Sukhothai is a small city (population 35,713) which serves as the capital of Sukhothai Province, in lower Northern Thailand. Si Satchanalai Historical Park and Sukhothai Historical Park are two of the best 9 destinations in Thailand by BangkokPost in 2009.
Sukhothai which literally means "Dawn of Happiness" is located 427 km (267 miles) north of Bangkok, and was founded in 1238. Sukhothai used to be the capital of Thailand for approximately 120 years.
The former greatness of Sukhothai has been preserved in architectural monuments. Ruins of the royal palaces, Buddhist temples, the city gates, walls moats, dams, ditches, ponds, canals and the water dyke control system which was the economic base of the kingdom has been restored by the Fine Arts Department with the cooperation of the UNESCO, not only to foster Thailand's national identity but safeguard an important part of mankind's cultural heritage.
The new town of Sukhothai, a few kilometers away from the old one, is where hotels, restaurants and other infastructure facilities are located today.
The city is a popular tourist destination because it is located near the ruins of the ancient city of Sukhothai, which was the Thai capital during the 13th Century A.D. that Siam took from Khmer Empire .
The Sukhothai Historical Park covers the ruins of Sukhothai, capital of the Sukhothai kingdom in the 13th and 14th centuries, in what is now the north of Thailand. It is located 12 kilometers from the modern city of Sukhothai, capital of the province with the same name.
The city walls form a rectangle about 2 km east-west by 1.6 km north-south. There are 193 ruins on 70 square kilometers of land. There is a gate in the center of each wall. Inside are the remains of the royal palace and twenty-six temples, the largest being Wat Mahathat. The park is maintained by the Fine Arts Department of Thailand with help from UNESCO, which has declared it a World Heritage Site. The park sees thousands of visitors each year, who marvel at the ancient Buddha figures, palace buildings and ruined temples. The park is easily toured by bicycle or even on foot.
The protection of the area was first announced in the Royal Gazette on June 6, 1962. In 1976 the restoration project was approved, and in July 1988 the park was officially opened. On December 12, 1991, it was declared a World Heritage Site, together with the associated historic parks in Kamphaeng Phet and Si Satchanalai.
Location: Latitude=17.2434, Longitude=99.723215
There the original city was surrounded by walls with 4 city gates. Today the walls house several sites worthy to visit. These include:
The Royal Palace Wat Mahathat The Ramkhamhaeng National Museum The Ramkhamhaeng Monument Wat Si Sawai Wat Traphang Ngoen Wat Traphang Thong Wat Chana Songkhram, Wat Sa Si Wat Mai San Ta Pha Daeng
Wat Mahathat
The biggest temple is situated at the center of Sukothai accient city. Structures had been continuously built and restored during the 200 years of the city. Ruins such as a variety of about 200 chedis and approximately 20 roofed buildings are at this temple.
1. Groups of main chedis and viharns in the center area.
The main chedi surrounded by subsidary chedis is situated at the principal area of the temple. The gallery serves as a boundary from which the adjoining viharns(monestry halls) are extended at the east side. The main chedi has the graceful shape of a lotus bud, which characterizes the art of Sukothai. Surroundad by 8 chedis, the four at the corner belong to the Hariphunchai - Lanna style and the four in between have Prang-shaped chedis, which were influenced by the Khamer art. The base of the main chedis is decorated with relief-stucco of 168 Buddhist disciples walking with their hands clasped together in salutation. At both sides of the main chedi is situated with two standing Buddha images called Attharot, 12 meters in height. there is a huge bronze Buddha image or golden Buddha image in stone inscription No. 1 enshrine in the royal vihara in front of the main chedi. This image was removed to Suthat temple in Bangkok by King Rama I and it was later named Phra Si Sakkayamuni.
2. Group of chedis and viharns in the west area
3. Group of chedis and viharns in the south area
Wat Sri Svaya 1. Monastery halls(viharns) 2. Gallery 3. Prasat-styled monuments(chedis)
The three Prasat-styled monuments(chedis) inspired by Khamer towers were restored in the Sukothai era during which the surroundaing gallery was built as well. To the west of the temple two monestry halls(viharns) are situated. The inner monestry hall has a trace of several restorations undertaken in the Sukothai era.
Monument of King Ramkhamhaeng the Great
This monument was built to honour and commemorate King Ramkhamhaeng, the great king of the Sukothai period, who created the Thai alphabet. The planning of the structure was directed by the Fine Arts Department, led by Genaral Thanon Kittikhajon, the prime minister who was the chairman of the opening cememory on 26th November 1969.
The characteristics of the King Ramkhamhaeng statue are that of a fine a tistic structure, with proper proportions of face and body, of an aristocrat dusing Sukothai period. the face was also scruptured as a Buddha image of Sukhothai style.
The King Ramkhamhaeng statue is in the positing of sitting on a throue of 4 m long and 2.88 m wide. The right hand is holding a scripture and the left is in a lecture position. On the left of the throne is a dagger. The statue is twice the size of a real human. It was molded from bronze mized with copper and smoke-driec, weighting about 3 tons.
How to get there
Sukothai only has a small bus station, but the city can be easily reached from the North, South, East and West.
From Mae Sot
Minibuses run regularly from the station behind the market. The journey takes about 3 hours, passing through Tak on the way. 130 baht.
From Phitsanulok: Frequent buses operate from the main bus terminal and take about 1 hour for the 58 km trip.
From Bangkok
By Bus : There are direct buses from Bangkok Mochit Terminal and takes 7 hours, including some stops at Bus Terminal of major cities on the way.
By Train : Take the (express) train (7 hours) to Phitsanulok and go by bus from there (1 hour).
From Chiang Mai: Buses from the main bus terminal take about 4 hours. The cheaper local buses make many stops and take about 5 hours.
Getting around
The best way to see the ruins in the Sukhotai National Historic Park is by bicycle. These can be rented from a shop opposite from the main park entrance.
The purple #1 songthaew travels to and from the bus station, which is about 3 km out of town. They run the length of Thanon Charodwithitong. The fare is 10 baht.
The large blue songthaew to Old Sukhothai leaves from a bus stop on Thanon Charodwithitong about 100 meters west of the bridge. It stops about 750 meters from the entrance to the central zone of the historic park. Fare: 20 baht.
The Si Satchanalai Historical Park is a historical park in Si Satchanalai district, Sukhothai Province, northern Thailand. In 1976 the restoration project was approved, and in July 1988 the park was officially opened. On December 12, 1991, it was declared a World Heritage site, together with the associated historic parks in Kamphaengphet and Sukhothai.
Si Satchanalai was the second-most important town of the Sukhothai kingdom. The ruins of its temples are now part of the Si Satchanalai historical park, which is part of UNESCO world heritage site of Sukhothai.
Among the remains of the 19 monuments inside the city wall, highlights are the first three monuments from the entrance, Wat Chang Lom, Wat Chedi Chet Thaew and Wat Nang Phaya.
Si Satchanalai, the other historical site, is only 55 kilometers from the town of Sukhothai. The location of an ancient community and covering over 2,000 rai of land, Si Satchanalai had the status of "Muang Luk Luang", as it was ruled by the son of a king. In 20th century, when Sukhothai was ruled by Ayutthaya, Si Satchanalai assumed the lower status of "Muang Phaya Mahanakorn" and was known as "Muang Sawankaloke".
North Thailand 
