I spent two nights in Sukhothai when traveling from Central Thailand to Chiang Mai. Within 1 full day, I was able to explore the most famous temples in the historical park. In this article, I will suggest the itinerary for 1-2 days in Sukhothai, so let’s get started.
Sukhothai is a historic city located 5 hours drive north of Bangkok and 4 hours drive south of Chiang Mai. It was the capital of the first Kingdom of Siam (now Thailand) during the 13th and 14th centuries.
Today, Sukhothai Historical Park is a UNESCO World Heritage Site where you can visit well-preserved ruins, temples, and statues of the ancient Siam era. Some of the most famous landmarks are Wat Mahathat and Wat Si Chum with its impressive seated Buddha.
How Many Days in Sukhothai is Enough?
I personally think one to two full days is usually enough to see famous temples in Sukhothai Historical Park from sunrise to sunset, enjoy local food, and explore the night market.
If you have only one day in Sukhothai, I recommend focusing on the central zone first, then the northern zone, and west zone. I recommend spending at least 3-4 hours in the central zone, 2 hours in the north zone, and 2 hours in the west zone.
I spent 2 nights in Sukhothai and had 1 full day exploring the historical Park. I started early in the morning with the alms-giving activity at Wat Trapang Thong, then the west zone, north zone, and central zone. I aimed to see the central zone at sun set time and visit its weekend night market.
Must see attractions in Sukhothai Historical park, in my opinion, are:
- Wat Mahathat (Central Zone)
- Wat Sra Si (Central Zone)
- Wat Si Sawai (Central Zone)
- Wat Si Chum (North Zone)
- Wat Phra Phai Luang (North Zone)
- Wat Saphan Hin (West Zone)
If you have more days in Sukhothai, you can consider visiting lesser-known sites such as Si Satchanalai Historical Park, which is located an hour drive to the north of Sukhothai.
See more: 18 Things to Do & See in Sukhothai
Getting to Sukhothai:
Sukhothai is easily accessible by road and by air from Bangkok. You can use trains, buses, and airplanes to get from Bangkok to Sukhothai.
Train departs from Krung Thep Aphiwat Station in Bangkok to Phitsanulok Train Station, which is the closest train station to Sukhothai (70km away). The train ride is around 5 hours. From Phitsanulok train station, I recommend taking tuk tuk to Phitsanulok Bus Station then taking another minibus to get to Sukhothai (1 hour).
You can travel to Sukhothai from Bangkok by bus. The buses leave from Mo Chit Bus Terminal Taking you directly to Sukhothai Bus Station. The journey is around 8 hours.
Sukhothai has an airport, so you can easily catch the flight from Bangkok. The journey is around 1,5 hours. The airport is located 40 km from the historical park. From the airport, you can use a taxi, Grab, or bus to get to the town center.
Getting around Sukhothai:
Sukhothai Historical Park and the old are easily explored by walking, cycling, or renting an electric buggy. There are bicycle rental shops near the entrance for 30 Baht/day.
See more: How to get to Sukhothai & Get Around
Best Time to visit Sukhothai:
Like many other parts of Thailand, the best time to visit Sukhothai is in the dry season (November to April). If you are visiting Sukhothai in November, you can attend the Loy Krathong Festival of Lights.
The peak rainy months are August and September. If you don’t mind the rain, this month is great to avoid tourist crowds. If you are in Sukhothai on a hot day, I recommend visiting the temples early morning or late afternoon to avoid the heat. Wat Mahathat and Wat Sa Si are great places to watch the sunset.
Accommodations in Sukhothai:
Sukhothai has two different areas, including the old town (the area near Sukhothai Historical Park) and the New Town, located 12km away from the Old Town.
If you want to walk to the temples easily, I recommend staying near the entrance of the range of the park. You can find small and cozy hostels and guesthouses in the old town. New Town is further away but has a wider range of hotels. You can read more at 3 Best Areas to Stay in Sukhothai.
Here are my itinerary for 1-2 days in Sukhothai:
How to Spend 1-2 Days In Sukhothai Itinerary
Day 1: Arrival, Old town and the Night Market
I came to Sukhothai from Lopburi. I took the train from Lopburi train station at 9.45 am, arrived at Phitsanulok Train station around 2.30pm, then took the tuk tuk to Phitsanulok Bus Station for a minibus to Sukhothai. I arrived at Sukhothai Old town around 5pm.
