Chaiya, once an important trading centre, lies on the east coast of the Malayan peninsula, just below the isthmus of Kra
The few people who do stop off at this small provincial capital are mainly here for the famed silk-weaving at the nearby village of Ban Khwao. However, Chaiyaphum offers an authentic slice of Isaan life, away from other tourists, that can be sampled in a couple of nights. The bus station is on the northeast edge of town about 1 km from the centre.
The name Chaiyaphum means site of victory, a reference to Pho Khun Lae’s (the town’s first governor) success in thwarting an attack from an invading Lao army during the reign of Rama III. A statue and shrine to his memory are situated 3 km west of town and a festival is held in his honour each January.
The only real point of interest is Prang Ku, a 12th-century Khmer sanctuary tower built entirely of laterite blocks, 2 km east of the town centre on Bannakaan Road. Though scarcely matching the Khmer monuments to be found elsewhere on the Khorat Plateau the local people consider it an important holy site. Within the prang is a Dvaravati Buddha, highly revered by the townspeople. The statue is ritually bathed on the day of the full moon in April.
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