Daytime Bar Closures

[LivinLOS]

On a couple of other more nightlife based forums, it was mentioned that Pattaya's finest had been out visiting bars giving them instructions they were to close in the day between 2 and 5 !!

I disputed this and claimed someone had got thier wires crossed and this was bar gossip gone daft re the restricted sales of alcohol from shops not bars. I am not a member of the Pattaya forum where the particular poster(s) are claiming this to be a fact and who have the direct police interaction.

After disputing this the people I discussed with scanned the original document handed out by the police to the bar(s) in question.

This is the official police order.. I have had my GF read it and she said 'no this is for shop' I asked where it says shop or bar and she says it doesnt, she is assuming it is for shop.. When I explained this was given to a bar owner she reread it and says it doesn't specify either way.

I am unable to read it with any accuracy and so here it is.. Perhaps Thai readers could confirm ??

Seems to me highly unusual.. Perhaps it just a police shakedown.

Are bars in Pattaya closing daytime ?? Are they paying to be left open ??

This is kinda big news that I am not hearing anywhere else. Here on Phuket this action isnt being pursued as far as I can see but I know this would dramatically effect many bar owning guys I know.. I also think it would be disastrous for tourism and tourist areas.

I am not a major barfly but restrictions like this seem new and as yet not discussed.. Is anyone hearing similar ??

[HowardJohnson]

Sorry cannot translate but I understood that the bars were not being forced to close but were having to comply to the same restrictions on selling alcohol as the shops at certain times.

I spoke to a few bar owners and it seems that this may have just been misinterpreted as many of them have not had the same letter.

HoJo

[LivinLOS]

Not sure I see your difference.. Bars being forced to close or bars not selling alcohol equals pretty much the same thing for a drinker. I dont see many daytime bar users sitting there with a soda water unless thier hangover is monumental.

I fail to believe that Thailand is now saying that bars cant sell alcohol between 2 - 5 PM every day !!! This is what some poeple are starting to say and the above was cited as the 'proof' as communicated via Pattayas finest..

I am amazed this hasnt come up on here and or caused more comment.

To my knowledge nothing like this has been communicated down here on Phuket.

[Mid]

from her in doors .................

specific to Pattaya and Bkk

no sales of alcohol 'tween 2pm - 5pm till further notice .........................

keep us updated on the reality there please

mid

[LivinLOS]

Well they sure seem intent on changing fun town.. To say I am shocked is an understatement..

That really would be a last straw for many bars that I know, the trade they gain up to 2pm is probably barely worth the staff opening up.. Restricting thier viable hours to post 5pm and losing the afternoon trade (and perhaps food trade that comes with it) seems like a major blow.

[mpdkorat]

This has been around and enforced for at least a year. The resturaunts in The Mall - Korat today can not serve alchohol from 2pm to 5pm, that includes the big boys like pizza hut. A year ago all the smaller bars had to stop serving booze between 2pm & 5pm but they are all back doing it. Tesco etc can not serve between 2pm and 5pm in Korat.

Can Pizza Hut serve alchohol between 2pm & 5pm in Pattaya today?

[Maigo6]

Perhaps they are trying to cut down on the number of Alcohol related disturbances and accidents in Pattaya.

[taxexile]

my understanding of the note is that no sales between 2 to 5 , businesses that sell alcohol must display a notice to that effect , those who disregard the rule will be prosecuted under the law and have their liquor licence rescinded .

the law applies to all business selling alcohol , except those that have been granted exceptions from the head of the police dept in bkk. and thonburi , or an authorised official in any other province.

the police are instructed to make sure business owners understand clearly the meaning of this.

but it doesn't specify between bars and shops , it just says businesses. i dont know if bars come under a different sub section of the law. it mentions selling alcoholic drinks of class 3 to class 6 , does that mean retail booze from shops as opposed to licensed premises booze ???

i dont know.

might be a good idea to post the document on the thai language forum and let one of the heavyweights have a go at translating it.

[Tywais]

Moved to Pattaya forum.

[Mobi]

This is the same law that's been in force for ages. There's been more evidence of it in BKK where many bars do now close in the day time, and many restaurants will not serve alcoholic drinks between 2 and 5. But even in BKK there are loads of places where you can still get a drink - bars and restaurants alike.

In Pattaya it has been even rarer to find place where you can't buy a drink during these hours, but certainly in places like MK and Fuji in Carrefour they will refuse to serve you.

So it's just enforcement of an existing law, and time will tell if it's a shakedown or serious attempt to shut up shop.