Sukhothai Night market
After checking in the hotel, I went out for a walk to Sukhothai Night market. The market is open daily from 5pm until late evening. The market has a beautiful setting, right next to a peaceful lake and Wat Trapang Thong temple.
There are lots of street food stalls in the markets. The stalls exchanged their positions each night during my two nights there. I guess they do this to create a fresh look for the market.
You can try grilled meat, pad thai, Sukhothai noodle, or the Spicy Pork Rib Soup. After ordering the food, you can sit at the mats near the lake and enjoy beautiful views of the lake, and Wat Trapang Thong.
If you want something different from the night market, you can have dinner at one of the several restaurants on the main road nearby.
Wat Trapang Thong
I suggest going for a walk at the Wat Trapang Thong. It is open 24 hours everyday and free to enter. It is located in the middle of the lake, and easily accessible by walking through the wooden bridge. The bridge is lined with lanterns and beautifully illuminated at night.
The main structure of Wat Trapang Thong is the classic Sukhothai style bell-shape chedi. The best time to visit is at sunset, in the evening when it is lit up, and in early morning to witness morning alms to monks.
I walked back to my hotel around 8pm to rest as I plan to wake up early for the morning alms. I will have a full day exploring temples and ruins tomorrow.
Day 2: Sukhothai Historical Park: Central, West, and North Zone
My 2nd day in Sukhothai is to explore the morning alms giving activities in Wat Trapang Thong and then, rent a bicycle to explore temples in Sukhothai Historical Park.
Alms Giving Ceremony for Monks at Wat Trapang Thong
The Alms Giving Ceremony in Sukhothai is held on the wooden bridge at Wat Trapang Thong from 6.20am. If you plan to see this, I recommend coming earlier to see locals prepare the alms for the monks. I woke up early in the morning, and reached the temple around 5.50am.
When I arrived, I saw several stalls on the main street near the temple selling baskets of food to give for monks. The basket’s price runs from 100 baht to 200 bahts. The basket has a mix of all kinds of goods such as milk, rice cake, cookies, coke, water, milos, flowers…
Meanwhile, at the wooden bridge, everyone, both locals and tourists, were choosing their seats and putting the alms out to display. A local told me that I can walk to the nearby Sukhothai morning market to buy goods for the monks. I can buy anything and it’s cheaper there than the stalls near the bridge.
I had a quick look at Sukhothai morning market but it seems like the market is for locals. Everyone spoke Thai, I didn’t know what to buy and didn’t have much time either. I came back to the bridge, bought one basket from a nearby vendor, and quickly chose a place to sit on the bridge.
The monks came out around 6.20 am, I gave my goods for the first 5 monks, then the next monks skipped me. The monks sometimes stop to chant.
Wat Mahathat at sun rise
The morning alms giving for the monks ended around 6.45am. I quickly walked to Wat Mahathat nearby hoping to see the temple at sunrise when it is less crowded. The weather was a bit cloudy at the time but I had the whole temple for myself. I spent 30 minutes there, and will come back later for sunset.
The ticket for this central zone of Sukhothai Historical Park is 100 baht/ person, and 10 baht for the bike. The ticket is valid within a day. You can come in and out anytime during the day with the same ticket.
I walked back to my hotel, had breakfast, then headed out to explore all parts of the historical park. I rented a bicycle at the shop near my guest house. It was 30 baht for a day.
They also gave me a map of the park and advised me where to start. I forgot to ask for the bike locker, but Sukhothai is quite safe anyway. I parked my bicycle anywhere without any lock, but nothing happened.
If you are with family or a group of friends, you can consider renting an electric golf cart. It is 200 baht/hour for a 4-seats car and 300 baht/hour for 6-seats car.
It is now 8am, and my plan is to start from the western zone, then the northern zone, and finally the central zone and its night market at sunset. The night market is only open in the evening on Friday, Saturday and Sunday from 4pm.
Western Zone Sukhothai Historical Park
I first headed to the West Zone of the historial park by following Google Maps. I bought a ticket for Western Zone at Sukhothai Or Gate. It was 100 baht for a person and 10 baht for the bike.
I put Wat Saphan Hin on the map and stopped at several small temples along the way. I stopped at Wat Sri Thon, Wat Tuk, Wat Mangkorn, Wat Tham Hip Lang, Wat Khao Phra Bat Noi, and Wat Aranyik before heading to Wat Saphan Hin.
