Many visitors to Thailand find that they simply don’t have enough time to travel around the country and see all the sights they want to see. The Ancient City, or Muang Boran, provides the perfect solution. Located just outside Bangkok this large outdoor museum has over 100 replicas of Thai palaces, rural villages, temples, and places of historical importance from around the country.

What is the Ancient City?

Often billed as the largest outdoor museum, the Ancient City covers over 300 acres of land in the shape of a miniature Thailand. In between the replicas of monuments are plenty of trees, gardens, and ponds making the Ancient City an excellent getaway from the bustle of Bangkok. Given its great size the park doesn’t often get crowded so visitors can leisurely stroll or bicycle through the grounds. It is also possible to drive around to cover more of the park and guide books can be purchased to help visitors identify all the sights.

Authentic Monuments:

Many of the replicas at the Ancient City were built smaller than their original counterparts. However they are still an impressive sight and a great deal of labor went into making them authentic. Experts from the National Museum oversaw construction of all the buildings, including buildings that no longer exist. Perhaps one of the most impressive works is a replica of Ayutthaya’s Royal Hall which was destroyed by the Burmese in 1767.

Ancient City Highlights:

A few of the impressive sights visitors should look for include the Khmer architecture of the Phimai sanctuary of Nakhon Ratchasima and the Phanom Rung sanctuary of Buri Ram, Bangkok’s Dusit Palace, and the Khao Pra Viharn temple from the Cambodian border. Lunch at the Ancient City is also an enjoyable experience. You can choose to eat from a variety of stalls and picnic on the grounds, or dine at a restaurant on the water. Traveling through the Ancient City, visitors will see a variety of Thai architecture from different regions and different time periods.

Getting to the Ancient City:

The easiest way to get to the Ancient City is to sign up with a tour or better yet just take a cab. This unique park is in Samut Prakan, just outside of Bangkok, and a cab ride should not take more than an hour. To lessen cab fare you might consider taking the Skytrain to the On-nut station and catching a cab from there. As you near the Ancient City keep an eye out for the three-headed elephant statue of the Erawan Mueseum. Viewable from the road the statue is 143 feet tall.