Places of Worship

You could probably stick your head out the door, wherever you’re staying, and either see a Buddhist temple or you’d be close enough to walk to one. Places of worship in Phuket are spread out all over the island and, if you’re just looking for a Theravada Buddhist temple to explore, you won’t have to go far to find one.

Some of the most interesting Buddhist temples in Phuket are: Wat Wichit Sangkaram (or Wat Kuan) in Phuket Town, and Wat Chalong (or Wat Chaithararam in Chalong). These are both large temples with extensive grounds and many things to see. If you are to visit only one Buddhist temple, go to one of these!

What can you find at a Buddhist temple? Why is it worth going? To some of you, it won’t be worth it at all. But if you like photography, you’ll enjoy going. It’s possible to find something unique at every Buddhist temple you visit in Phuket! There are many statues of Buddha, Kwan Yin (Goddess of Compassion), Ganesh (the Hindu Elephant God of Obstacles), Shiva and of course Thai monks such as Phra Luang Phor Tuad and Luang Phor Klai. Usually the abbot of the temple is featured either in photos around the temple or with a sculpture.

Some of the interior walls are usually painted in elaborate picture stories that are interesting to look at. There are rooms with 50 or even 150 Buddha statues in them. There are places to buy incense you can light or lotus flowers you can place on various altars and pay your respects to the monks or Buddha. You can also make money or food donations to monks at the main “Bot” – the main temple building.

There are places of worship in Phuket for other religious followers as well:
- As you probably know that Southern Thailand is predominantly Muslim, there are also plenty of mosques in Phuket such as the Noorul Ibadah Mosque in Rawai, the Hua Khuan Mosque (under construction) in Kamala and the Kamala “Main Mosque” which is the biggest one in Kamala and probably the best to visit if you’re interested in seeing a mosque. There are also many little mosques spread all over the island
- There are also Chinese Buddhist shrines scattered across the island as there is a large contingent of ethnic Chinese living in Phuket and, though many are Theravada Buddhist, some are also Mahayana Buddhist.
- Christians are not completely unrepresented as there are three churches in Phuket if you wish to worship there during your holiday! These churches are located in Thalang, Patong, and Phuket Town.

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