Kaweewat Siwanartwong

Planning Halloween already? It maybe a little early, but the nights are drawing in, the air feels cooler, and before long, the season’s most mischievous celebration will be upon us. Thailand may not have the same obsession with ghosts and ghouls as other countries, but Bangkok knows how to throw a night worth remembering.  Soon enough, downtown Bangkok will shift into a carnival of costumes, flickering lights and characters that seem plucked from another world. Streets, bars, galleries and rooftops will offer everything from quirky pop-ups to immersive experiences, leaving little excuse not to get involved. It’s never too early to start plotting your own night of mischief, assembling your coven, or deciding which haunted corners of the city you’ll explore. Looking for something strange, eerie or delightfully absurd? Time Out Bangkok has your back. While we might not carry proton packs, we know where the best thrills are hiding. From haunted bars and rooftop rituals to costume competitions and spooky markets, our ever-growing guide will keep you informed and entertained. By the time the last lanterns flicker and the city’s ghosts retreat, you’ll know that Bangkok’s Halloween is not just a night on the calendar – it’s a festival of mischief, style and just enough fright to make it unforgettable.

Bangkok is teetering on the edge of its cooler season, the air finally hinting at the end of October, though rain clouds still linger. Streets glisten under puddles, umbrellas bob like tiny boats, yet the city continues with a restlessness that no drizzle can dampen. Locals shrug off wet shoes and press on, drawn by events that promise to carry us through the weekend. At Gamescom Asia x Thailand Game Show, the structured world of international gaming collides with Bangkok’s own riotous celebration of controllers and cosplay. Spread across 30,000 square metres, the halls feel closer to a small airport than a convention, where billion-baht deals brush against neon-lit fandom.  Meanwhile, The Warlock at Wid Club transforms familiar spaces into suffocating yet mesmerising realms. A man trades his soul for power, only to feel it slip away, as rooms twist with myth and stylised imagery, asking what desire costs when taken too far. Ghost 2025 stretches four months across workshops and community encounters, turning docents into storytellers and companions, letting the city itself whisper through every interaction. For a quieter, hands-on rhythm, the Keramos Workshop invites visitors to mould clay into jungle bells, each piece becoming part of a larger, year-end exhibition. Here, creativity is slow, tactile and oddly meditative – a reminder that play doesn’t always need a screen or a stage. Between gaming spectacles, dark fantasies, communal art and clay, Bangkok this weekend offers a

In Bangkok, the music scene has transformed over the past few years, led by crews of DJs and collectives – both Thai and international, who are tackling imbalances in the industry by carving out their own creative corners. These collectives do more than play music: they build communities, experiment with sound and space, and create opportunities for voices too often overlooked. And the number of groups pushing this forward is far greater than most realise. Collectives are the empowering force. DIY at heart, they share resources, skills and ideas, providing spaces free from discrimination and harassment. Each crew has its own identity: some focus on multidisciplinary arts, others on workshops and mentoring, and some simply craft nights that feel electric and alive. What unites them is a vision of equality, inclusivity and diversity – for their members and for everyone who joins. Detour is the one for those chasing tracks you hear once and immediately need to know more. RomRom bends genres and expectation, from Bhangra to Brazilian hip-hop, creating nights defined by atmosphere rather than label. Non Non Non gives a queer sanctuary, where electronica, EBM and techno collide and the crowd feels at home. Kleaning Service turn up once a month with their offbeat 'cleaning' sessions, a tongue-in-cheek disguise for nights that refuse to behave predictably.  Transport, meanwhile, are a softer, warmer embrace of the dancefloor. moor brings underground international talent rarely seen i

October arrived with a bit of rain, but Bangkok doesn’t really do dull seasons. The city thrives on contrast – traffic outside, white-walled calm within. It’s a place where art lives in every possible corner: vast museums with echoing halls, hidden rooms above coffee shops, galleries that look like they might collapse yet hold works that could floor you. If you want to be confused, delighted, unsettled or quietly moved, this city rarely disappoints. The variety is unruly. One evening you might stumble across a show where neon tubes light up the politics of migration, the next morning you’re staring at a centuries-old portrait that feels impossibly alive. There’s contemporary work that questions what it means to exist in a city like this, modernism reinterpreted for the present, and the occasional old master hanging with surprising confidence. What complicates things is choice. With new exhibitions opening constantly, picking where to spend an afternoon can feel like work in itself. So think of this less as a definitive guide and more as a starting point – a way to orient yourself in a city that refuses to stop making, showing and questioning through art, no matter the weather. Stay one step ahead and map out your plans with our round-up of the best things to do in Bangkok.   Get ahead of the game and start planning your month with our list of top things to do this October. Whether you're a regular gallery-goer or just art-curious, these are Bangkok’s best spots to live the ar

