After the Burmese pillaged this prosperous and beautiful city in 1767, King Taksin declared Thonburi the new capital. He reassembled his military forces in modern-day Bangkok and kicked the Burmese out shortly after. But Ayutthaya never returned to its former glory and was somewhat forgotten.

However, many stone pagodas and temples have remained here. I was explained that under the pagodas (tall, elongated structures which sometimes have steps) ashes of important people are buried. They are essentially tombstones. The bigger the pagoda the more important the person was. In Ayutthaya, you will see pagodas worthy of kings.

In this town, it is easy to feel like you went back in time a couple of centuries. The River was the main method of transportation in Ayutthaya for a very long time before the automobiles came along. So everything in Ayutthaya still evolves around the canal which surrounds it: beautiful temples are placed along the banks, houses designed with the intent of being accessible by boats.

It certainly changed a bit: you won’t see many rowboats anymore but more efficient yet a lot more noisy motorboats have replaced them. Let’s hope those will eventually evolve into electric ones.

TAKE A BOAT TOUR:

In Ayutthaya, one absolutely has to take a boat tour to the temples. You would get a much better sense of what the city was that way. Most boat tours visit 3 temples along the way. All are pretty epic and very interesting. I’d recommend wearing the most comfortable shoes since you will be climbing some rocks at your last destination.

At the time of my visit:

• Cost: 200 Baht
• Duration: 2 hours
• Starts at: 4 pm
• Temples: Wat Phanan Choeng, Wat Phuttai Sawan, Wat Chaiwatthanaram

You can ask your boat guide to drop you off by the Train Station Ferry once the tour is over and catch an evening train back to Bangkok.

VISIT THE NIGHT MARKET:

The night market has tons of dinner options: even the most experienced foodies will find something delicious here.

GET HERE:

I’d recommend taking the local train, which takes about 2 hours to get to Ayutthaya from Bangkok. Ask for the cheapest “hard” seats which are about 75 cents a pop. This way your train conductor will open all the windows on this slow-moving caterpillar which means photos without glare, refreshing breeze and sounds of Thailand are all yours for the duration of the ride. And you will be riding with Thais, not too many tourists, which is always a pleasant, good vibes only experience.

I would recommend staying in Ayutthaya for a full day or two so you could ease into it: explore the inland temples and pagodas, take a boat tour, enjoy the night market, take a relaxing bicycle ride around town. However, Ayutthaya visit can be done as a day trip from Bangkok.

TIP:

Bring a hat, sunscreen and don’t forget to hydrate. There is not much shade in this town so you have to adjust or you will be toast by midday.

STAY:

There are many accommodation options in Ayutthaya but my eye was caught by the all-white Busaba Ayutthaya Hotel which has private rooms and dorms for backpackers. It has absolutely fantastic facilites, very nice staff and is located next to a small canal.