Wat Phra That Suthon Mongkhon Khiri

An 85-metre Burmese-style reclining Buddha stretches along the entrance to Wat Phra That Suthon Mongkhon Khiri, the first thing visitors see on arrival and the reason most people make the trip to Den Chai. Despite the traditional Lanna ornamentation throughout the complex, the temple is modern — built in 1977 on 25 rai of land donated by local villagers, not a historic site in the archaeological sense. Entry is free, open daily 08:30-17:00.

The reclining Buddha sets the tone: gilded, elongated, and built specifically to evoke the Burmese-style reclining figures found across northern Thailand’s border regions, where Shan and Burmese temple-building traditions have long mixed with Lanna style. Behind the main ordination hall, the complex holds around 30 chedis of varying sizes, along with prayer halls decorated with the naga-serpent staircases, murals, and gilded roof tiers typical of a well-funded modern Lanna temple. The chedi enshrined with relics gives the temple its “Phra That” name, and it remains an active site for merit-making — locals come to light incense and leave lotus offerings at the shrine altars rather than treat it purely as a photo stop.

Insider Tip: Walk the full length of the reclining Buddha rather than just photographing the head end — the scale only registers once you’ve paced out all 85 metres, and the murals along the base plinth are easy to miss from a distance.

The temple sits in Den Chai district, Phrae province, on the road toward Lampang — its address (Den Chai-Long Road) sits close enough to the provincial border that a lot of secondary sources mislabel it as a Lampang attraction. It isn’t: Den Chai’s town centre, train station, and the Phrae hub itself are the closer reference points.

Watch out: Because the complex is spread out and built for photo-friendly scale rather than a single quiet hall, midday sees more coach groups here than at Phrae’s older, smaller temples. Early morning keeps the crowds down and the light better for the gilded surfaces.

Dress modestly (covered shoulders, long trousers) and remove shoes before entering the prayer halls. Small bills are useful if you want to make a donation or buy lotus offerings from vendors near the entrance. Den Chai is about 20 km south of Phrae town on Highway 101, a straightforward 25-30 minute drive, and Den Chai’s own train station on the Bangkok-Chiang Mai line makes the temple an easy stop if you’re already routing through by rail.