October in Bangkok doesn’t tip-toe in. As the rains finally turn polite and the air dries, the city arms itself with spectacles that crackle in neon, shadow and trembling melody. Museums open new worlds. Theatres unfurl fresh tales. Bars and cafes welcome midnight whispers. On the music front it’s chaos of the best kind. The Smashing Pumpkins return after nearly three decades, giving a set that could flicker from 1979 to their new rock-opera. Mariah Carey is back too, hair flips intact, marking 20 years since The Emancipation of Mimi with seven-octave theatrics Bangkok hasn’t seen in years.  Sean Paul finally touches down for his Thai debut, bringing the riddims that once soundtracked every school disco. Connan Mockasin drifts in with his woozy dream-funk, while Blackpink stage a three-night stadium takeover that will probably sell out faster than you can open a group chat. Over at the Contemporary World Film Series, Something Like an Autobiography plants its flag. Penned by Mostofa Sarwar Farooki and his actress-wife Nusrat Imrose Tisha during lockdown, it folds their marriage into fiction, even as Farooki steps in front of the camera for the first time. It’s a quietly radical piece about memory, identity and how lives unspool when we least expect. And for those who sleep with their lights off: the Junji Ito Collection Horror House turns dreams into architecture. Over 1,500 square metres, you might find Tomie’s cursed beauty, balloon-headed predators or Souichi’s mischievous

Here we are again, only this time we’ve landed at Funky Lam Kitchen – a modern Laotian menu that doesn’t flinch from bold, full-throttle flavours. The cocktails and the wine list aren’t there to soothe but to spar, chosen deliberately to hold their ground against the fire. Step inside and you’re in a space that feels like someone’s memories turned into design: a renovated shophouse lined with old BMW motorbikes, walls hung with images that hint at histories both personal and political. Funky Lam isn’t simply another addition to Bangkok’s dining map. It’s the dream realised by Sanya Souvanna Phouma – the man who gave the city Bed Supperclub, Maggie Choo’s and Sing Sing – alongside his fellow Laotian partner Saya Na Champassak, whose grandmother, once the princess of the south, was famed for menus devised with the palace chef for royal tables. Together, they’ve built something more than a restaurant: a love letter to Lao cuisine, a revival staged with funk, grit and affection. Photograph: Funky Lam Kitchen And that’s why I’m here, to ask how two men who grew up in Paris, haunted by both French kitchens, the stories tucked between plates of olam and glasses of Beer Lao and Laotian memories, ended up here. The inheritance of nightlife and airways ‘It’s in my DNA,’ Sanya says when I ask if his father’s club influenced him. His father, Prince Panya Souvanna Phouma – Harvard graduate, son of a Prime Minister, head of Royal Laos Air – once co-owned The Third Eye, a psychedelic club

Let us tell you straight off: if someone in Thailand says they’ve never heard of Arak ‘Pae’ Amornsupasiri, I’d raise an eyebrow. He’s lived through so many chapters – starting out as a guitarist in Slur in the late ’90s, then branching into solo music and acting, and lately daring to helm his own films. His debut The Stone: Phra Tae Kon Ke didn’t just stir the Thai scene – it went international. We found a fitting place to talk in one go: REC.Bangkok, the sleek Wireless Road bar we’ve taken over for the afternoon. Its dim lights, sharp corners and relaxed energy felt like the perfect backdrop for Pae’s many facets – cool, intense, playful.   Photograph: STYLEdeJATE Each role, a fresh mountain to climb Pae isn’t someone you can pin down to one job description. Singer, actor, director – each title could be its own full-time career, yet he insists on doing all three. Not out of some restless inability to choose, but because every role offers him a new kind of friction to wrestle with. And he seems to enjoy the fight. What links these identities is a stubborn urge to not simply meet expectations but to vault quietly over them. As an actor, he’s always battling that silent question: how do you satisfy the director, the writer or the creative who hired you? Sometimes their request is modest, almost underwhelming. Yet Pae wants to push further, or at the very least match the depth of what they had in mind. When he switches to music, the challenge shapeshifts. He asks himself: how

If you wanted to make a film, how would you promote it? A trailer, perhaps. A poster campaign. A carefully timed festival debut. What you probably wouldn’t think of – unless you’re Note Pongsuang – is opening a bar. I’m sitting inside Doi Dum Punk, the small bar decorated with bits of art on the wall, newspaper pasted as wallpaper and a guitar that looks like it’s never been touched. Outside, a tag hangs on an electric post declaring, almost gleefully, ‘fun fact, punk is dead’. Before sitting down, Note handed me a hand-drawn tag with a list of movie roles to choose from: a lonely punk boy, a heartbreak monk, a drunk tourist or a mountain zombie. Of course, I go for an ‘undercover prostitute’. Now, with a gin and tonic in hand, I watch him talk through this improbable scheme with the easy certainty of someone who has, more than once, bent Bangkok nightlife into new shapes. Photograph: Note Dudesweet Photograph: Note Dudesweet Note is the founder of Dudesweet, a name still uttered like an inside joke that turned into a generational movement, and of National Bar, a space that looks like it tumbled out of his Silpakorn sketchbooks. As a living archive of the city’s indie scene, and for me – someone who grew up hearing stories of early-2000s warehouse parties with badly photocopied flyers – it feels like slipping behind the curtain of a myth. His legend is well known, but Doi Dum Punk, a pop-up bar designed to fund and promote a screenplay, is the reason I’m here with a came

