Wat Chalong

Phuket’s most important temple

Wat Chalong, or Chalong Temple (officially Wat Chai Thararam), is the largest, most revered and most visited Buddhist temple in Phuket. According to some sources, it was built at the beginning of the 19th century, 1837. Chalong Temple is one of the Must-See places in Phuket, and the nearby Big Buddha of Phuket, as they are relatively close.

Wat Chalong Video

The central temple is where most Thai people will make merit by offering lotus flowers and adding a small piece of gold paper to the monk’s 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.

On the temple side, a dozen small shops sell all kinds of souvenirs and tourist stuff. But, strangely, the shops selling religious items are outside the temple ground, 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 meters 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.

360 Panorama

Is there a dress code at Wat Chalong?

There is no strict dress code for visiting Chalong Temple. In theory, 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.

Useful Tips

Wat Chalong is a nice stop on the way to the nearest exciting point: the Big Buddha, the most iconic landmark of Phuket Island.

Where to eat near Wat Chalong

We Cafe Chaofa

 

We Cafe Chaofa is a large restaurant that serves a vast array of international, western and Thai dishes at a very good price, located not far from Wat Chalong. We Cafe has been around for many years and has grown to three restaurants around Phuket and one in Bangkok.

Distance to Wat Chalong: 2.4 km
Open: 10 am – 9 pm
Phone: 088 752 1352

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Photos of Wat Chalong

Street View

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