terrace to get a beautiful bird’s view of the entire temple grounds. A few more steps will lead you to a glass display where you can contemplate the fragment of bone.

You can see the nearby Phuket Big Buddha from there, but you can see it almost anywhere in the southern part of Phuket island.

Is there a dress code at Wat Chalong?

There is no strict dress code for visiting Chalong Temple. Theoretically, you should wear long pants and no sleeveless shirts on the temple’s grounds, but this requirement seems to belong to a past era. There is no need to tell you to remove your shoes before entering any of the buildings; you hopefully already know that. A sea of shoes randomly abandoned in front of the temple will remind you anyway.

• There is no entry fee.
• Dress respectfully.
• Take off your shoes and remove caps or hats when entering a building.

Making merit with firecrackers!

Firecrackers are often used in Thai temples to make merit, express gratitude, or celebrate special occasions such as festivals and ceremonies. In Thai culture, making merit is a significant aspect of Buddhism and involves performing good deeds or acts of generosity to accumulate positive karma.

Wat Chalong Fair

Wat Chalong Fair is a festival with stage performances, firecrackers, chaotic markets and spinning carnival rides. For about 10 days each year, Phuket’s largest temple hosts such an event. Every year during the Chinese New Year holiday, big crowds flock to Wat Chalong for its week-long fun fair.

The Big Buddha near Wat Chalong

Phuket Big Buddha, the most iconic landmark of Phuket Island, is just 6 km east of Wat Chalong and is often included in day trip tours.

Photos of Wat Chalong

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