Dragon Boat Festival Overseas Trip~Grand Palace, Bangkok, Thailand

Dragon Boat Festival long weekend~Of course, it's time to travel abroad!
The Grand Palace (Phra Borom Maharatchawang) is a former royal residence in Bangkok, completed in 1782.
This palace complex, covering 94.5 hectares, is part of a larger complex that includes the sacred Temple of the Emerald Buddha (Wat Phra Kaew), consisting of over 100 buildings representing 200 years of royal history and architectural experimentation.
Most buildings, whether royal or religious, are classified as Rattanakosin style (Old Bangkok style). Visitors can tour the Grand Palace grounds and the four existing palace buildings, which are notable for their royal splendor.
Please allow two to three hours to thoroughly explore this attraction, or an additional hour if you join a guided tour.
The largest palace building open to the public is the three-winged Grand Palace Hall (Chakri Mahaprasat). Completed in 1882, it was designed by British architect John Clunish from Singapore, featuring a unique blend of Italian Renaissance and traditional Thai architecture.
This style is often called fa·ràng sài chá-dah (Westerners wearing traditional Thai dancer headdresses), as each wing's roof has a mon·dòp (tiered, ornate spire). It is believed the original plan was to design the palace roof as a dome, but King Rama V (Chulalongkorn; reigned 1868-1910) was persuaded to adopt a Thai-style roof. This decision is interpreted as a subversive disdain for foreign colonial powers in Asia at the time. Many believe the king used a Thai roof to decorate a Western-style palace hall to demonstrate Thai culture's dominance over European culture.
As with many attractions in Bangkok, you must wear clothing that respects local culture to enter the Grand Palace. This means proper attire is strictly enforced. Visitors should wear long skirts/pants and shirts with sleeves; sleeveless shirts, tank tops, shorts, or see-through tops are prohibited, as are short pants and three-quarter length pants/skirts. Visitors wearing torn or tight pants, cycling shorts, or miniskirts will also be denied entry.
If visitors are improperly dressed at the entrance, they will be taken to a dressing room and given a sarong before being allowed in, which increases queue time and causes unnecessary delays. There are no restrictions on footwear inside the palace, but please note you will need to remove your shoes to enter some buildings.

Tickets and Other Useful Information
Open from 8:30 AM to 3:30 PM
Tickets are sold inside the building for 500 THB. You can also visit the Temple of the Emerald Buddha and the Queen Sirikit Museum, both part of the complex.
Tickets can also be purchased in advance through the Grand Palace website. Guides can be hired at the ticket booth, or you can rent an audio guide for 200 THB.

Post by Alyssa Keir | Jun 1, 2025