Phra Prang Sam Yot

About this place

The symbol of Lopburi: three Khmer towers of sandstone and laterite joined by a single passage, probably built in the thirteenth century as a Hindu shrine to the three great gods, later turned Buddhist, and still holding Buddha images, including one seated on a seven-headed serpent in front of the towers. The temple became world famous for the macaques that filled it and the streets around in their hundreds, earning it the name Monkey Temple, with a Monkey Banquet festival on the last Sunday of November. But their numbers grew until they attacked residents, so from 2024 the authorities began catching them and moving them to enclosures outside the centre; far fewer remain today, though some still live around the temple. The fee is about fifty baht, a combined ticket covers several Lopburi sites, and it opens from about half past eight in the morning until six in the evening. If you meet monkeys, do not feed them, and stow glasses, small bags and food. Modest dress is expected at temples: shoulders and knees covered. The temple is small, so half an hour is enough, and it pairs with the San Phra Kan shrine opposite, the royal palace and Wat Mahathat on one walk. Lopburi is about two and a half hours by train or car from Bangkok.