Wat Phutthaisawan

Wat Phutthaisawan sits on the west bank of the Chao Phraya River in Samphao Lom subdistrict, across the water from Ayutthaya’s old city island. King U-Thong, later Ramathibodi I, first settled here in 1350 at a site the Royal Chronicles call Wiang Lek — three years before he declared Ayutthaya his capital in 1353. A plague soon forced him to move the royal residence to the site now occupied by Wat Phra Si Sanphet, and he had this temple built on the abandoned settlement to mark where the kingdom’s story began. Later Ayutthaya kings kept up the tradition of adding permanent structures here, and the temple is also known as the home of the Phutthaisawan sword school, a krabi krabong (Thai sword-fighting) lineage that traces its teaching back to the Ayutthaya period and still trains students today.

Unlike many of Ayutthaya’s ruins, Wat Phutthaisawan survived the Burmese destruction of the city in 1767 largely intact, so its main Khmer-style prang still stands on its original raised base rather than as a bare footprint. Two mandapas flank it, each sheltering a principal Buddha image, with an assembly hall set to the west of the prang and a dozen smaller chedis scattered through the monastic quarter. A separate hall houses a reclining Buddha image, and the former residence of Somdet Phra Phutthakosajarn — a senior Ayutthaya-era monk — still stands within the grounds.

The riverside setting keeps the temple quieter than the central Historical Park sites; boat traffic on the Chao Phraya and the surrounding trees give it a more lived-in, working-monastery feel than the roped-off ruins on the island.

Insider Tip: Cross the river by the small local ferry from the city side rather than driving around — it’s cheaper and drops you closer to the temple gate. Phra Chedi Sisuriyothai is also on the west bank, so it’s an easy add-on before heading back across.

Watch out: There’s little shade once you’re among the ruins themselves, so early morning or late afternoon light avoids the worst of the midday heat.