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Tham Khao Luang Cave is a cave temple located near Phetchaburi, Thailand. It is situated on a limestone hill and is known for its natural skylight. The cave boasts of dramatic stalactites and stalagmites that are lit by sunlight. There is a big Buddha statue inside the cave along with other religious artifacts which show its spiritual importance.
Tham Khao Luang Cave is a cave temple located near Phetchaburi
You can reach the cave through stairs or cable car, both of which provide scenic views. Tham Khao Luang Cave combines natural beauty with sacredness thus making it an ideal place for meditation, photography and Thai cultural immersion.
Let’s explore this cave temple with Asia King Travel!
Petchaburi is a province that has a lot of history and reflects the local culture and lifestyle for a long time. It also has many places of worship such as temples, especially cave temples found on mountains throughout the province.
History of Tham Khao Luang Cave
The cave temple is only about one hundred years old. It was built during the reign of King Rama V or King Chulalongkorn who wanted to build a temple on Khao Luang Peak in honor of King Rama IV or King Mongkut who once visited Tham Khao Luang Cave. He thought that the cave was interesting with stalactites and stalagmites all over it.
History of Tham Khao Luang Cave
When he was king, he came to visit Petchaburi and wanted to build a proper temple at Tham Khao Luang cave in honor of his father, King Rama IV or King Mongkut. Therefore, new Buddha images were made so as to place them in the cavern with the ancient ones.
History of Tham Khao Luang Cave
Also, he had inscribed the coats of arms of the first five kings of Chakri Dynasty at the base of one newer Buddha statue. Wat Tham Khao Luang went through renovations and improvements. Nowadays, tourist guides are provided by the temple and shops are available to visitors.
A temple was built in a cave on a small hill only 92 meters high, five kilometers from the city center in the direction of Khao Wang.
About Tham Khao Luang Cave
The cave has a hole that lets sunlight shine through and reflect off the stones, illuminating the cavern and allowing visitors to see all of its interior beauty. The opening also allows cool air to enter, so it is not damp inside.
King Mongkut was so impressed by the cave’s beauty that he had 10-meter-long concrete stairs built from the base of the mountain up into it and had ancient Buddha images that had been housed in the cave prior to the Rattanakosin Period repaired.
About Tham Khao Luang Cave
It is believed that pilgrims brought statues such as these – a six-meter-long reclining Buddha and a large Buddha image in subduing Mara position, for instance – from elsewhere and enshrined them here.
There are many monkeys here who want to be fed. In Thailand, like other places, there are signs that say not to feed them and shops selling fruit to feed them. It is a wild animal, so it is better not to give food because it interferes with its natural diet.
The monkeys around Tham Khao Luang Cave
These macaque monkeys can become quite aggressive as anywhere else so we do not recommend taking any food or drinks around them. Even things that look like food can attract them especially if small children have them in their hands. If you don’t try to walk up and don’t carry anything that they might think is food, you won’t have any problems. The monkeys won’t go into the caves.
Cave Entry: Typically, there is a small fee to enter the cave which is around 20-50 THB ($1-2).
For a day trip from Bangkok to Tham Khao Luang Cave, you should expect to spend about 1000-2000 THB ($30-60) on transportation, entrance fees and meals. If you are staying overnight then budget for additional accommodation costs of between 400 – 1500 THB ($12-45) or more depending on what type you choose.
Best time to visit Tham Khao Luang Cave
To see the sunlight streaming in, it is best to visit Tham Khao Luang Cave from morning till early afternoon. The effect can be intensified by burning incense inside, but this only happens if there is sunshine. Therefore, the rainy season may not create such an effect frequently, but it still does so often. When I got here, there were many Chinese tourists – around 25 minutes later they left; therefore, you won’t have to wait for a long time if you cannot take a picture because of the crowd.
Tham Khao Luang is located just outside Phetchaburi town. A tuk-tuk will take you there for around 200 Baht, and I think they drop you at the bottom of the hill. From there you can walk up which would probably take 5-10 minutes and be really hot, or you can take another tuk-tuk for 15 Baht.
A second parking lot may be found at the top of the road. If you have your own car or motorcycle, you may drive right up here and park. Then, for about 20 meters, follow the signs to the steep stairs leading down into the cave.
Read more: Thailand Tours 15 days