This list is from 2024. Our latest ranking for 2025 is live here. In 2024, what exactly makes a neighbourhood cool? Craft breweries, natty wine bars and street art are well and good, but the world’s best, most exciting and downright fun neighbourhoods are much more than identikit ‘hipster hubs’. They’re places that reflect the very best of their cities – its culture, community spirit, nightlife, food and drink – all condensed in one vibey, walkable district. To create our annual ranking, we went straight to the experts – our global team of on-the-ground writers and editors – and asked them what the coolest neighbourhood in their city is right now, and why. Then we narrowed down the selection and ranked the list using the insight and expertise of Time Out’s global editors, who vetted each neighbourhood against criteria including food, drink, arts, culture, street life, community and one-of-a-kind local flavour. The result? A list that celebrates the most unique and exciting pockets of our cities – and all their quirks. Yes, you’ll find some of those international hallmarks of ‘cool’. But in every neighbourhood on this list there’s something you won’t find anywhere else. Ever been to a photography museum that moonlights as a jazz club? Or a brewery with a library of Russian literature? How about a festival dedicated to fluff? When communities fiercely support and rally around their local businesses, even the most eccentric ideas can become a reality. And that, in our eyes, is

These days, the vegan scene feels impossible to ignore, especially in Bangkok. From hidden street stalls to refined fine dining, plant-based food has become a way to explore the city differently, to taste its traditions without compromise. That’s how we stumbled across Lokal Vegan, an Instagram account devoted not just to food, but to the culture, stories and communities behind it. At the helm is Vladislav ‘Vlad’ Tolokontsev. He’s not only running Lokal Vegan, he’s also the mind behind Vegan Guide: Street Food in Bangkok and an intricate map of the city’s plant-based eateries. His work isn’t simply about listing restaurants – it’s about uncovering the city’s hidden gems, spotlighting family-run stalls, and showing that eating vegan can be adventurous, delicious and connected to local culture. Photograph: lokalvegan It’s a neat parallel to what we do at Time Out – telling our readers where to go, what to eat and what makes a city tick – but through Vlad’s lens, Bangkok’s flavours and stories are filtered entirely through plant-based living. We caught up with him to talk about why he stayed, how he navigates the city’s complex food scene and the dishes that continue to surprise even the most seasoned vegans. Photograph: lokalvegan A mission beyond the plate ‘I want to change people’s perception of vegan food,’ Vlad begins, almost apologetically, though he needn’t. ‘I want to show how delicious, diverse and affordable it can be, so that more people choose plant-based options

These days, the vegan scene feels impossible to ignore, especially in Bangkok. From hidden street stalls to refined fine dining, plant-based food has become a way to explore the city differently, to taste its traditions without compromise. That’s how we stumbled across Lokal Vegan, an Instagram account devoted not just to food, but to the culture, stories and communities behind it. At the helm is Vladislav ‘Vlad’ Tolokontsev. He’s not only running Lokal Vegan, he’s also the mind behind Vegan Guide: Street Food in Bangkok and an intricate map of the city’s plant-based eateries. His work isn’t simply about listing restaurants – it’s about uncovering the city’s hidden gems, spotlighting family-run stalls, and showing that eating vegan can be adventurous, delicious and connected to local culture. Photograph: lokalvegan It’s a neat parallel to what we do at Time Out – telling our readers where to go, what to eat and what makes a city tick – but through Vlad’s lens, Bangkok’s flavours and stories are filtered entirely through plant-based living. We caught up with him to talk about why he stayed, how he navigates the city’s complex food scene and the dishes that continue to surprise even the most seasoned vegans. Photograph: lokalvegan A mission beyond the plate ‘I want to change people’s perception of vegan food,’ Vlad begins, almost apologetically, though he needn’t. ‘I want to show how delicious, diverse and affordable it can be, so that more people choose plant-based options

