Tiger Temple (Krabi) is a popular attraction, also known as the “Tiger Cave”. Millions of guests and pilgrims come here. Local travel agencies offer temple excursions with a nice bonus – a trip to the hot springs. However, there are always a lot of travelers at the sources, and there is little strength left after such a trip. There is no need to buy a sightseeing tour, because the Tiger Temple is easily accessible on its own.
general information
The temple in Thailand was built 10 km from the provincial capital and 20 km from the resort of Ao Nang. This is the most popular and most visited Buddhist temple. By the way, Krabi is a Muslim region, therefore there are not so many religious places for Buddhists.
There are several legends about the origin of the name. According to one of them, the founder of the monastery meditated in this place, and next to him tigers rested from the midday heat. According to another legend, a huge tiger once lived here, for many years it terrified the locals, after his death the monks came here to pray and meditate.
Interesting fact! If you translate the name of the attraction literally, it is more correct to say the temple of the Tiger Cave. This will help to avoid confusion, since a temple with the same name – Tiger – is in Kanchanaburi province of Thailand – monks and living tigers live here.
There are no living tigers in the temple in Krabi, but there are a lot of animal statues. The main attraction of the place is a long staircase that leads travelers to the top of the rock, where a majestic golden Buddha statue is installed. It is this statue that can be seen from Krabi Airport.
Good to know! The height of the stairs is 1237 feet and not every traveler obeys this height. According to one legend, if you overcome all the steps, you can completely clear the karma.
Tiger Cave Temple in Thailand – what to see
First of all, the Tiger Temple in Thailand is located below, at the foot of the mountain, and you definitely need to allocate at least 30-40 minutes to go around its territory. There are many interesting buildings, and most importantly – tiger statues. Visit the pagoda, which is built on donations, income from the sale of gifts and souvenirs. The height of the pagoda is almost 100 meters, and the size of the base reaches 58 meters.
In the far corner of the Tiger Temple, not far from the descent into the lost world, the temple of the Chinese goddess was built, where a statue of the goddess Guan Yin was installed.
The temple building is close to the entrance and free parking. It was equipped in a grotto and covered with an extension – it turned out to be a rather fascinating and unusual place for a European person. Pilgrims come here, and next to the grotto there is a small room where they take care of the Buddha trail.
Between the temple and the pagoda, souvenir shops and shops were built where you can buy gifts, an airplane model is installed, a toilet works, and even there are several aviaries for monkeys.
Good to know! While monkeys in the aviary are cute animals, but be careful – there are many around them, they move freely around the temple and can easily grab a wallet, a camera or other personal items.
Pagoda
The main reason many tourists come to the temple is to climb the stairs to the Buddha statue and a small pagoda. The plate indicates that it is necessary to overcome 1237 steps, but in fact from 1260. And for this reason, some of the steps were recently repaired. The new ones were made about 15 cm high, and it was even scary to look at the old ones – 0.5 m high – not like lifting them. Thus, the total number of steps increased and some caring and attentive tourist indicated a figure on the last column. Since the temple is operational, all tourists must take off their shoes before climbing to the upper tier.
Interesting fact! Many tourists come to the Tiger Temple in Thailand early in the morning or in the evening – the sunrises and sunsets at the top of the mountain are equally beautiful.
If you stand facing the statue of the Chinese goddess, on the left hand is a ladder well or a lost world or a settlement of monks. The steps, and there are a little more than 100, are laid right in the rock and lead to the gazebo, where you can relax. At the bottom of the steps there is a path that leads to the well. Today, tropical trees grow directly from it.
Good to know! Walking along the path, remember that all the most interesting is concentrated on the left hand.
The houses of the monks can be seen 50 meters from the stairs, some ministers still live in rocky caves. There are monks who live in the grottoes – they walled up the entrance with a wall in which there is a door. Some grottoes simply have stairs. Most houses are built in a millennial forest, which in itself is a tourist attraction.
Immediately after the houses, a place for prayers and meditation begins. It also has a kitchen, toilets, and laundry facilities. The skeleton, installed on public display, adds a special flavor to the place.
Behind the place for meditation and the economic block there are caves where monks come to pray, and some live here. The territory is huge, of course, you can go further, but it is unlikely that you have enough strength for this.
How to get from Ao Nang
The temple in Thailand is at a distance of 7 km from the city of Krabi and 4.5 km from the bus station. You can reach your destination in the following ways:
- taxi is the most comfortable way, the cost of the trip is about 300 baht;
- mototaxi;
- motobike.
However, the most courageous tourists can test their strength and go on foot from the bus station. The walk will take about 40 minutes, but in conditions of sweltering heat and high humidity – it is quite difficult.
You can use public transport from Krabi to Ao Nang or from Krabi to the airport. The cost of the trip is about 80 baht. You need to exit in advance, since the last 1.5 km will have to be walked along highway 4. The road is asphalt. Near the intersection there is a supermarket, here you can make stocks of water and provisions.
Some helpful suggestions
- Entrance to the Tigers Temple in Thailand is free, but travelers leave donations – 20 baht per person.
- Tanks with water are installed along the stairs, but it is intended only for drinking, you can not wash it.
- Before you start the lift, be sure to visit the toilet (the rise is long), take along a supply of water and a light snack.
- You can climb the pagoda at any time of the day. If you plan to climb in the dark, be sure to bring a flashlight with you. The steps are very steep – it’s quite scary here even during the day, and falling at night is not difficult.
- Clothing and shoes should be comfortable. It is advisable to have a spare set of clothes with you – when you climb to the top, you will want to change into dry clothes.
- A dress code has been set for women – shoulders, arms and knees should be closed. Otherwise, you will be offered to buy a scarf for a nominal fee.
- By tradition, tourists take an extra liter of water with them to pour into a special container.
- To visit the temple, plan a minimum of half a day.
Tiger Temple (Krabi, Thailand) – the most popular attraction in the province. Be prepared for the fact that the day after the trip, your legs will hurt, but emotions and impressions are worth the effort.
