Susan33

We will be in Bangkok and Chiang Mai during February and want to purchase a spirit house. How do I find a place that sells spirit houses? Where is the best place to look? Thanks.

MichaelBKK

I've seen some spirit houses for sale in souvenir shops like Naraiphand in Bangkok, but they're usually crude imitations of the real thing.

I'd suggest that you take a walk down Bamrung Muang road from Wat Suthat (the Giang Swing) in Bangkok. That street is lined with shops that may have something more authentic, although you might need someone who speaks Thai to help you negotiate.

rhkkmk

the problem that i found with them is that they do not break down so that you can carry them home easily...

janev

We bought a small one at the weekend market, Chatuchak from a store at the edge of the market where they sell teak furniture. It came home carried as hand luggage - they don't flat pack as Bob says!
The only other places I have seen them are at road side places - for example Bangkok to Hua Hin road, but these are usually very large spirit houses.

Gpanda

There are some in the markets. We bought one at the Opium Museum outside Chiang Rai. As noted, they are of one piece. If you want to bring it home with you, it must be small enough to fit in your luggage or as a carry on.

zinders

Has anyone ordered one over the Internet? We didn't buy one while we were over there because we were afraid of breaking it on the way back, but we'd like to get one to remember our trip...

Kathie

Zinders, I have not ordered one over the internet... yet. I saw one on the internet last week, and when I clicked on it discovered they were sold out. Alas! While on one hand, I'd like to bring one back with me, I've never managed to do it in all of my trips to Thailand, on the other hand, ahving someone else pack it for me and deliver it to my home sounds great!

travelduo

We bought a really big one on our last trp to bkk. I just carried it on for the trip home. It was probably too big to be of legal size to carry on, but we did anyway and nobody said a word to us!
You won't have a problem finding one at all. If you order it online, the shipping is a killer! Oh, and don't buy the one they sell at target!

USNR

When we got home from Thailand I made our own spirit house, using photos and scaling them up. Used exterior-grade plywood, painted in red and gold. Standing on a post sunk into concrete, the spirit house stands in our garden today as it has for five years. The birds love to come and feed on the fruit we place on its tiny "porch."

Susan33

Thanks for the replies. I'll do some looking on our trip and see if it is feasible to bring one home.

ekscrunchy

What about having it packed and mailing yourself from the P.O.?

Is this not an option for sending home purchases?

MichaelBKK

The post office is just as expensive as everyplace else, sometimes even more so. It has cost me around 1,000 Baht to send small gifts (less than a pound) to family in the US.

ekscrunchy

Wow..1,000 Baht for less than a pound sounds high. I was planning to send things home from the P.O.! Was that rate for air mail by any chance?

anatoleschadenfreude

There are always some on Ebay - mostly shipped right from Thailand. Some look very nice.

jenskar2

I've seen the ones on Ebay but where do you buy the little people to put in them if you didn't get them in Thailand? That's what I keep searching for -- any ideas?

Susan33

Thought I would complete my original post. In Chiang Mai, Sgt Kai took us to a place that sells all kinds of Thai things such as spirit houses, furniture, etc. The spirit houses were rather inexpensive, and I selected the perfect one for me.

Since we travel quite a bit, we wanted the spirit house delivered fast and to our post office instead of having it delivered by UPS on our door mat. Of course, that meant it was quite expensive to ship the box. On February 18, we used a shipping place that is across from the Chiang Mai Hotel above McDonalds. The people were very friendly and did a great job packing the spirit house. We were told it would be shipped by their post office to our post office and arrive in 14-days--WRONG. The spirit house was not at our post office when we arrived home in early March. I assumed it had just disappeared. In May after reading another post about shipping, I did track the package and learned it had been placed in a container in February and assumed it would never arrive. Upon returning home in early May, I was surprised to find that the box was at the post office and had arrived on April 22. The large box and the spirit house were in perfect condition.

Thanks to all of you that were so helpful in answering my original questions. Now I just need to find a date to get back to Thailand.

Guenmai

I live in the Los Angeles area, but they probably have them down at LAX-C....a few blocks over from China Town...in an industrial area.
I go there to get my Thai items and not have to lug them back from Thailand. lax-c.com.
It's a big Thai complex and they have everything down there including Dokya bookstore, a huge food warehouse that goes on and on forever and that sells everything including Thai non-food items and then across from the food warehouse, on the same compound, there's the huge shop that sells all things Thai...from huge Thai pottery pots, to ceramic dishes, benjarong, Thai silk clothing items, etc... I'm almost sure I've seen spirit houses in there from time to time...as I've been shopping there for years. Happy Travels!

Guenmai

Oh, forgot to mention that their website is not all that great, but if you type in, on Google, Lax-C Los Angeles, California...then their are lots of reviews of the place. Happy Travels!

Guenmai

Go on yelp.com and type in LAX-C,Inc Los Angeles. Happy Travels!