Tours to Temple of the Emerald Buddha, Bangkok

Part of the Grand Palace complex, Wat Phra Kaeo is the cultural highlight of any visit to the Thai capital, Bangkok. Its elegantly tapering, gilded spires and pagoda roofs rise from the banks of the Chao Phraya River in the centre of the city, where the Kings of Siam maintained their official residence between 1782 and 1925. The chapel’s spiritual nerve centre is a 60-cm tall Buddha statue carved not from emerald, as its name would suggest, but jadeite, bedecked in specially made gold clothes and jewellery. Pilgrims from all the Buddhist world come here each day to pay their respects, along with streams of foreign tourists.Part of the Grand Palace complex, Wat Phra Kaeo is the cultural highlight of any visit to the Thai capital, Bangkok. Its elegantly tapering, gilded spires and pagoda roofs rise from the banks of the Chao Phraya River in the centre of the city, where the Kings of Siam maintained their official residence between 1782 and 1925. The chapel’s spiritual nerve centre is a 60-cm tall Buddha statue carved not from emerald, as its name would suggest, but jadeite, bedecked in specially made gold clothes and jewellery. Pilgrims from all the Buddhist world come here each day to pay their respects, along with streams of foreign tourists.