Tourism ministry to propose zoning for night spots to operate up to 4am

[snoop1130]

 

The Ministry of Tourism and Sports will propose to the Centre for COVID-19 Situation Administration (CCSA) next month the setting up of zones, in which pubs and bars would be allowed to operate up to 4am, instead of 2am currently.

 

The minister, Phiphat Ratchakitprakarn, said today (Thursday) that the proposed easing of the restriction is not a blanket measure, but to be applied only to pubs and bars in the designated zones, such as Khao San Road in Bangkok, Patong Beach in Phuket, the Walking Street in Pattaya, Ao Nang in Krabi, Khao Lak in Phang-nga, on Koh Samui and in Hua Hin and Chiang Mai.

 

He said that he had floated his idea with pub and bar operators and advised them to discuss the matter with governors in their respective provinces, adding that his ministry will also help in pushing the idea with the Ministry of Interior.

 

Full Story: https://www.thaipbsworld.com/tourism-ministry-to-propose-zoning-for-night-spots-to-operate-up-to-4am/

 

-- © Copyright Thai PBS 2022-08-11

 

- Cigna offers a range of visa-compliant plans that meet the minimum requirement of medical treatment, including COVID-19, up to THB 3m. For more information on all expat health insurance plans click here.

 

Monthly car subscription with first-class insurance, 24x7 assistance and more in one price - click here to find out more!

[internationalism]

before covid closing time was 2am.

Local residents need to rest. Also people working at those places should get some respect.

[ThailandRyan]

I can see it now, the drunks stagger out at 4am, head to a food stall, grab some chow, and drive home still impaired at 7am as commuters are heading to work and students to school, what could possibly go wrong in the grand scheme to grab more money........

[zzaa09]

Special Autonomous Farang Zones. 

 

[The Hammer2021]

15 minutes ago, ThailandRyan said:

I can see it now, the drunks stagger out at 4am, head to a food stall, grab some chow, and drive home still impaired at 7am as commuters are heading to work and students to school, what could possibly go wrong in the grand scheme to grab more money........

It always used to be 4am. Still is in Pattaya. You talk about people driving home drunk- perhaps  you shouldn't judge people by your own moral standards or do you assume your standards are higher than others peoples. With public transport  so cheap people don't  need to drunk  drive. Anyway that is irrelevant  to changing the licence laws of a capital city. Currently  the laws are childish and ruinous  to the night  economy. 

[The Hammer2021]

It's not really a tourist  issue.  It's the locals  who want to stay out late especially around Walking Street  in Pattaya.

Same with the night clubs in Bangkok  before the clampdown - some clubs didn't  close  till 7am and Swing used to open  at 9am.

I remember when Thermaes used to close  at 7am.

[ChaiyaTH]

1 hour ago, The Hammer2021 said:

It always used to be 4am. Still is in Pattaya. You talk about people driving home drunk- perhaps  you shouldn't judge people by your own moral standards or do you assume your standards are higher than others peoples. With public transport  so cheap people don't  need to drunk  drive. Anyway that is irrelevant  to changing the licence laws of a capital city. Currently  the laws are childish and ruinous  to the night  economy. 

You talk about Pattaya, which is like the only place in entire Thailand where you can get a 10-20 baht baht bus. Many places it would cost easily 1000 baht round way if taking a taxi, and some places there won't even be transport home, unless it is your own bike.

[smedly]

7 hours ago, internationalism said:

before covid closing time was 2am.

Local residents need to rest. Also people working at those places should get some respect.

Thai nightclubs in Pattaya have been rammed with hundreds of people until 4am for months - way back from when everything was supposed to close at 11pm

[smedly]

5 hours ago, ChaiyaTH said:

You talk about Pattaya, which is like the only place in entire Thailand where you can get a 10-20 baht baht bus. Many places it would cost easily 1000 baht round way if taking a taxi, and some places there won't even be transport home, unless it is your own bike.

Time to move

[webfact]

Tourism and Sports Minister to propose opening hours extension for entertainment venues in popular tourist attractions
By Goongnang Suksawat

 

 

The Minister of Tourism and Sports is preparing to propose the opening hours extension of entertainment venues from 2:00 AM. to 4:00 AM. to be in line with tourist behavior.

Minister Phiphat Ratchakitprakarn revealed on Thursday, August 11th, that the proposal will be introduced in the meeting of the Center for Covid-19 Situation Administration (CCSA) for their approval next week.

 

Phiphat added: “The extension is in line with the foreign tourists’ behavior, such as European and Middle Eastern nationals who regularly started dinner around 10:00 PM. and started drinking at midnight. 

 

Full story: https://thephuketexpress.com/2022/08/11/tourism-and-sports-minister-to-propose-opening-hours-extension-for-entertainment-venues-in-popular-tourist-attractions/

 

-- © Copyright The Phuket Express 2022-08-12

 

- Cigna offers a range of visa-compliant plans that meet the minimum requirement of medical treatment, including COVID-19, up to THB 3m. For more information on all expat health insurance plans click here.

 

Monthly car subscription with first-class insurance, 24x7 assistance and more in one price - click here to find out more!

[Geoffggi]

9 hours ago, The Hammer2021 said:

It's not really a tourist  issue.  It's the locals  who want to stay out late especially around Walking Street  in Pattaya.

Same with the night clubs in Bangkok  before the clampdown - some clubs didn't  close  till 7am and Swing used to open  at 9am.

I remember when Thermaes used to close  at 7am.

Quite correct, although the entrance to Thermae was a little unusual ????????????. Even now the Thai nightclubs & disco's in Pattaya are back to 07:00hrs ++ closing time even some situated on Third road.

[Kerryd]

Back in the 90s (maybe before) bars were basically open 24/7.
They were required to stop playing music at 6am but could start again at 10am.

