Phu Phra Bat Historical Park

Phu Phra Bat is a sandstone plateau where erosion has left a field of mushroom-shaped rock formations - hard caps on softer stems - and people have used the shelters beneath them for a very long time. Prehistoric rock paintings in red ochre, dating to somewhere between two and three thousand years ago, survive on several overhangs, showing figures, animals and hand prints. From around the seventh century Dvaravati Buddhists adapted the same shelters, setting sema boundary stones around them to define ritual space and carving Buddha images. Local legend gives the formations names from the story of Usa and Barot, a princess and prince, and the sites are known by those names. UNESCO inscribed the park in 2024, alongside Si Thep the previous year. Trails link the sites over a few kilometres of open plateau with little shade; the walking is easy but hot.

What you actually see

• The mushroom rocks - hard caps on eroded stems across the plateau.
• The rock paintings - red ochre figures two to three thousand years old.
• The sema stones - Dvaravati boundary markers around adapted shelters.
• The 2024 inscription - the park's recent World Heritage listing.

When to go

November to February. Early or late - the plateau is open with almost no shade and gets very hot. Two to three hours to walk the circuit of sites.

Honest expectations

Several kilometres of walking on an exposed plateau with little shade. The paintings are faded and need looking for. Ticketed. English interpretation is limited despite the recent inscription.

Nearby

Ban Chiang, the Bronze Age site, is east of Udon Thani; Nong Khai is north.