AT A GLANCE
Why go?
Wat Buddharangsee Annandale is Sydney's primary Thai Buddhist temple, serving a diverse Theravada community from a converted warehouse complex tucked behind a heritage Federation house on a quiet street in inner-west Sydney. Opened in January 1998 and named by Thailand's King Bhumibol Adulyadej, it continues the legacy of Australia's first Thai monastery and offers visitors a living window into Thai Buddhist practice.↗↗↗
Good to know
- Buddhist temple
- Open daily7 AM–8 PM
- Under 1 kmfrom Annandale center
- Wheelchair accessentrance
- Parking
- Restroom
- 4.7 / 571 reviews
- Annandale
A Temple Born from Community
The story of Wat Buddharangsee begins not at Trafalgar Street but a short walk away at Stanmore, where the first Thai Buddhist monastery in Australia opened on Vesak Day in May 1975. The name 'Wat Buddharangsee' was bestowed by King Rama IX of Thailand, and the original site was officially inaugurated by Crown Prince Vajiralongkorn, then a cadet at the Duntroon Military Academy. In those early decades, the small turreted Victorian house became the beating heart of Buddhism in Sydney, drawing Thai, Lao, Cambodian, Burmese, and Anglo-Australian practitioners alike.