Thailand’s music calendar has been playing coy this year. Rumours of cancellations, whispered talk of comebacks, line-ups teased then quietly reshuffled – it’s been messy, but in that very Thai way, somehow the beat goes on. Even with the uncertainty swirling around some of the city’s biggest names, Bangkok remains blessed with an embarrassment of festivals, from single-day marathons to sprawling weekend escapes. It helps to be strategic. Do you want a sunburnt afternoon by the sea or a midnight rave in a warehouse? Do you tolerate camping, or does the idea of queuing for a shower fill you with dread? Whether you’re loyal to one genre or happy to let the algorithm of chaos decide, there’s something with your name on it. Beachfront chill-outs, rooftop hip-hop sessions, jazz in the park, electronic odysseys that stretch until sunrise – Thailand does it all, often in the same week. And if you’ve been slow on the tickets, don’t panic. Festival season here stretches itself thin, spilling across months like an endless afterparty. Hip-hop, afrobeat, rock, disco, experimental electronica – you can take your pick, or try them all, until your ears give up. Thailand isn’t short on sound, only on weekends. So yes, it’s chaotic, sometimes unpredictable, but it’s also glorious. Have a scroll through our guide, circle a date and prepare to swap the city’s traffic jams for something infinitely louder. RECOMMENDED: Bangkok’s best upcoming concerts in 2025

Kimpton Maa-Lai Bangkok brings a burst of colour and celebration this Halloween, with a weekend inspired by Mexico’s Día de los Muertos. Life, culture and tradition collide across two events designed to linger in memory. Friday night, Bar.Yard’s rooftop transforms into a dazzling festival of skulls, flowers and flickering lights. Guests are invited to channel their inner La Catrina, with face paint and costumes rewarded with a welcome drink and complimentary artistry from 6pm-9pm. The party runs until 2am, DJs keeping the rooftop alive as the city lights flicker below. Earlier in the day, Stock.Room offers an immersive Latin brunch, where bold flavours meet rhythmic beats. By nightfall, Halloween feels more like a celebration than a date, unforgettable and brilliantly alive. October 31. Free. Kimpton Maa-Lai Bangkok, 5pm-2am

Dudesweet returns, and this year it’s paying homage to Radiohead. The familiar walls of Mischa Cheap host a night that feels like a secret shared among friends, where the speakers hum with melodies you’ve memorised and lyrics that somehow still surprise you. Expect a crowd that knows their favourites by heart, swaying together through the highs and lows, the experimental turns and haunting refrains. The space has the same charm as before – dim lights, sticky floors, and a sense that this is a ritual rather than a gig.  October 31. B250 at the door and B400 after 9pm. Tomyumkung Restaurant, 7pm onwards

Halloween drifts down the Chao Phraya this year, and Bangkok Island is the boat you want to be on. The night sails between shamanic rituals, live sets, and DJ beats that could probably raise the dead – or at least keep them dancing. Costumes are encouraged, the wilder the better. Think mischievous spirits, lost sailors, glittering ghosts clinging to the railings as the river glows beneath them. Between dance battles and a costume contest that rewards pure audacity, it’s part séance, part rave, and entirely unforgettable. As the city lights flicker on the water, you start to wonder whether the spirits are watching, or maybe joining in. Either way, Halloween on the river feels less like a party and more like a spell. October 31. B350-450 via here and B500 at the door. Bangkok Island, 6pm-midnight  

The story starts with a door you shouldn’t open. Megabangna’s main entrance has turned into a mystery laboratory, long abandoned and thick with rumour. Two decades ago, something went wrong inside – now, the lab has reopened for those bold enough to step through. Participants play as members of a rescue team sent to shut down a corrupted system and uncover the four-digit code that might lead them out. Each of the four rooms peels back another layer of the tragedy, where revenge feels almost alive. The air hums, shadows shift, and nothing sits still for long. A Halloween experiment that asks how far curiosity can go before it starts looking like courage. Until October 31. Free. Mega Bangna, 5pm-9pm

Bangkok’s wildest Halloween doesn’t creep up quietly – it seduces. Sing Sing Theatre opens its crimson doors once more, luring you into an underworld of glitter, shadows and unholy glamour. The Devil’s the host this year, and he knows exactly how to throw a party that blurs fantasy and temptation. Lanterns flicker, masks glint and the air hums with the kind of energy that makes you forget what time it is. Costumes lean more seductive than scary, though no one’s really following rules. Between the music, the lights and the whispers weaving through the crowd, the night feels deliciously endless. October 31. B300 at the door. Sing Sing Theatre, 9pm onwards

The House on Sathorn is dressing up again – and not just the guests. For the third year running, over a thousand revellers will fill its rooms for a night that feels equal parts theatre, rave and fever dream. Costumes are practically a uniform, with 99 percent of the crowd arriving in outfits too good for reality. This year, the mansion becomes a full-scale playground of sound, split across three stages: melodic techno and techno, house and disco. Theo DGL, Richie, VAS, Ino, Jules Blons, Fernisa, Evgeny Sviridov, Eddy Frampton and JXNIXR command the decks while the decor warps every corner into something otherworldly. Outside, food vendors keep dancers fuelled for another round. Inside, it’s pure Halloween spectacle – extravagant, unearthly, and entirely unforgettable. October 31. B850 via here and B1,100 at the door. The House on Sathorn, 6pm onwards

