Wat Puag Hong

Wat Puag Hong’s reason for a detour is its chedi: seven circular tiers stacked largest to smallest, each ringed with niches holding Buddha images — 52 in total — rising from a square base and three-tiered round platform. It dates to 1487, built during the reign of the Lanna king Yot Chiang Rai, and it’s a genuinely rare form. Only two other Chiang Mai temples, Wat Ram Poeng and Wat Chedi Plong, share this stepped, bell-less silhouette; historians trace it either to Yunnanese architectural influence or to a circular reworking of the stepped Mon-style chedi at Wat Ku Kut in Lamphun. Entry is free.

The name itself gets misreported: “puak” refers to a faction or group of lower-ranking nobility, and “hong” means swan, so the temple’s name points to a noble faction associated with the swan rather than any “red swan” story sometimes attached to it online. Stucco swans still decorate the front of the viharn, a native Lanna-style building with a three-tiered roof, chofah roof ornaments shaped like the mythical bird-creature Garuda, and a pair of chinthe (lion-like guardian figures) at the entrance — a detail more commonly seen at Burmese temples. Carved wooden window shutters depict scenes from the Buddha’s life, and the principal image inside, a bronze Buddha in the Maravijaya posture, also dates from the Yot Chiang Rai era.

Insider Tip: Walk a full circuit around the chedi’s base rather than viewing it head-on from the gate — the seven tiers and their Buddha niches only really register in profile, and it’s easy to underestimate the structure from the street.

Because it sits off the main old-city temple circuit that runs between Wat Phra Singh and Wat Chedi Luang, Wat Puag Hong rarely sees the same footfall as its more famous neighbours. That’s part of the appeal: a working temple where you can look closely at the chedi without competing for space, and where the monks going about ordinary routines aren’t performing for a tour group.

Dress modestly — shoulders and knees covered — and remove your shoes before entering the viharn. It’s an easy walk or short songthaew ride from the old city’s main temples: pair it with Wat Chedi Luang for Chiang Mai’s most famous chedi, or Wat Ku Tao for another of the city’s unusual chedi shapes, both a short ride away in central Chiang Mai.