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Open Days: Every day

Opening Hours: 08:00 - 17:00

  

Wat Na Ta Khwan is a private temple under the Mahanikaya order, located in Na Ta Khwan Subdistrict, Mueang Rayong District, Rayong Province. The temple grounds cover about 32 rai and are surrounded by agricultural communities and fruit orchards, creating a calm, simple atmosphere. The temple’s name comes from a respected local benefactor known as Ta Khwan, who donated his rice fields to establish the temple; villagers therefore named it after him. Two streams of evidence discuss its beginnings: one suggests construction in the late Ayutthaya period with the boundary-consecration (phutthasima) performed around 2270 BE; another notes the land donation in 2335 BE, after which the main architecture developed in the early Rattanakosin period. In 2514 BE the temple received the royal grant of wisungkhamsima, and key areas were later declared a national historic monument in the Royal Gazette, making the temple both a center of faith and a place to learn local history for Rayong residents.

 

The architectural heart is the old ordination hall. The building is brick-and-mortar with a rectangular plan facing east, internally divided into five bays. The roof is a tiered gable roof covered with clay tiles. The pediments are plain plastered brick, fitted with traditional wooden finials, bargeboards, and hanghong. A fore-roof (phalai) shelters the front porch leading into the hall. Each side wall has five window openings; the doors and windows are wooden, preserving an antique feeling. Around the hall, the raised circumambulatory court is enclosed by a low kamphaeng kaeo (balustrade), with granite boundary stones (bai sema) in seated-base style arrayed as key markers. Inside, the principal Buddha image is a lacquered and gilded stucco in the Maravichai posture, flanked by the Chief Disciples, reflecting early Rattanakosin taste for balanced proportions and understated dignity.

 

Another important element is the bell-shaped brick-and-mortar chedi situated north of the ordination hall. The bell rests on a raised base; originally, niches around the base housed Buddha images facing the eight directions. Later structural repairs were made for stability, with some niches sealed, the spire extended, and the surface repainted. There is also a prang and a four-gabled bell tower that have been consistently maintained, allowing the overall landscape to retain its original lines and proportions.

 

Points of interest that reveal the community’s age and long use of the sacred precinct include an old well known locally as the “three-hundred-year well,” once a vital water source whose traces of use remain visible. You’ll also find ancillary buildings for temple activities, such as the pavilion, temple kitchen, and an open court for festivals and communal rituals, along with traces of traditional local woodcraft on older architectural components that speak to Rayong artisanship in the early Rattanakosin period.

 

In terms of local figures, the temple is associated with revered elders such as Luang Pho Chui, often mentioned in local notes and oral accounts. While not formal academic documents, these memories keep his name alive in the community and reflect the temple’s role as a center of religious and social life.

 

Travel to the temple is convenient from downtown Rayong. It lies not far from the municipal area, about 10–15 minutes by car from Wat Pa Pradu. The approach roads are secondary routes through villages and orchards. There is parking within the grounds. The temple suits a short visit to pay respects, view the old ordination hall and chedi, and stroll the living landscape of a community temple.

 

 

A: Two sources exist: one suggests late Ayutthaya with boundary-consecration around 2270 BE; another notes the land donation in 2335 BE, with principal architecture developing in the early Rattanakosin period.

 

A: A brick-and-mortar rectangular hall facing east, with a tiered gable roof and clay tiles, plain plastered pediments, traditional finials and bargeboards, a fore-roofed porch, a wooden door and five windows per side, the principal Buddha in Maravichai, and granite boundary stones around the raised circumambulatory court.

 

A: The bell-shaped chedi north of the ordination hall, the prang, the four-gabled bell tower, and the old well known as the three-hundred-year well, all of which trace the temple’s and community’s development.

 

A: Yes. It is an easy drive from downtown Rayong, about 10–15 minutes by car, with on-site parking suitable for short visits to pay respects and appreciate the architecture.