The Spooky Rumpus is back, bigger, wilder, and full of mischief. This Halloween, costumes take centre stage, from delightfully eerie to wonderfully over-the-top, as the weekend edition transforms the space into a tiny world of tricks, treats, and playful frights. An extra day stretches the fun even further. Hop aboard the Twilight Trick-or-Treat Train for candy and giggles, get hands messy in the Spooky Slime Lab, and pause for storytime where shadows twist familiar tales just enough to make you shiver. Every corner offers a surprise, whether it’s crafty chaos, unexpected scares or laughter that lingers longer than you expect. October 31. Free. The Commons Saladaeng, 3pm-6pm

IWANNA BANGKOK takes Halloween a little further this year with Sexy Arcade, an arcade game inspired by the brand’s latest collection, set against the edgy backdrop of Bangkok CityCity Gallery as part of Ghost 2025. The space feels alive with flickering lights and playful mischief, where fashion meets games in a slightly wicked mash-up. Expect a night that nudges between stylish and strange: move from the arcade screens to a Halloween party alive with music, theatrics, and moments that feel almost mischievous. Every corner has a little thrill, whether it’s a costume that catches the eye, a quirky installation or the subtle shimmer of someone’s ensemble under gallery lights. October 31. Free. Bangkok CityCity Gallery, 5pm-10pm

After a sold-out debut in August, Sessions by White Claw returns this Halloween with a decidedly darker edge. Chanintr Pop-Up Market transforms into a playground of frights, where haunted corners, Claw Pong and tarot readings await. Music threads through every space, with DJ Karty, Yao, Paulie Sirisant and Iris spinning sets that feel alive with mischief. Tickets unlock unlimited White Claw all night and access to carnival games, face painting, a costume contest, and a photo booth that captures every eerie smile. Wander the haunted house and let the energy of the night sweep you along, from spine-tingling thrills to playful indulgence.  October 31. B899-1,499 via here. Chanintr Pop-Up Market, 8pm onwards

Bangkok’s drag scene has never been afraid of the dramatic, but Halloween gives it permission to go gloriously unhinged. This year comes with a fever dream stitched together from sequins, fake blood and untold secrets whispered at the afterlife’s velvet rope. The night starts with a walk through the Highway to Horror – a tunnel of flickering lights, disorienting shadows and unexpected cameos from things that don’t blink. By the time you reach the stage, it’s all wigs, wails and wicked glamour. Ten queens strut, scream and lip-sync like they’ve made peace with the darkness and found it fabulous. Costumes compete, the music bites and everyone looks just slightly possessed – which, for a drag night in Bangkok, feels exactly right. October 25. B567-1,989 via here and B1,000 at the door. Glowfish Sathorn, 6pm-11pm  

Halloween returns with a local twist, and this one’s got a sense of humour. The flea market is back, dressed in its ghostly best, trading cute for creepy with handcrafts inspired by Thailand’s spookiest folklore. Think Mae Nak on a tote bag, Phi Krasue keychains and candles shaped like something that definitely shouldn’t be glowing. Workshops let you try your hand at summoning the strange – or at least painting it. Between stalls, laughter mixes with a touch of unease, the kind that only comes when the stories your grandmother warned you about start looking a bit too real. You’re leaving with crafts, snacks and maybe a tiny haunting tucked somewhere in your bag – a very Thai souvenir. October 25-26. Free. GalileOasis, 10am-7pm

Halloween gets a glamorous twist this year at Tease, where fright meets fashion and no one’s afraid of a little drama. DJs spin back-to-back as tarot cards turn, bingo calls echo and costumes teeter between art and absurdity. The night’s golden ticket? A stay in a Pool Suite at The Standard, Pattaya – a prize as indulgent as the party itself. Penfolds keeps glasses full with bold reds that match the mood, each sip warming the night as music blurs the hours. Since 1844, the label’s been known for its confident pours, and tonight it fits right in. When DJ Sonny Amerie takes over, his smooth, soulful sound keeps the room moving. October 25. B650 via here. The Standard, Bangkok Mahanakhon, 7.30pm  

If you’ve ever found solace in the sound of a pencil dragging across paper, or spent hours lost between the folds of a sketchbook, October in Bangkok might feel like home. The Bangkok Illustration Fair returns at Central World from October 23-26, a four-day collision of colour, paper and perspective that has grown from a small creative gathering into one of Southeast Asia’s most beloved art events. The event is now in its fifth year, and it’s a living sketchbook. 200 artists from 17 countries have been selected to show their work, from Thailand to Japan, Italy, Greece and Taiwan. The fair resists hierarchy, letting new illustrators share the same space as veterans. More than 50 reviewers, from studios and agencies across the world, roam the aisles each year in search of artists who catch their attention. And it’s not just the on-site booths and sales for those chosen; every artist who applies gets their own corner to showcase work on BangkokIllustrationFair.com. Photograph: Bangkok Illustration Fair For the first time, the fair introduces ‘International Alliance’, a new zone dedicated to cross-border collaboration, giving artists who have only met through screens a chance to talk, share and perhaps start something new. Other familiar corners return too: ‘B2A (Business to Artist)’, where illustrators meet potential clients, and ‘Portfolio Review’, where a ten-minute chat might quietly alter a career. Photograph: Bangkok Illustration Fair The highlight, though, hides in the