At the end of the day, is it really going to make that much difference? Once people understand the new regs, they will adjust their drinking habits accordingly - like we did in the UK for about 50 years or so, before they let pubs open in the afternoon. Drink at home, dry out for a few hours, or track down some illegal speakeasy.

What about an afternoon siesta? Great idea in this hot climate.

I doubt it will have a long term effect on tourists - just piss off a few of the more alcoholic amongst us and reduce the afternoon business in a few cheapo tourist bars who are operating on a shoe string and are probably being illegally managed anyway.

There's more to life than boozing your afternoons away.

[siamesekitty]

Not the best translation possible, but Kitty's feeling lazy.. Hope this condensed translation helps somewhat:

.........................................................................

Subject: Request to stop selling alcoholic drinks after 24.00hrs (midnight)

To: Business owner

Clause 2 of notice #253 states that those with liquor licenses type to type 6 are forbidden to sell alchoholic drinks during any other period besides 11.00-14.00hrs and 17.00-24.00hrs, except if you have a special permit to do so.

Therefore, the police station of Pattaya would like to re-enforce this and request that owners of businesses that sell alchoholic drinks to please stop selling drinks after 24.00hrs in order to prevent possible accidents/incidents that could occur.

Any business not complying with this will be prosecuted and have their liquor license suspended.

Therefore we would like to request that business display a sign that says "No alcholic beverages after 24.00hrs" for customers to see clearly.

.........................................................................

From this, it appears that this law has been around for some time, and the Pattaya police are saying they'd now like to enforce it more strictly. Other types of business have been following this law, from what I've seen, and now they'd like to make sure ALL business are doing the same, irrespective if whether they are bars, liquor shops, convenience stores, etc. And it does not include only the 14.00-17.00hr period, but at night after 24.00hrs as well (until 11am the next morning). So after midnight, it's time to lock up the liquor!

(That's my interpretation of it at least)

[A_Traveller]

The law specifying times that a business may sell liquor has been on the books for years, it was revived by the last government and in Bangkok for example very few places will sell in the afternoon. However, AFAIK, a business with a licence to sell for consumption on the premises is exempt.

Last time I was in Patters I could buy some booze for the mini-bar in the afternoon, which I would not be able to do in Bangkok.

Regards

[Mid]

midnight closing ???

[moo9]

Therefore we would like to request that business display a sign that says "No alcholic beverages after 24.00hrs" for customers to see clearly.

I experienced some Seven Eleven's which did not sell any alcohol after Midnight. Well....Thailand is going the wrong way apparently. I always appreciated the easy going life style, but more and more stupid restrictions show up.

Certainly Pattaya rides the wind of change nowadays, but thanks Buddha there is still a lot of fun. However if you watch the tourists in these days, you notice not many other than Russian Couples...

I'll do my best to support old style Pattaya

[LivinLOS]

One thing to restrict offsales (though I find these kind of restrictions dont solve the problems and are usually just a royal pain) but restricting licensed premises from sales for onsite consumption..

Kiss of death for many bars..

[taxexile]

Well....Thailand is going the wrong way apparently. I always appreciated the easy going life style,

i'm inclined to agree with you.

i dont drink , so these rules dont affect me either way , and those that need to drink seriously wont be affected either , they will always have access to it.

its the tourists who fancy a cold beer whilst they just sit and watch the world go by or chatter away that will be affected.

europeans used to pavement cafes and a drink will wonder what on earth is going on here.

[lampard10]

DDDDUUUUUUHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH..........the 37th post on this same subject in the last two years. Each one claiming to be the first to know about it. The law has been around since 1975, and in November of 2004 an order came out, that on January 12th of 2005 ALL establishments in the Kingdom would be forced to comply.

The law states that " No alcohol would be sold between the hours of 14.00-17.00 and Midnight-11.00 unless sold in quantities of 10 liters or more" . This is to cut down on alleged drunkenness. Apparently the Thai authorities in their great wisdom, reckon you can get drunk on one bottle, yet not on 20 bottles.

Not long after this, the Police in their even greater wisdom, issued an order that all bars were to cease serving drink and close at 02.00 in the morning, even though it is technically illegal to serve drink after midnight.

So does this second order, cancel out the first order, or is it just that nobody knows the laws of Thailand anyway?

[LivinLOS]

Well I had heard it at the retail level but never aimed at the licensed bar trade consume on site level..

As per alcohol sales from venues I thought a lot of that was defined by zones.. Some zones being allowed to open later (1 or 2 legally.. More for T money) but run of the mill places legally to close at 12..

I thought that was 'law' but the above would indicate that no such legal extension exists.

[Phil Conners]

Yesterday we was out in the Walking Street area and all the bars we went to were selling alcohol until at least 4am when we went home.

