Constructed in 1782, the regal Grand Palace was the spectacular home of the Thai king for a century-and-a-half. Today, the complex—which is still very much at the spiritual heart of the country—impresses locals and visitors with a clutch

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Constructed in 1782, the regal Grand Palace was the spectacular home of the Thai king for a century-and-a-half. Today, the complex—which is still very much at the spiritual heart of the country—impresses locals and visitors with a clutch of stunning buildings. The most famous (and the one that tends to impress younger visitors the most) is Wat Phra Kaew, or the Temple of the Emerald Buddha. The temple, with its lustrous stupas and adjoining palace, is Bangkok's most iconic sight. It may be one of the most hallowed religious statues in Thailand, but the Emerald Buddha—a 14th-century gem that is in fact made of jade and not, as you might expect, emeralds—is tiny. While children may be underwhelmed by the miniature figure (it is around two feet tall), they will still be impressed by the huge golden altar that he sits upon and the magnificent bot (central shrine) that houses it. Although the king no longer lives in the palace, he changes the Buddha's robes three times a year in accordance with the change in seasons.

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