Bangkok has a habit of reinventing itself, sometimes faster than its residents can keep up. A month ago it was all about Dusit Central Park, the glossy new Silom shopping complex with a rooftop garden called Dusit Arun. Then came Cloud 11, the soon-to-open creative hub in South Sukhumvit promising to gather artists, filmmakers and tech dreamers under one enormous sky garden. Both places share a certain ambition – vast open-air spaces suspended above the city, designed to make Bangkok look up again. But while the architects and designers have had their moment, December will belong to the music. At the tail end of the year, central Bangkok will welcome FVTURE Bangkok, Southeast Asia’s largest hyperclub – a phrase that sounds like marketing exaggeration until you see the blueprints. Designed to hold 6,000 people, this isn’t a club so much as a city within one. Imagine if Ibiza’s Amnesia, Berlin’s Berghain and a spaceship collided somewhere over the Chao Phraya – the result might look something like this. The idea was born from a team that knows the industry inside out. Victor Wang, who has spent years running nightlife operations across Asia, leads the project with Michele Wang, a detail-obsessed operator focused on long-term sustainability rather than short-lived spectacle. The music direction falls to Pablo Vas, the DJ and curator behind Bangkok’s Down Temple and Tucan, both known for turning sound into ritual. Together, they seem determined to give the city something it hasn’

We get it. New Year’s Eve can be a bit of a trap. All that talk of glittering countdowns and once-in-a-lifetime parties, and yet somehow you end up in the corner, clutching a flat drink, wondering if midnight’s really worth the wait. So imagine swapping the confetti cannons for waves, sequins for sand, and the city skyline for an island where time doesn’t really care what day it is. Now in its 12th year, Fly To The Moon keeps going. Set on Koh Mak, one of Thailand’s last unspoiled islands, it trades the usual noise for the quiet confidence of nature doing its thing. No shopping streets or neon signs, just coconut groves, soft light and locals who actually know your name by the end of the night. The island’s eco-minded approach means fewer people, smaller crowds and intimacy that’s become rare in the festival circuit. Photograph: Fly to the Moon Those who return every year say it’s about greeting the first sunrise together, a collective exhale before the year begins. You don’t just celebrate the new year here, you let it find you, somewhere between salt air, sound, and a sky still holding last night’s stars. Thinking of going this year? Here's the lowdown on tickets, stages, who’s playing and accommodation. When is the Fly to the Moon Festival 2025? This year's festival will take place from December 28-January 2 2026. Where is the Fly to the Moon Festival 2025? This year’s festival will once again be held on Koh Mak Island in Trat. When are the tickets on sale? You can grab

Contemporary art has a strange way of appearing just when a city starts to lose its sense of self. It slips through the cracks – between glass towers and back alleys – reminding us that culture isn’t a luxury but a survival instinct. In Bangkok, that reminder takes shape as Ghost 2568: Wish We Were Here, a month-long art festival that doesn’t just exhibit work, it disturbs the air around it. This month marks the final act of Ghost, the video and performance art series that’s haunted Bangkok since 2018. Curated by Amal Khalaf, Wish We Were Here gathers more than 30 artists whose works speak in fragments, melodies and spectral gestures that refuse to fade. Photograph: Ghost2568 From October 15-November 15, Ghost spreads across eight venues – an art trail stretching from boxing rings to galleries, temples of reflection to late-night experiments. The first two curators, Christina Li and Korakrit Arunanondchai, return with their own afterlives of ideas, joined by Pongsakorn Yananissorn, who brings back Host, a learning platform that doesn’t teach so much as listen. Photograph: Ghost2568 Photograph: Ghost2568 This year’s theme feels like a sigh caught mid-song – a hymn to survival in cities that keep swallowing their own stories. Along the Chao Phraya, artists trace what’s been erased: a memory of belonging, a shared language, a body that no longer fits the shape of its past. Ghost isn’t tidy. It’s about what remains when the lights go down and what resists when everything el

