If you ever get the chance to visit the beautiful country of Thailand, you simply can’t afford to miss some of its greatest sights, so we’ve come up with a list of 5 places you just have to check out, who knows if you’ll ever get the chance again.

The Grand Palace in Bangkok

The Grand Palace is definitely Bangkok’s main tourist attraction and you don’t want to leave the city until you’ve visited it at least once. This structure was built in 1782 and has been home of the Thai kings for 150 years, until the half of the 19^th century. Its beautiful architecture and complex design are simply amazing and even though it is not the royal residence anymore it is still the heart of Thailand and all important ceremonies and festivities are performed here.

The palace is actually a complex of interesting buildings, similar to the palaces in the ancient capital of Ayyuthaya, including The Temple of the Emerald Buddha (Thailand’s most sacred place), the Amarinda Hall, Dusit Hall and the European style Grand Palace Hall.

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Ko Samui island

Thailand’s biggest island, Samui is also one of the country’s most popular attractions, offering its visitors plenty of sights, ensuring they never get bored. That is what’s so great about this island paradise, aside from its beautiful beaches, it’s also a great place to go sightseeing and have fun.

Ko Samui’s main attraction is The Big Buddha, a 15 meters tall statue built by the locals, so that tourist could have a place to pay homage to Buddha. The Magic Buddha Garden is also worth a look, a truly magical place filled with temples and statues built by a single man in 20 years. The Samui Snake Farm offers unbelievable shows featuring snakes native to the island, as well as centipede and scorpion fights. Paradise Park Farm is the latest and largest attraction, a 20 acre paradise on the island’s highest mountain, surrounded only by wildlife.

There is so many things to see on Ko Samui that I’ve forgotten to mention the obvious, it’s a great place to go swimming, scuba-diving or just chilling on the beach.

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Ayutthaya

Capital of the old Thai empire (Siam) for over 400 years an home to 33 kings and many dynasties, Ayutthaya was a beautiful city with three palaces and 400 temples. One of the most popular sights in Thailand, this ancient place never fails to impress, even though it was burned down by the invading Burmese armies in 1767 and is now just a shadow of its former self. There is plenty to see here and most take more than a day to visit, just to make sure they don’t miss any of the beautiful old museums and statues, built in an ancient Cambodian style and Sukhothai style. These architectural masterpieces are what made UNESCO add Ayurtthaya to the World Heritage List in 1991.

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Chiang Mai Elephant Nature Park

This unique project, set in Northern Thailand, aims to provide sanctuary for elephants in distress from all across the country. It also wants to raise awareness about the endangered Asian elephant that is being abused by humans. Most of the elephants here are purchased from private owners that don’t need them for hard labor anymore, so the park tries to offer them a normal living, at least towards the end of their lives. Tens of animals have been rescued since the park opened in 90’ and it has received numerous international awards for its efforts.

The Elephant Nature Park is a unique experience, very educational and it offers long-term volunteering opportunities as well as overnight visits and day trips for its tourists.

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The Tiger Temple

I bet you’ve never even thought to get up close and personal with a fierce tiger before, have you? Well at The Tiger Temple you can get close enough to pet these apparently bloodthirsty overgrown cats. Established in 1994 as a place where animals could find shelter from the cruel humans, they received their first tiger cub in 1999 and ever since then, the temple has received many more cubs from villagers who found them wondering through the forest after their mothers were killed by poachers.

Now the temple has become very popular, especially through one of Animal Planet’s promos, and people from all over the world come to see the amazing monks live in perfect harmony with tigers and help fund the temple by simply paying the entrance fee or making donations.

So if you’re ever in Thailand, this is one attraction you must see.

photo credits: 1, 2

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