★★Worth it·Merit temple
Wat Hua Lamphong
วัดหัวลำโพง
The royal temple above MRT Sam Yan, famous for its coffin-donation ritual — merit made by giving the unclaimed dead a funeral. Genuinely Thai, genuinely moving.
The royal temple above MRT Sam Yan, famous for coffin donation — merit made by paying for caskets for the unclaimed dead. The practice is real charity, the atmosphere warm rather than morbid. Watch the volunteers work; donate if moved.
Hkgalbert Public domain · Boing! said Zebedee CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons · resized · tap to enlarge
Visiting
- Open
- daily
- Entry
- ฿40Foreigners, main compound (reportedly for renovation); Thais free. The Ruamkatanyu coffin-donation area is free and open 24 h; sponsoring a coffin is optional (~฿500)
- Dress
- Shoulders and knees covered
- Allow
- 20–30 min
No official opening hours published — check on the day.
Checked 10 Oct 2026 against openstreetmap.org, commons.wikimedia.org, timetravelturtle.com, yourthaiguide.com. Things change: closures for royal ceremonies and holidays are common.
Visiting a temple
- Shoulders and knees covered, for everyone. Sarongs are usually available at the gate, sometimes for a small deposit.
- Shoes come off before you step into an ordination hall — watch what everyone else is doing at the threshold.
- Most compounds open early, around 08:00, and close by 17:00–18:00; the major ones charge foreign visitors a small entry fee.
- Early morning is cooler, quieter and far better light than midday.
Check current entry fee and today's closing time when you arrive — we have no verified official site for this one.
Getting there
- Sam Yan·MRT Blue Line~1 min walk
- Sala Daeng·BTS Silom Line~10 min walk
- Si Lom·MRT Blue Line~14 min walk
- Chong Nonsi·BTS Silom Line~15 min walk
Typical times, not a timetable · rail, boat and BRT routing runs right in the atlas.
While you're here
- Samyan Mitrtown·Lifestyle mall~6 min walk
- Snake Farm·Serpentarium~6 min walk
- Patpong·Night market & bars~6 min walk
- Soi Thaniya·Little Tokyo lane~8 min walk
The neighbourhood
Wat Hua Lamphong sits in Silom & Bang Rak — Money by day, mischief by night.