Festival season in 2025 has had its fair share of ups and abrupt endings. Some lineups are on pause (farewell for now, Rolling Loud). But next year already looks bright. Beatforest is set to return, inviting us once again to wander into the woods and listen. Built around ideas of community, movement and regrowth, it’s a weekend where music, nature and people meet on equal ground. Music may be the anchor, but it’s far from the only rhythm here. You can plant a tree between sets, cycle through the greenery, or simply wander and let the lights guide you. The stage itself isn’t a monument of steel and screens; it’s shaped by the environment, its lights playing gently against the branches instead of blinding them. Photograph: Beatforest Beatforest doesn’t posture as revolutionary, but perhaps that’s its quiet rebellion – a reminder that electronic music can coexist with nature, that dancing and caring for the planet aren’t opposites, and that sometimes the best beats are the ones that echo through the trees long after the crowd’s gone home. Heading there this year? Here’s everything you need to know about the fest, from tickets, lineup and gate times to the shuttle bus. When is Beatforest Festival 2026 in Khao Yai? This year's festival lands on January 31, for one night only. Where is Beatforest Festival 2026 in Khao Yai? This year’s festival heads to the scenic Bonanza Community Park in Khaoyai, Nakhon Ratchasima. When are the tickets on sale? You can snag your tickets now – th

Now, October arrives with a drizzle that can’t quite make up its mind. A little rain here, a grey morning there, but we’d still call it a promising start. This is the season everyone waits for, when Bangkok trades its damp heat for a whisper of coolness, and you can finally unearth that jumper that’s been gathering dust for months. Last year, we woke to mornings of 16C, which felt almost otherworldly for a city that treats humidity as a birthright. According to the Meteorological Department, winter will take its time this year, beginning towards the end of October and hanging around until late February 2026  a fortnight later than usual. The cold won’t bite quite as sharply either. Bangkok is forecast to see an average minimum of 21C, up slightly from last year’s 20.7C. Hardly freezing, but enough to convince us that the seasons still exist. And with the cooler air comes the urge to actually leave the house. Luckily, there are a bunch of outdoor activities we’ve rounded up, including art exhibitions and the best things to do in Bangkok across the city in October. Chilling by the river with Skyline Film might be a good idea too; they’ve got a line-up of classics that culminate in a Halloween favourite. The return of breezier evenings makes the city’s open-air spots feel almost cinematic – markets lose their stickiness, cafe patios regain their charm, and long walks through the old town start to sound less like a punishment. Head further south, though, and the weather tells ano

Every other year, Bangkok morphs into something a bit surreal. Not in the dreamy, ‘let’s get a tuk-tuk and see where the night takes us’ kind of way – more like walking in a shopping mall and suddenly finding yourself face to face with a massive sculpture about climate collapse.  It’s Bangkok Art Biennale (BAB) – and it’s back in October 2026, a citywide collision of the sacred, the strange and the spectacular. The fifth edition lands in October 2026 with the theme ‘Angels and Mara’ – a poetic tug of war between light and shadow. It’s an idea that fits our moment a little too well, exploring how hope and conflict coexist in a world that feels like it’s constantly negotiating its moral compass. This year’s chapter brings together artists from 39 countries, each interpreting that tension in their own language. Photograph: BkkArtBiennale   Among the first announced are names like Mandy El-Sayegh, Mel Chin, Gerard and Kelly, Sonia HamZa, Yasumasa Morimura, Htein Lin and Manit Sriwanichpoom – a line-up that promises as much provocation as poetry. They’ll unveil more than 200 works across eight venues that tell very different stories about what it means to be human in this moment. Photograph: BkkArtBiennale Eight places worth having on your map: Wat Arun – yes, that Wat Arun – where sacred architecture meets subversive installations right by the river. Wat Pho – more than just reclining Buddhas; art meets ancient sculpture in one of Bangkok’s most storied temples. Wat Prayuraw

Forget ring lights and edit suites for a moment – Bangkok’s most recognisable YouTubers are stepping out from behind the screen and into a pub. YouTube Stories gathers five creators for a night of live storytelling and humour, hosted by the ever-curious Pat McKay (better known as Bangkok Pat). It’s happening on Saturday October 11 from 8pm, at O’Leary’s Irish Pub, and if you’ve ever wondered what goes on when the cameras stop rolling, this might be your night. Pat, whose channel unearths the city’s quirks with the patience of a historian and the curiosity of a friend who’s always got a new Bangkok story to tell, is the evening’s anchor. His videos wander through alleys, old cinemas and crumbling shophouses, gently unwrapping what makes the capital tick. He’s made himself something of a digital archivist for a city that refuses to sit still. Joining him are a few familiar faces, each with their own preferred moniker. Adam Jones – or Keis One, as his subscribers know him (though he prefers ‘Aussie living abroad’) – brings a wry Australian take on life in Thailand, mixing work-life anecdotes with the occasional cultural curveball. Then there’s Jeroen Maduro, the Dutchman behind Global Travel Mate, who prefers to be called the ‘Dutch expat in Bangkok.’ After more than 14 years in the city, he’s become a walking guidebook, capturing everything from temples to traffic jams with calm precision. Serg, who runs Life with Serg, likes to be known simply as the ‘American living in Bangko

