This city
landmark should be the first place on any visitor's itinerary.
It is a huge compound with entrance on Na Phra Lan Road
near Sanam Luang, surrounded by high white walls and occupying
an area of about 260 hectares (2.6sqkm, 1sqmi). The palace
consists of several buildings with highly decorated architectural
details. The Royal Chapel, Wat Phra Kaeo, which is in the
same compound, houses the Emerald Buddha, the most sacred
Buddha image in Thailand. Photography is forbidden inside the
building housing the Emerald Buddha.
The complex
is open daily 8:30-12:00 and 13:00-15:30. Admission
fee is 100 Baht (including tickets to Wiman Mek Palace and the
Coin Pavilion). Proper dress (modest attire) is requested
- no shorts, sleeveless shirts or shower thongs.
Building of
the Grand or Royal Palace was begun after Bangkok was elevated
to be the national capital (1782) . The first part was
completed for the coronation of King Rama I.
The plan of
the palace followed the Ayutthaya sample: the river forms
a moat on one side; the site of the temple of the Emerald Buddha
corresponds to the placement of Wat Phra Si Sanphet in the old
royal palace at Ayutthaya. Many of the main buildings also resemble
those that where destroyed in Ayutthaya after the Burmese invasion.
The compound
houses a number of halls, residences and other buildings
which were built in the time of King Rama I (reigned 1782-1809).
Some structures were altered, renovated, enlarged, or razed to
make way for new buildings by later monarches. The palace compound
can be sub-divided into four complexes: the First Halls group,
the Dusit Maha Prasat group, the Chakri Maha Prasat Throne Hall
complex and the Boromphiman Hall complex.
