4am closing: Will put Thai tourism "down the drain", says Dr Mohamed

[jmccarty]

Aside from bar workers, do people that live here plan to stay out till 4 if the bar is open till then? I don't know anyone that stays out past 10:00pm. 

 

If for tourism, it would go some way to make up for those days the tourists arrive to no alcohol days and/or try and purchase beer at 7/11 between 14:00 and 17:00 every day and get turned back empty handed.  That afternoon siesta makes for more energy to party all night for visitors!

[TKDfella]

How dare he mention 'safety'...there's no money in that!

[reargunnerph3]

Dr. Mohamed? Just a stab in the dark but would he be a moslem? A non drinker? Probably not the best person to ask for advice on drinking hours.

[Vacuum]

8 minutes ago, Peterbkk99 said:

Sorry my attempt at humor was not successful

Obviously not, I'm on medication at the moment.  555

[JAG]

4 hours ago, GarryP said:

"He said that tourists don't decide where to visit based on alcohol availability."

 

Actually, I don't think that is true. While alcohol availability may not be at the top of the list of many tourists, it is still on their list. Just look at those wonderful cultural tourists from the Middle East weaving down upper Sukhumvit at 2 a.m., each with a kind hearted young lady making sure they get back to their hotel room safely.  

I thought that they were devout adherents to abstention, who were merely dizzy from jetlag having flown in on Emirates to visit their adopted daughters...

 

Mind you, on the rare occasions that I visited that part of the town, I was often confused - as confused as a newt!

[legend49]

Let it happen lets see the new swamp.

[natway09]

I wonder when this guy last walked down Sukhumvit at 3.30 am & saw for himself all the illegal non licensed  "cart " bars merrily serving alcohol on the road with customers pissing & <deleted>ting themselves anywhere & everywhere.

Just walk down the Soi to Trendy Apartments & smell it.

Let the bars who want to stay open ,,,,stay open,

At least the bars provide toilets & the police would know where everybody is.

Somebody may miss a few backhanders these carts provide though

[moe666]

Geez these people are idiots if the bars are open they will have customers it is just human nature. The bars use to stay open until 4am until Taksin appointed a do gooder as interior minister. Then wham 12am

[KenKadz]

Entice the tourist to drink as much alcohol as they can possibly hold

Till they get stupid drunk and make a problem

Beat their ass - put them in jail - fine them - deport them

Expect a good world wide media response for Thailand's tourist friendly alcohol policy?

But you can only do this on days when the government allows it (no booze free holidays)

Does that about cover it?

 

[soalbundy]

3 hours ago, madmen said:

At midnight the party has just started. Did you never party/ night clubbing when you were younger?

No

[phantomfiddler]

How can anyone consider an opinion on this subject put out by anyone named Mohamed ? Just the name portrays a COMPLETE abhorrence for alcohol ! Places that have completely open drinking hours have less incidence of drunkenness that ones with shorter times, since there is no "let,s get drunk while we can" syndrome. 

[ttrd]

5 hours ago, Cadbury said:

Tourism Minister Phiphat wont be impressed with this party pooper. After all he is heading off on a junket to Europe and will be working hard through to the wee hours doing necessary "research" into late closing.

Those who shouts in the forest get pine cones in their mouth - Money talks ...

[Bangkok Barry]

5 hours ago, webfact said:

He said that his surveys showed that safety is a tourist's number one priority and the government should focus on improving that.

 

He's right, up to a point. it is no business of the government what hours a business operates. Why should it be? Let market forces dictate that. Then they can concentrate on the important stuff. Where's he's wrong is he clearly thinks it is the government's business, and they should dictate that such places close before 4am. 

[Dogmatix]

I have no interest in staying out drinking till 4.00 am but, if that what floats someone's boat, let them do it.  If there is not enough business in the wee hours, bars will close anyway.

[Bangkok Barry]

27 minutes ago, natway09 said:

I wonder when this guy last walked down Sukhumvit at 3.30 am & saw for himself all the illegal non licensed  "cart " bars merrily serving alcohol on the road with customers pissing & <deleted>ting themselves anywhere & everywhere.

Just walk down the Soi to Trendy Apartments & smell it.

Let the bars who want to stay open ,,,,stay open,

At least the bars provide toilets & the police would know where everybody is.

Somebody may miss a few backhanders these carts provide though

 

Yes, typically Thai that the legal places - often owned by foreigners - have to close while they allow the illegal street bars - always operated by Thais - to stay open until dawn. Yet another case of them chasing the wrong 'enemy'.

[yimlitnoy]

Come on, open the bars and alcohol outlets around the clock so Bangkok comes alive once again and by doing this double the tourist spending capacity.  Even Hanoi is now open 24 hours a day and I love it. 

 

Make Bangkok the Venise of Asia as it was before.  Also make the MRT/BTS running 24 hours a day.  This will give more jobs to all Thai so they can make a decent living.  In my opinion all those now deserted streets during the night are encouraging crime more than the inverse.

 

Make Bangkok a live and exciting city again as it was before 2006...  

