The Royal Palace at Bang Pa-In

[Big Boy]

The Royal Palace at Bang Pa-In

Unfortunately, my photography is not up to such elegance, but here is a slideshow: http://www.flickr.com/photos/8517813@N0 ... 77746/show

On our way home from Ayutthaya, we stopped off at Bang Pa-In to look around the Royal Palace (not allowed to take pictures inside the buildings).

It was quite funny when we arrived. It was a thunderstorm from Hell, and the rain was really bad. There were armed guards on the gate, but because of the rain, they were not coming out. I just drove straight in and parked up about 500 yards from the pay kiosk. We could have just toured the place without paying then, but I gave Mrs BB an umbrella so that she could walk pack to pay (only 200 Baht [£4] for 3 people and car parking). How much would it cost for 3 people to visit Buckingham Palace, and leave the car in the front yard?

We tried to hire a golf cart to drive around the grounds, but that was not permitted in the rain. So off we walked in torrential rain (and about an inch of surface water) - I'm stilll sporting a massive bandage which is not allowed to get wet. Fortunately the rain stopped after 10 minutes, and somehow, I did manage to keep the bandage quite dry.

The grounds of the palace were beautiful, and inside the buildings was awesome. I've been to a few palaces in Thailand, but this was definitely Premiere League, and the others are League 2 in comparison. Obviously as a 'current' palace still occupied occassionally, there were a few places out of bounds, but it was surprising how much freedom and access we were given. One of the highlights was the ability to go up inside a large Chinese Pagoda to see everything from above.

Definitely worth a visit if you're in the area.

[STEVE G]

That does look spectacular BB, I've just had a look on the map and parts of that Palace must be the gilded roofs you can see in the distance when you exit Highway 9 at Wang Noi interchange so I'll have to make a detour next time and pay a visit as it's obviously not far out of the way.

[Big Boy]

That's right, just a couple of miles off the main highway, just before Saraburi. Bang Pa-In is well signposted. Well worth a couple of hours - a real insight into how the other half live. The grounds are massive, with a street of princess's mansions stuck in one corner. I wasn't allowed to take photos inside, but the furniture and decor are out this world - no plastic seats for those guys

[Nereus]

That's right, just a couple of miles off the main highway, just before Saraburi.

Not trying to steal your thunder Big Boy, but Bang Pa-In is not just before Saraburi. It is at least 60 Kms from the interchange to Saraburi.

[Big Boy]

Not stealing my thunder - genuine mistake. Is Saraburi really that much further? The road splits, one way for Bang Pa-In, and the other for Saraburi.

Anyway, less than 40 miles isn't really that far.

[Nereus]

Not stealing my thunder - genuine mistake. Is Saraburi really that much further? The road splits, one way for Bang Pa-In, and the other for Saraburi.
Anyway, less than 40 miles isn't really that far.

It is not only the distance, but that is probably the most used road in Thailand, and can take up to 2 hours to get there.

[STEVE G]

Anyway, from looking at the map it's only about 5 Km from the Wang Noi end of Highway 9.

[Big Boy]

It is not only the distance, but that is probably the most used road in Thailand, and can take up to 2 hours to get there.

I'm not a regular user, so have to bow to your superior knowledge