The King Naraesuan the Great Shrine was built to commemorate the king who brought an army to Nong Bua Lam Phu to support the King of Hongsaodi in invading the Srisutthanakhonhut Kingdom in 1574. However, King Naresuan fell ill and had to move his army back to Ayutthaya.

The province has many interesting historical sites. Fossils of bivalves were found at the 150 milion-year-old oyster bed and excavations at Kut Kor Moei Village and Kut Kwang Soi led to prehistoric findings of jewelry and potteries similar to those at Ban Chiang, dating back 5,000 years ago.

In another village, prehistoric cave paintings in red ink were discovered on the mountainside of Phu Paya. Dating back 2,000-3,000 years ago, these paintings have a similar age to the drawings found in the Phu Phra Bat Historical Park in Udon Thani.

Villagers of Ban Khong Sawan are well-known for making clay ornaments, pottery handicraft, and utensils using age-old traditional methods.

The provincial’s most famous forest temple is Wat Thum Klong Paen (Drum Cave Temple), situated at the foot of Phu Pan Mountain. It is believed that many ancient Khmer temples once existed in this area and were abandoned until 1958 when Phra Acharn (teacher) Luang Pu Khao Ananyo, a famous Vipassana (a type of Buddhist meditation) monk, chose to meditate among a group of large boulders until his death in 1983. The temple exudes a peaceful atmosphere, surrounded by shady trees and beautiful rock formations. A large Buddha image sits at the entrance of a large cave, where a large, ancient drum was found, thus leading to the temple’s name.

Located within Wat Thum Suwan Kuha is a cave that contains many artifacts and a Buddha image of Phra Buddha Rup Chai Chetta. The image was built in 1555 by a Laotian king who also built the images of Phra Chao Ong Tue and Luang Phor Phra Sai in Nong Khai.

Covering an area of 322 sq km, the Phu Kao-Phu Pan Dum (Nine Mountains-Black Tray Mountain) National Park headquarter is located lakeside upstream from the Ubonrat Dam.

Not far from town is the , a shady, peaceful recreational area and interesting for its many varieties of trees and different rock formations. Motorists passing the nearby Pu Loop Shrine would tout their horn to pay respect.

Heading towards Udon Thani, view the spectacular limestone formations in the Tham Erawan (Erawan Cave) in Wang Sapong District. The stalactites and stalagmites resemble a curtain decorating the cave’s entrance. Within the cave, a white limestone formation resembling a kneeling elephant is the cave’s main attraction.

Created to hamper the flow of migratory workforce into metropolis cities, the Wang Sila Skills Development Center teaches a variety of vocational skills to its members. Students’ quality products are displayed for sale.


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