 

 

 

 

[clifric]

What really pisses off many tourists is that archaic law that stops the sale of alcohol before 1100 and between 1400 and 1700 introduced by Field Marshall Thanon on 31 January 1972. The purpose was not reported but I guess it was to stop drunks from walking about when schools turned out; a bit of wasted effort considering it is only supermarkets like Tesco  and 7-11/Family Mart type who comply.

I often have to advise tourists shopping in my local town that they would not get served the alcohol they just chose from the shelves

[dallen52]

Not say that. 

Not yet. 

We have booked the study tour.

(junket)

[bkk6060]

4am very very stupid.

Nothing good will happen after 1 or 2 am.

Good luck to those who need this.

[Torrens54]

Late Closing for drinks may not be the Prime reason for tourists not visiting, but it IS a definite consideration.

 

The gentleman raising the objection, of course wouldn’t be doing so on,

his particular religious grounds.....now would he ?

[AAArdvark]

6 hours ago, piewarmer said:

Chiang Mai closing bars at midnight HAS put party people off coming, I know quite a few who used to come but stopped for that reason alone.

 

 

Not all CM bars close at midnight.  If the bars are all open until 4 AM, the drinkers just start at 10 PM.  If they are only open until midnight, just start at 6 PM.  I don't see the difference.

[30la]

6 hours ago, webfact said:

He said that tourists don't decide where to visit based on alcohol availability. 

But who is this saint, the tourist generally does during the holidays what during the year can not, countries with the prohibition of alcoholic beverages are already so many.
Thailand appeals to many tourists for beautiful girls, parties and clearly also for alcoholic drinks.
I don't think keeping the bars open until 4am is a good idea, but let people drink what they want.

[SuperTed]

3 hours ago, Sujo said:

Why not?

 

should only pedos decide what pedos should and should not do?

Can only women be gynocologists?

Yes, only women should be gynecologists. Any man who stares at *hairy temple* all day is bound to go blind/insane/pedo. Its just unnatural. 

 

And it goes without saying that only women should be allowed to practice urology. If a man were to spend the entirety of his working hours examining the vittels of other men, he would lose his natural inclination to procreate, at best, and at worst be afflicted with homosexual or even bestial tendencies. 

 

If you have other questions RE professional ethics, I am standing by.

 

And no good club closes before 4am. Thailand needs to remain a clubbing destination. Boogie on, dear Bangkok.

[Booboo101]

It’s going to take a lot more than extended drinking time to bring mass tourism back, it would be funny if they weren’t so serious about it !

[malibukid]

more drunks, great.

[30la]

7 hours ago, webfact said:

4am closing: Will put Thai tourism "down the drain", says Dr Mohamed 

The lawyer seems to be a Muslim, with all respect Dr. Mohamed, it is clear to everyone that in your religion it is a sin to drink alcoholic beverages, many of the tourists who visit Thailand are members of other religions or atheists, leave them drink what they want if they want to drink.

[friend of siam]

6 hours ago, sammieuk1 said:

For Brits arriving this high/low season finding out that your pound buys you 38% less beer these days will be enough for you to have many early nights me thinks????

a desastrous mix...brexit yes / no /bmaybe / dont know / early/ later / never / ok / tomorrow/ parliament ...bs bs bs ..

&

draghis money print policy...EU casino bubbleeconomics

&

the genzeral europaen inability in finance economic foreign policy long planning..etc etc

&

trumps anti china fixation....

 

all these and some more brings up the bhat significantly...

not that LOS is now much better than years before ( third world economics...an oversized tourist industrie...export the national product cheapest harvested through slave labour ....ask america if your elected president meets their requirements...an environmental desaster de luxe..almost like china...)

 

nothing got better really...

 

only the money costs more that will effect tourism and export...- hurt thai economics

 

and the so called expats in real mostly minimum pensioners to scrap by in a massive corrupt third world country with not much security whatsoever.....

 

this last group who is largely dependant on a good exchange rate to make it worth will be soon worst off than in their original home countrys.,..800 / 900 euro per month...years ago could buy u a decent life in LOS soon will be a bad yoke....

 

 

[GarryP]

45 minutes ago, clifric said:

What really pisses off many tourists is that archaic law that stops the sale of alcohol before 1100 and between 1400 and 1700 introduced by Field Marshall Thanon on 31 January 1972. The purpose was not reported but I guess it was to stop drunks from walking about when schools turned out; a bit of wasted effort considering it is only supermarkets like Tesco  and 7-11/Family Mart type who comply.

I often have to advise tourists shopping in my local town that they would not get served the alcohol they just chose from the shelves

Whether or not it was already on the books, I do not know, but they only started to enforce this back when Thaksin was Prime Minister. Prior to that, even 7/11s sold alcohol 24/7. There used to be a work around by buying 10 liters or more at the same time, but that was later removed in 2015, when no sales were allowed at all before 1100 and between 1400 and 1500.   

[rocketdave]

We really need advice from a Muslim on how to have a drink, they say they don't drink alcohol so how do they know anything about it?

By the way if you where to go you can drink till breakfast anyway, just buy the cop beside you one!

[Isaan sailor]

I’m stuck here as an expat with a high Baht.  But honestly, If I considered Thailand as a tourist destination—closing times would make about #7 on my list.  And #1–how far my currency would get me.  In this overpriced 3rd world country—not too far...