Amazing Unseen Thailand Palace: Phra Nakhon Khiri (Khao Wang)
ABSOLUTELY IMPRESSIVE.
Most people probably are not aware of the palace’s existence because it’s not famous and not located in Bangkok.
This was my first visit. I came across images of Phra Nakhon Khiri Palace, aka “Khao Wang”, while searching for local restaurants in Hua Hin.
Generally, I appreciate an aged place and nature. So, this palace seems to be my kind of place. The only way to find out is to go there to see for myself.
And…the result is as mentioned earlier “ABSOLUTELY IMPRESSIVE”.
Where is Phra Nakhon Khiri Palace?
Do you know Hua Hin?
Hua Hin is about three hours from Bangkok. If you are driving to Hua Hin, you will use Highway 4 or Phetkasem Road. Khao Wang is nearly halfway there.
It is in Petchaburi, the same province as Hua Hin.
In case you’re confused, Hua Hin is not a province, it’s a district, which is part of Petchaburi province.
History of Phra Nakhon Khiri
Phra Nakhon Khiri (Khao Wang) in 1946, a picture from the National Archives of Thailand.
Phra Nakhon Khiri is the royal palace built by His Majesty King Mongkut (Rama IV) in 1859, which includes throne halls, royal villas, and several buildings made of wood, bricks, and cement.
In 1883, His Majesty King Chulalongkorn (Rama V) was pleased to restore the entire palace with the purpose of using it as a temporary home to rest and welcome his guests. Then it was completely abandoned because no royalty members had visited since then.
His Majesty King Bhumibol Adulyadej (Rama IX) personally visited there till 1953 and saw the abandonment of the palace, everything was neglected. So, he made a decision to restore the palace to its former glory.
In 1979, 26 years later, Phra Nakhon Khiri was declared to be a national museum by the Fine Art Department and officially opened to the public in 1989.
Let’s start the journey
There are two entrances that you can follow on Google Maps, the locations are precise.
Entrance 1: Google Maps will lead you to the front entrance if you search “Phra Nakhon Khiri (Khao Wang)”. You can park your car around the public park nearby. However, you need to walk up the hill to reach the palace.
Entrance 2: You can take a cable car to the palace. Search for “Khao Wang Cable Car”
Actually, I was at entrance 1 and get confused because I didn’t see anyone walking up there. it was weird that no tourists at all.
So, I changed my mind and went to entrance 2 instead and finally see some people…haha
Riding a Cable Car
The cable car ticket is 50 baht/person (round trip). It departs every 5-10 minutes, I think.
Reaching the top
When you reach the top of Phra Nakhon Khiri’s hill, you must purchase another ticket to enter the palace (museum).
- Thai = 20 THB
- Foreigner = 150 THB
Full of Trees and Monkeys
There are many buildings but this one doesn’t allow you to wear shoes inside. Right at the gate, the staff will give you a bag to put your shoes in. Photography is prohibited inside the building.
Beware of monkeys, they’re all over the place, but don’t worry, you can just stroll right past them. If you don’t feed them, they won’t bother you at all.
By the way, DO NOT STARE at them. I did once because it looked at me. I made direct eye contact for just a few seconds and the monkey started to act differently (I can notice from its face). So I suddenly averted my gaze.
I believe that eye contact can provoke money since it feels threatening.
Strolling Around
I noticed that other people got a map but I did not. Not sure where they get it from. Perhaps at the ticket booth…
So, without a map, I just wandered around.
I didn’t explore the entire area of Phra Nakhon Khiri, because it was late afternoon and we (my girlfriend and I) didn’t have lunch yet.
And she was so “hangry”. That means I better leave this palace now and find good food as soon as possible! haha
I spent approximately an hour in this palace, but I recommend spending two hours so you can slow down and explore the entire area.
Last but not least, if you plan to travel to Hua Hin, spare time for this Phra Nakhon Khiri Palace. It is an excellent choice to visit this hidden gem.
Please make time to go; it’s worthwhile.