Phuket Big Buddha, Phuket (must see)

Phuket Big Buddha is a grand statue of Gautama Buddha located on Nakkerd Hill (also spelled Nagakerd) near Chalong in Phuket. The official name of the statue is Phra Phutta Ming Mongkol Eknakiri, but it is commonly referred to as Ming Mongkol Buddha. Construction of the statue began in 2004 and as of 2017, 80 percent of the project had been completed.

The statue depicts Gautama Buddha in a sitting position and stands at an impressive 45 metres (148 feet) tall and 25.45 metres (83.5 feet) wide. The statue is made of concrete and covered with Burmese white marble, and it faces towards Ao Chalong Bay. It is the main Buddha of the Wat Kitthi Sankaram temple (Wat Kata).

The Phuket Big Buddha is the third-tallest statue in Thailand, following the Great Buddha of Thailand and Luangpho Yai. It was declared the "Buddhist Treasure of Phuket" by Somdet Phra Yanasangwon, the Supreme Patriarch of Thailand, in 2008.

The construction of the Phuket Big Buddha statue was primarily funded by donations, costing a total of 30 million Baht. The project was built legally in a national conserved forest with the approval of the Thai Royal Forest Department.