Sukhothai - An Ancient Kingdom

After another overnight bus ride and another 4am arrival, we had a new city to explore. We were welcomed in Sukhothai by our friendly British host with open arms and a sleepy smile at the bus station. We had planned to stay at the Mountain View Guesthouse which British expat Malcolm has run for 8yrs after reading great reviews about it. It offers simple homely accommodation but as the name suggests, its biggest draw card are the views of Northern Thailand's mountainous terrain.

Sukhothai Old City is a small and quiet place however it holds significant value in Thailand's history. It was the first Royal Kingdom and therefore has some of the oldest monuments and sacred places in the country.

Buddhist temple in Sukhothai town center

The best way to explore Sukhothai's Historical Park is by bike. There are over 10 temples to cycle your way around with the biggest attraction being the Royal Temple (Wat Mahathat). It took us the best part of a day to see everything including a picnic stop for lunch.

Riding in the Historial Park
Wat Mahathat
Wat Si Chum
Wat Sorasak

Wat Sa Si

As it was a Saturday, Malcolm had told us that we must revisit the Historical Park in the evening as the local council switches on the show lights to display the monuments in a more romantic setting. He was right, the scene was one out of a fairytale.

Our stay in Sukhothai was short but sweet. Besides the Historical Park which is a must see in our books, there isn't much else to do but relax in your guesthouse, which for us wasn't too bad at all.

Cooling down at Mountain View Guesthouse