Atlanta has a knack for producing rappers who sound like they’ve spent years sharpening every syllable to cut clean through noise. J.I.D is one of them – all restless energy, lyrical precision, and the stage presence that makes you forget to blink. Soon, Bangkok will get to witness that power firsthand when his God Does Like World Tour lands in the city. He’s been on music’s radar since 2015, when his DiCaprio EP introduced him as the wiry, fast-talking storyteller from Atlanta’s east side. Signing with Dreamville a few years later felt like the natural next step – the place where sharp wordplay and emotional weight meet polished production. By the time Revenge of the Dreamers III topped the Billboard 200, he’d already built a reputation as the one to watch, the one who could rap alongside anyone and still sound like the hungriest person in the room. Photograph: jidsv Then came the Grammy nods, the near two-billion-stream collaboration with Imagine Dragons, and this year’s album God Does Like Ugly – a layered mix of grit, introspection, and heavyweight guests from Eminem to Ciara. On stage, he’s known for something rarer: total control. No pyrotechnics needed, just a mic and a crowd that knows every line. When J.I.D steps up in Bangkok, expect something between sermon and showdown – one man’s argument that hip-hop can still surprise you. Here’s what you need to know before the night starts. When is J.I.D performing in Bangkok? J.I.D’s coming to Bangkok for a live show, but

Bangkok has always been a city of contradictions: glass towers beside crumbling shophouses, high-speed rail hovering above traffic that hasn’t moved in half an hour. Yet one constant has been the BMTA’s ageing fleet of buses – often too hot, too loud and too old. Now, after years of half-promises and trial runs, change is finally on the horizon. The BMTA has announced that 1,520 ageing, non-air-conditioned buses will be reincarnated as electric vehicles, part of a plan titled ‘Electric Bus (EV) to Improve Service Quality, Reduce Pollution, and Establish a New Standard.’ Titles aside, it’s a significant shift. The numbers tell the story: fuel costs down 70 percent, over B1.4 billion saved every year, and a cleaner commute for half a million daily passengers who have long accepted the city’s buses as both indispensable and unbearable. The rollout won’t happen overnight. The wheezing non-aircon fleet will continue to circle the city until September 2026, when the first EV buses are expected to arrive. The government has also promised not to bump up the fare – keeping rides at B8 – to spare commuters an extra squeeze on their wallets. For a city where public transport often feels like an afterthought, the shift matters. Bangkok isn’t short on infrastructure dreams, but most have a habit of unravelling in bureaucracy. This project, if it holds together, could set a new standard for daily travel in a city where the gap between the sleek BTS and the rickety bus has long been a metap

  For months the whispers were hard to ignore. Reddit threads, speculative tweets, fans clutching early bird passes yet side-eyeing the silence. Rolling Loud Thailand was supposed to roar back this November, turning Pattaya the region’s biggest hip-hop gathering for the third year running. Instead, it’s crickets. Organisers confirmed the cancellation in an official statement, blaming ‘circumstances out of our control,’ which feels both heavy and vague, leaving fans to fill in the blanks. The disappointment didn’t land out of nowhere. Ticket holders had been restless for months, swapping theories on Reddit threads and firing off posts on X. Early bird passes went on sale with promises of another chapter at the same seaside venue that staged the 2023 and 2024 editions. By early October, though, not a single artist had been revealed. For a festival known for announcing headliners months in advance, the silence spoke volumes. Refunds are being processed, but the sting lingers. In a scene that measures excitement in line-up drops and viral clips, waiting for next year feels like an eternity. Rolling Loud hinted at a comeback somewhere in Asia, nudging fans towards a mailing list for updates. Whether that means a Pattaya revival or a new city altogether remains anyone’s guess. Photograph: Rolling Loud Thailand The brand has always been about scale – massive crowds, international names, moments engineered for the internet. But the scrapped 2025 edition raises questions about how m

Bangkok isn’t short of nightclubs, but very few manage to blur memory with fantasy the way Sing Sing Theater does. Walk through its entrance and suddenly you’re somewhere between Shanghai in the 1930s and a dream stitched together after one too many late nights. Lanterns burn red above, balconies curl with wrought iron detail, and shadows deepen in corners where secrets tend to stay. For 10 years, it has refused to be ordinary, choosing instead to play host to theatre as much as parties, turning every night into a performance with no guarantee of an encore. When the velvet curtains first parted in 2015, Sing Sing Theater announced itself with a Halloween party so ambitious it became instant folklore: King Kong looming over the dancefloor, costumes as wild as the city outside, a delirium that made Bangkok stop and look. Since then, the space has doubled as playground, experiment and cultural stage. Music has always been its heartbeat. Gilles Peterson christened the booth in the club’s opening months, his set signalling that this was no provincial playhouse but a stop with global intent. From there, Dixon, Âme, DJ Tennis and Henrik Schwarz would all leave their mark, weaving their names into the club’s identity while sharing the booth with Bangkok’s own restless selectors. Photograph: singsingtheater.bangkok But music is only half the story. Sing Sing Theater has always thrived on theatre, and theatre has a way of slipping into memory more stubbornly than beats per minute. 20