Today Ayutthaya-a small provincial town, located 70 kilometers from Bangkok, not too busy tourists. But until the destruction of the Burmese army in 1767, this place was the capital of the Kingdom of Ayutthaya and the largest city on Earth at that time. From that period remain ruins, listed as a world heritage site by UNESCO.
We made a stop at Ayutthaya on our way to Chiang Mai, leaving Bangkok in a military coup.

How to get there

Getting from Bangkok to Ayutthaya is very simple, but despite this, not many tourists come to the ancient capital. The easiest and cheapest way to get to this city is to take a commuter train from Bangkok Central station. Tickets can be bought at the ticket office before departure. Thai trains have different classes of cars that differ in comfort, but for a trip to Ayutthaya will suit the most simple — a sedentary third class (wooden benches) or a sedentary second (soft seats), as the trip lasts about an hour and a half. The ticket will cost from 15 to 200 baht, depending on the train (normal/fast) and the class of the car.

When buying a ticket, you may ask for a passport, if for some reason you do not have it on hand, and a copy will be suitable. Just for such cases, we advise you to always have a passport photo in your phone.

Ayutthaya railway station is located on the river Bank opposite to the city centre. Across the street from the station there is a ferry, and the passage is only a couple of baht. On arrival we knew nothing about it and went to the nearest bridge. The road on foot took about half an hour, with the crossing would be three times faster.

Housing

We pre-booked a cheap hotel Somjai Place, which by the standards of Thai budget accommodation was just gorgeous: with its bathroom, air conditioning and balcony.

About the coup in Bangkok, these places remind only the broken TV, the military or the police nowhere to be seen.

The Ruins Of Ayutthaya

The remains of the ancient period of greatness of 14-18 centuries are located in the Park area "Historical city of Ayutthaya". Basically, it is the ruins of temples with hundreds of statues of Buddha, many of which were beheaded during the destruction of the city in the 18th century.

Perhaps the most famous and one of the most revered places of Thais is the Buddha's head, which has grown into the roots of the tree in the temple of Wat Mahathat.

There are several theories about how the head turned out to be in the roots. During the military destruction of Ayutthaya, the invaders cut the heads of statues in temples. Some believe that she was stretched out on the roots of the earth, others that the thief could not move his head through a wall and left her there, after which the tree is braided to the head. Now the head has actually become a tourist symbol of Ayutthaya.

The entrance to the historical Park is free, but to visit the most important temples you need to buy a ticket worth about 50 baht. Most of the temples are located close to each other and only a few are a few kilometers away. We walked around Ayutthaya, but you can rent a Bicycle.

The only difficulty in examining the ruins was the exhausting heat that is in Thailand in may. Every day the thermometer rises to the level of 34-35 C, sometimes higher. Walking around the city at this temperature is quite difficult, so it will be wise to distribute walks in the morning and evening.

Of course, those people who have seen the ruins of Angkor Ayutthaya may not be impressed. In our opinion, it is worth considering these ruins as an independent attraction, because despite the similarity, it is another historical period, another ancient Kingdom and another modern country.