Wat Saphan Hin is the most popular temple in the west zone. It is located on a small hill, so you will need to park your bicycle and hike up top for a few minutes. At the top, you will see a huge standing statue and stunning views of the surroundings.
I spent around 1.5 hours riding around the western zone and exploring its temples. Highlight of this area is Wat Saphan Hin. Next, I headed to the northern zone of the historical park.
North Zone Sukhothai Historical Park
I used Google maps to head to Wat Si Chum, which is a well-known temple in the North Zone. At the entrance, you find a toilet and several cafes and souvenirs shops. I had a mango smoothie here. The ticket to Wat Si Chum is 100 baht/ foreigner.
This temple is best known for its giant seated Buddha Statue and an old mango tree. The area is quite big with lots of shades and green grass where you can sit and relax. I spent an hour there wandering around, taking photos, and resting.
Next, I checked out the Thuriang Kilns – Sangkhalok Kilns, only a few minutes’ ride away from Wat Si Chum. It is right on the main road and is interesting to see ancient pottery kilns in Thailand.
After the kilns, I headed to Wat Sangkhawat. It was a beautiful temple but a bit off the beaten track. I had to pass a dirt road and a rice field to reach it. It was a bit scary in the middle of the day and there was only me around the area.
Next, I followed the highway to check out Wat Phrapai Luang, which is another popular temple in the northern zone, along with Wat Si Chum. You can use a ticket for Wat Si Chum to see this temple.
Nearby I visited Wat Maechon, Wat Traphang Pan, Wat Sorasak, Wat Traphang So, and San Ta Pha Daeng. All of these ruins are free to enter and very close to each other.
I spent 2 hours exploring the Northern Zone of the historical Park. Highlights of this area are Wat Si Chum, Wat Phrapai Luang, and Wat Sorasak.
It was midday when I completed exploring the west and north. It was very hot, and I was a bit tired. I rode through the central zone, head to the old town for lunch. I tried Sukhothai Noodle soup. I headed back to my hotel to rest then went out to explore the central zone around 3.30pm.
Central Zone Sukhothai Historical Park
I started exploring the central zone from 3.30pm. I aimed to watch the sunset at Wat Mahathat, Wat Sa Si, and the night market in the Central Zone.
I bought the ticket in the morning and showed it to the guard at the entrance again. She remembered me. My first stop is Wat Si Sawai.
Wat Si Sawai is known for its three large prangs (towers), which are similar to those found at Khmer temples such as Angkor Wat. There are lots of big trees around. You can spend 15-30 minutes wandering around and taking photos.
Next, I headed to Wat Sa Si. Wat Sa Si is located on the island in the middle of the lake. I parked my bicycle at the entrance, walked through the red bridge to the temple. On the bank of the lake, people were preparing to install the stalls for the night market.
I reached Wat Mahathat around sunset time. I had beautiful photos and videos of the seated and standing Buddha at sunset. It was very peaceful and there were just a few people around.
Other places in the central zone that you can see are the King Ramkhamhaeng Monument, and Wat Traphang Ngoen Phra Ubosot.
The weekend night market has a good range of local food and souvenirs shops. It is located right on the bank of the lake and offers stunning views of the temple, especially at sunset. I recommend ordering fresh orange juice from an old couple in the market.
Day 3: Bus to Chiang Mai/ Other things to do
I took the bus from Wintour Office in Sukhothai Old town to Chiang Mai this morning at 10 am. I spent some time walking around the old town again, and had breakfast at a local restaurant on the main road.
If you have extra days in Sukhothai, you can explore other attractions. They are:
- Si Satchanalai Historical Park. If you want to see more temples and ruins, you can consider visiting this park, located 50 km from Sukhothai.
- Ramkhamhaeng National Museum.
- Ramkhamhaeng National Park.
- Ban Na Ton Chan.
- Enjoy Loy Krathong if you visit the town in November.
These are my suggestions for how to spend 1 to 2 days in Sukhothai. Generally speaking, with one full day in Sukhothai, you can attend the Morning alms, explore most major temples in the Historical Park, try local food, and enjoy the night market.
If you are a slow traveler, spend as much time as you want. There are also many attractions outside of the old town to explore if you want more adventure.