Buddhism Holy Sites

Where Siddhartha Gautama attained enlightenment and became the Buddha.

The largest religious monument in the world, originally Hindu then Buddhist.

Myanmar's most sacred Buddhist pagoda, gilded with 60 tons of gold.

The birthplace of Siddhartha Gautama, who became the Buddha.

The world's largest Buddhist temple, with 2,672 relief panels.

Former winter residence of the Dalai Lama, towering over Lhasa.

A stunning monastery clinging to a cliff face 900 meters above a valley.

An ancient city with over 2,000 Buddhist temples and pagodas.

A monumental bronze Buddha statue that has sat in the open air for 500 years.

Sri Lanka's first ancient capital, home to the world's oldest known tree planted by humans.

The largest and best-preserved cave temple complex in Sri Lanka with 150 Buddha statues.

An ancient hilltop stupa overlooking Kathmandu, with the all-seeing eyes of the Buddha.

An ancient rock fortress rising 200 meters with frescoes, gardens, and a Buddhist monastery.

One of the largest spherical stupas in the world and center of Tibetan Buddhism in Nepal.

Over 100,000 Buddhist statues carved into limestone cliffs along the Yi River.

A vast complex of 492 Buddhist cave temples with 1,000 years of murals and sculptures.

The world's largest stone Buddha statue, carved into a riverside cliff face.

Home to Japan's largest bronze Buddha statue inside one of the world's largest wooden buildings.

Home to a 46-meter golden reclining Buddha and the birthplace of Thai massage.

One of China's Four Sacred Buddhist Mountains, home to over 30 temples.

Sri Lanka's most sacred Buddhist temple, housing a tooth relic of the Buddha.

The ruins of Thailand's ancient capital, with hundreds of Buddhist temple remains.

Tokyo's oldest and most visited temple, entered through the iconic Thunder Gate.

The birthplace of Zen Buddhism and Shaolin kung fu in the Song Mountains.

Korea's most celebrated Buddhist temple, a UNESCO masterpiece of Silla-dynasty architecture.

A hillside temple famous for its wooden stage and sacred Otowa waterfall.

The second ancient capital of Sri Lanka with stunning stone-carved Buddha figures.

A complex of Buddhist temples and shrines set in limestone caves, Vietnam's largest annual pilgrimage site.

Korea's 'Temple Without a Buddha,' which enshrines relics of the historical Buddha instead of statues.

The holiest temple in Tibetan Buddhism, located in the heart of Lhasa.

One of the oldest and most revered stupas in the Buddhist world, enshrining relics of the Buddha.

The exact spot where Queen Maya Devi gave birth to Siddhartha Gautama, marked by an ancient marker stone.

A Zen Buddhist temple covered in gold leaf, reflected serenely in its mirror pond.

The cliff niches where two colossal Buddha statues stood before their destruction in 2001.

A UNESCO-listed artificial cave shrine housing one of the finest Buddha sculptures in East Asia.

Home of the Tripitaka Koreana, the world's most complete collection of Buddhist scriptures on over 80,000 woodblocks.

A mountain temple on Songnisan, home to Korea's tallest Buddha statue and the unique Palsangjeon pagoda.

A UNESCO-listed 8th-century Buddhist monastery, one of the largest in the Indian subcontinent.

The national symbol of Laos, a golden Buddhist stupa said to enshrine a relic of the Buddha.

The cradle of Thai civilization and the birthplace of the Thai alphabet and Theravada Buddhism in Thailand.

A UNESCO-listed Buddhist monastery in the Gandhara region, one of the best-preserved in South Asia.

One of the finest examples of Lanna temple architecture in northern Thailand.

A golden boulder perched impossibly on the edge of a cliff, balanced by a single hair of the Buddha.

The southern sanctuary within the Wat Phu complex with Buddhist meditation halls and sacred springs.

The mountain where Buddhism was first introduced to Sri Lanka in 247 BCE.

The chief temple of the Jogye Order, Korea's largest Buddhist denomination, in the heart of Seoul.

An ancient pagoda at the heart of Yangon that has served as a landmark for over 2,000 years.

A historic temple where the Buddha is believed to have preached on his third visit to Sri Lanka.

The tallest pagoda in Myanmar, enshrining two sacred hair relics and a tooth of the Buddha.

A 400-year-old pagoda on the Perfume River, the tallest religious building in Vietnam.

The headquarters of one of the largest Buddhist organizations in the world, with a 36-meter seated Buddha.

The most splendid temple in Luang Prabang, a masterpiece of Lao Buddhist architecture.

The finest and best-preserved temple in Bagan, known as the 'Westminster Abbey of Burma.'

A 1,200-year-old Buddhist temple in the heart of modern Seoul's Gangnam district.

Thailand's most sacred temple, housing the revered Emerald Buddha within the Grand Palace.

A golden mountain-top temple overlooking Chiang Mai, founded where a sacred relic was carried by a white elephant.

An iconic Buddhist pagoda built on a single stone pillar, a symbol of Hanoi and Vietnamese Buddhism.

The largest Buddhist temple in Malaysia, a stunning multi-tiered complex in the hills of Penang.

One of Bhutan's oldest temples, built in the 7th century by the Tibetan King Songtsen Gampo.

The headquarters of Cambodian Buddhism and the most important monastery in the country.

Bangkok's iconic riverside temple with a towering prang decorated in colorful porcelain.

The jungle temple where massive tree roots engulf ancient stone ruins.

A Khmer temple famous for its 216 massive serene stone faces gazing in all directions.

A sacred temple complex where Guru Rinpoche left his body imprint in a cave wall.

A remote monastery overlooking the glacial Phobjikha Valley, home to endangered black-necked cranes.

Mongolia's largest and most important active Buddhist monastery, in the heart of Ulaanbaatar.

Home to the 'world's largest book' — 729 marble slabs inscribed with Buddhist scriptures.

A gilded stupa in Bagan believed to enshrine a bone and tooth of the Buddha.

The 'Fortress of the Glorious Religion,' seat of Bhutan's government and chief abbot.

A dazzling contemporary Buddhist temple in Chiang Rai, entirely white and adorned with mirrors.

One of the last great temples built in Bagan, with exquisite plaster carvings and murals.

The founding temple of Phnom Penh, perched on the city's only hill.

A 45-meter-tall marble Buddha sitting atop Nakkerd Hill with panoramic views of Phuket.

Home to one of Myanmar's most venerated Buddha images, thickly encrusted with gold leaf.

Mongolia's oldest surviving Buddhist monastery, built on the ruins of Genghis Khan's ancient capital.

The most majestic dzong in Bhutan, at the confluence of two rivers.

A Tang-dynasty-style Buddhist temple in Chinatown, said to house a tooth relic of the Buddha.

Bhutan's largest dzong, ancestral seat of the royal dynasty, commanding a gorge above the Mangde River.

One of Mongolia's three great monasteries, set in a remote valley, blending Chinese and Mongolian styles.

A temple dedicated to Bhutan's 'Divine Madman,' revered as a fertility shrine.

Historic Buddhist temple complex on Mount Myohyang, one of North Korea's most important religious sites.

A fortress-monastery overlooking the Paro Valley, gateway to the Tiger's Nest trek.

A Tibetan Buddhist monastery famous for its meditation courses open to international visitors.

One of the world's tallest Buddhist statues, a 51-meter Guru Rinpoche overlooking the Lhuentse Valley.