Wat Lat Sing

Wat Lat Sing sits in Ban Sa subdistrict, Sam Chuk district, on a roughly 35-rai plot beside Khlong Chonlaprathan Road. The temple’s name comes from a shortening of its original name, Wat Ratchasing — “royal lion temple” — and the paired stone lion (singh) figures still guarding the front of the main hall explain why. Local tradition also ties the site to Thai royal history: it’s said to have served as a military camp for King Naresuan the Great and King Ekkathotsarot before they marched to war against Burma, and the grounds now hold monuments to both kings alongside Princess Suphankalaya.

The temple’s main draw is Luang Pho Dam, a laterite Buddha image seated in the Mara-subduing pose (right hand touching the earth) and estimated at around 500 years old — considerably older than the surrounding halls. The assembly hall itself is a wooden sala built with brick and mortar reinforcement and decorative brickwork, a plainer and older-feeling style than the red-tiled Rattanakosin ordination halls common elsewhere in central Thailand.

Day to day, this is a working Mahanikaya-sect temple with resident monks and a steady trickle of local visitors making merit rather than a tour-bus stop — expect quiet grounds and the chance to look around at your own pace.

Insider Tip: Combine the trip with Sam Chuk Old Market, a well-preserved century-old riverside market a short drive away — the pairing makes a natural half-day loop out of Suphan Buri town.