[lampard10]

Yesterday we was out in the Walking Street area and all the bars we went to were selling alcohol until at least 4am when we went home.

Tut.............................bloody criminals

[britmaveric]

Chatted with a few mates who own bars - still business as usual.

[A_Traveller]

Just to clarify, the paper references the Retail Business Act. Whilst a bar is a retail business, its licence supersedes some of the conditions thereby allowing the business to sell alcohol for consumption on the premises without these specific time constrains.

However the volume release is in place to allow a business to provide a 'wholesale' arm without requiring additional licencing unlike a bar.

These rules were drafted in the 60's and observance of them had waned until they were 'revived' by Purachai Piumsombun {the man who would be next PM given half a chance}.

So retail businesses such as Big C, Tesco's, and 7/11's will have to stop selling alcohol during the specified periods, as has widely been the case in Bangkok for several years now

Regards

/edit typo //

Edited April 7, 2007 by A_Traveller

[lampard10]

Just to clarify, the paper references the Retail Business Act. Whilst a bar is a retail business, its licence supersedes some of the conditions thereby allowing the business to sell alcohol for consumption on the premises without these specific time constrains.

However the volume release is in place to allow a business to provide a 'wholesale' arm without requiring additional licencing unlike a bar.

These rules were drafted in the 60's and observance of them had waned until they were 'revived' by Purachai Piumsombun {the man who would be next PM given half a chance}.

So retail businesses such as Big C, Tesco's, and 7/11's will have to stop selling alcohol during the specified periods, as has widely been the case in Bangkok for several years now

Regards

/edit typo //

Sorry, but the law concerns ALL booze outlets. You try to get a drink in some of the posher BKK hotels between 14.00-17.00

The Police actually came to our pub and told us " No Drinks", and gave us a notice to put up, which is still on the wall. Just because " the wall" is now out the back after we knocked it down, is of no consequence

[A_Traveller]

Sorry, but the law concerns ALL booze outlets. You try to get a drink in some of the posher BKK hotels between 14.00-17.00

FWIW I've never been refused a drink in The Oriental, Shangri La, Peninsula, even the Dusit. My understanding of this is based on a review undertaken in 2001, and AFAIK that has not changed. I may of course be in error, not unknown.

Regards

PS When were you served with the 'order'?

/edit amendment //

Edited April 7, 2007 by A_Traveller

[mamanoodle]

In Tesco south Pattaya between 2-5 you cannot buy a single can or bottle to quench your thirst, however, if you need 30 or more bottles or cans-no problemo!Afternoon binges instead of a couple, no wonder drink related accidents happen.

[merijn]

The retailers ( Tesco, Big-C and so on ) are not allowed to sell alcohol between 2 and 5 ( unless you buy more then 10 Ltr of the same stuff ).

This is already for several years now.

The restaurants, hotel and bars can sell as normal. ( they are not regarded wholesale retailers )

[lampard10]

The retailers ( Tesco, Big-C and so on ) are not allowed to sell alcohol between 2 and 5 ( unless you buy more then 10 Ltr of the same stuff ).

This is already for several years now.

The restaurants, hotel and bars can sell as normal. ( they are not regarded wholesale retailers )

Can't you read or something.........................................I've already stated earlier, and earlier, and earlier still, that the police came to me and all the other bars, pubs, restaurants, brothels selling booze, in our area with a notice to put up, forbidding the sale of alcohol at those times stated earlier. IT IS THE LAW. Made by the same people who decided to drive on the left, yet take no action against those who drive on the right.

[suiging]

The retailers ( Tesco, Big-C and so on ) are not allowed to sell alcohol between 2 and 5 ( unless you buy more then 10 Ltr of the same stuff ).

This is already for several years now.

The restaurants, hotel and bars can sell as normal. ( they are not regarded wholesale retailers )

Can't you read or something.........................................I've already stated earlier, and earlier, and earlier still, that the police came to me and all the other bars, pubs, restaurants, brothels selling booze, in our area with a notice to put up, forbidding the sale of alcohol at those times stated earlier. IT IS THE LAW. Made by the same people who decided to drive on the left, yet take no action against those who drive on the right.

And not forgetting the ten year old boy who is allowed to drive his Dad's van to " help" out with the families business !!!!!

Edited April 9, 2007 by suiging

[helicoptor]

This 'law' could be another excuse for the BIB to go into any bar after Midnight and collect their tea money....

[Maigo6]

I went to MK Suki in Khon Kaen once and asked for a beer, it was after 2 and I was told no way, then the manager said I could have a beer but they would have to put it in a stainless steel jug, the same as they use for the Tea they give out........I accepted the compromise.