Introduction
Visiting temples in Bangkok is on most people’s itineraries when exploring Thailand. These magnificent, ornate buildings are sacred places and have strict dress codes, especially in Bangkok. Before I outline the rules specified on the official Grand Palace website about what to wear when visiting Bangkok temples, I wanted to share a funny anecdote about what happened to my husband when he failed to follow the rules.
This post is part of my complete Thailand Travel Guide, where I share itineraries, budget tips and DIY planning advice for visiting Thailand.
The Temple pants
If you have ever read my Thailand Family Holiday Guide, you will know that I stress the importance of wearing appropriate clothing to visit temples. Before we were going to Thailand, we conscientiously looked up what we should wear when visiting Bangkok temples. We packed long trousers and shoulder covering tops for our temple visits.
But, when it came to the day of visiting the Grand Palace, my hubby, for no logical reason, decided not to wear his allocated temple pants – choosing to wear long shorts instead. Which, to be fair, covered his knees so I thought they would be adequate for the temple pants job. And off we went on our excursion.
As we were getting closer to the Grand Palace, local people manning clothing stalls started to shout out to my husband, telling him that he needed to buy some long pants, which they were conveniently selling. Of course, we thought that they were exaggerating and just wanting us to buy their clothes so we ignored them.
Once we got to the Grand Palace, my husband was pulled aside by the staff and told that his long shorts were too short and that he would need to change or buy something suitable at their temple clothing shop. The choice was not great and we ended up paying for some weird brown potato sack pants.
Now, most normal people would abandon the pants immediately after the visit but not my hubby. He diligently packed the pants in his suitcase to take home. God knows when he thought they would come in handy. Perhaps they would make great pyjamas or gardening pants?
On the long flight back, unbeknownst to me, he decided that he was feeling hot and sweaty. Wanting to feel more comfortable, he decided to change into something a bit fresher. So what did he pull out? Yep, you’ve guessed it – the weird potato sack temple pants. Which while you are in Thailand don’t look too out of place but now we were landing in Bristol airport, he looked very much out of place. like an international drug courier.
Those temple pants were a red flag to the authorities!
As we came through security, the CID police immediately spotted him and swooped in!
He was pulled aside for questioning. Where had he been? Who was he with and why on earth was he dressed like that?
Luckily, after running the usual tests, they decided not to take the matter any further and let him go on his way.
As we took the bus back, we made sure we stood as far away as possible so no one could possibly think we were with the weirdo in potato sack pants.
Moral of the story: always wear long trousers when visiting temples in Thailand and if you are caught out and are forced to buy some temple pants, dispose of them appropriately like a normal person.
What to wear when visiting Bangkok temples:
Official Dress code for the Grand Palace:
- No sleeveless shirts
- No vests
- No short top
- No see-through tops
- No short hot pants or short pants
- No torn pants
- No tight pants
- No bike pants
- No mini skirts
- No pant skirts
- No sleeping suit (which I find the funniest – who would turn up to a temple in their PJs?)
We found that most people wore t-shirts with loose fitting trousers or long skirts. You can pick up elephant pants while you are in Thailand for a very low price, which are ideal for these types of visit – covering you up appropriately while keeping you cool.
Enjoy your visit!
Useful Links:
http://www.royalgrandpalace.th
http://www.tourismthailand.org
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