[category]
[title]
Good news, drinkers. Thailand now lets you buy alcohol from 11am right through to midnight, meaning that odd old 2pm-5pm blackout – the one that left many of us nursing a warm beer and watching the clock – is finally history. New nationwide hours, fresh start, cheers all round.
But don’t raise that glass too quickly. Bangkok has one more dry spell coming.
The Bangkok governor and city council elections take place on June 28, and election law means alcohol sales will be off the table across the capital for 24 hours. The ban starts at 6pm on June 27 and lifts at 6pm on June 28, giving polling day its usual sober buffer on either side.
And this is not the sort of rule to test for the sake of a swift one. Anyone caught selling or serving alcohol during the ban faces up to six months in jail, a fine of up to B10,000, or both.
It is not a new crackdown, either. Thailand has long used election alcohol bans to keep polling day calm, orderly and free from the kind of late-night nonsense nobody needs near a ballot box.
Where the ban bites:
- Affected areas: Every district and neighbourhood in Bangkok, including Sukhumvit, Silom, Khao San Road, Thonglor and all the usual nightlife zones.
- Affected venues: Bars, pubs, clubs, restaurants, convenience stores, supermarkets and any other venue selling or serving alcohol.
- Timing: From 6pm on June 27 to 6pm on June 28.
- Penalties: Up to six months in jail, a fine of up to B10,000, or both.
Thailand is not alone in this, by the way. Similar election-day alcohol bans, often known as leyes secas or 'dry laws', are common across much of Latin America whenever voters head to the polls.
So stock the fridge before 6pm on June 27, vote on June 28 if you are eligible, then toast democracy once the ban lifts. For official updates, check www.ect.go.th or call the Election Commission hotline on 1444.