I remember leaving bars at 11 pm and then jogging past them the next morning at 6am and the same staff would still be there (bored as heck), and sometimes the same drunks still propping up the bar.
The staff worked 12 hour shifts, usually 8am-8pm and 8pm to 8 am. (Used to be a huge difference between the "day" staff and the "night staff" as far as attractiveness and age were concerned.)

Stayed at a hotel on Walking Street but had to move after 1 night. The room was facing away from the bars but it was still too loud to sleep except for that 4 hour window in the morning.
Half the rooms in the hotel faced the bars and the manager said they couldn't rent them out at all.

Lol - when I was working in Afghanistan I'd come to Thailand for my holidays. I remember one trip where I literally did not see the sun the entire time because I slept (or stayed indoors) all day and went out for supper in the evening and then hit the bars. I felt like a vampire.

Many of my friends worked in or owned bars and pretty much did the same thing.

Many a time we'd close out the bar/go-go and then move down in front of a restaurant another friend owned. It was closed but we could still use the bathroom and some guy had a mobile "drink cart" set up in front.
Great place to have a couple more drinks while watching all the girls make their way home (and more than a few tourists puking in the streets). When the sun started to rise, we would go home.

And, of course, a lot of the locals who worked in those bars, restaurants and shops would want to go out after their shift ended so the Thai nightclubs and karaoke bars would still be rocking into late morning.

I remember a couple years ago I was coming back from a nearby temple one morning after making some offerings to dear old (long dead) dad.

Got stopped by one of those "traffic stops" on the railway bypass road.
I was legal (helmet, license, insurance, tax decal) and then the cop asked if I'd been drinking. I laughed and pointed out that it was 8:30 in the morning ! (I was thinking "What ? Who starts drinking at that hour of the morning ?". Then it dawned on me that the karaoke bars probably closed around then so they were looking for the drunk customers/staff that would be on their way home at that time.

The cop laughed and I was on my way.
Shocker ! Once again, like every other time I've ever been stopped, no one asked me for a bribe ! It's amazing ! It's almost like hey, if I'm wearing my helmet, have my license and my tax decal is up to date, the cops don't try to squeeze me for a "donation" !

One also has to keep in mind that Thailand has apparently recently reclaimed it's title as the worst country in the world for road accidents/deaths.

And a lot of those involve people who were drinking and driving.

[DezLez]

2 hours ago, webfact said:

“The extension is in line with the foreign tourists’ behavior, such as European and Middle Eastern nationals who regularly started dinner around 10:00 PM. and started drinking at midnight. 

I can see the new best buddy relationship with Saudi and the other Muslim countries going downhill rapidly to be told that they regularly "started drinking at midnight"

(even if true when out of sight of the mullahs for a lot of them)!

[ifmu]

11 hours ago, The Hammer2021 said:

 talk about people driving home drunk- perhaps  you shouldn't judge people by your own moral standards or do you assume your standards are higher than others peoples.  

Of course they will drive home drunk      did u really think they would not ?????

[swm59nj]

The way nightlife is so greatly emphasized.  One would think that’s the main attraction in Thailand.  And for the majority of tourists it probably is.  

[jacko45k]

Give the place 2 more hours to catch fire?

[Gottfrid]

Dear Mr Bar & Entertainment owner,

 

We are sorry to say, your request for extended opening hours have been denied. As your place is located 50 meter outside the assigned zone, we will in no way be able to support your request.

We understand how inconvenient this must be for you, and we are aware of the economical losses that might occur for your business as a result of this decision. However, if you contact our Brown-Env. sub-division, we are pretty sure that they are able to help you.

[LALes]

The plethora of bars that have sprung up in residential areas in Pattaya and Jomtien will take advantage of this, much to the chagrin of local residents.  I highly doubt they are in legally classified "entertainment zones" but there is no enforcement anyways.  

[Daithi85]

12 hours ago, The Hammer2021 said:

It always used to be 4am. Still is in Pattaya. You talk about people driving home drunk- perhaps  you shouldn't judge people by your own moral standards or do you assume your standards are higher than others peoples. With public transport  so cheap people don't  need to drunk  drive. Anyway that is irrelevant  to changing the licence laws of a capital city. Currently  the laws are childish and ruinous  to the night  economy. 

Are you serious??man the roads are full of drunks every morning.your in the Pattaya area, go walk down jomtien pratamnak beach early in the morning and watch the show.

[Pedrogaz]

Why don't these fools stop tinkering around with everything? 

[SS1]

13 hours ago, internationalism said:

before covid closing time was 2am.

Local residents need to rest. Also people working at those places should get some respect.

Even 2am is too late to make noise. Most people go to bed before midnight. The focus should be on banning noise from residential areas and completely free the opening hours like in many countries. If people want to party until 9am in a soundproof underground nightclub, who does it actually bother? 

[mberbae]

How many people who go to night clubs until 4 am are quality tourists who

will contribute to the over all economy ?  Not many.

[2long]

Covid used to come out at 9pm, and now it comes out at 11pm... unless in these special areas in which case it doesn't come out until 4am.

What time of night will monkeypox come out?

[wombat]

meanwhile 9 hours ago

[ThailandRyan]

2 hours ago, ifmu said:

Of course they will drive home drunk      did u really think they would not ?????

His view of the world is through rose tinted glasses and only Includes Pattaya, not BKK where folks live a distance from bars, or Khon Kaen or Udon Thani.  We would hit the bars in Udon until 2am or so then drive back the 35 minutes to Nong Saeng, always had a designated driver.

Edited August 12, 2022 by ThailandRyan

[wombat]

40 minutes ago, mberbae said:

How many people who go to night clubs until 4 am are quality tourists who

will contribute to the over all economy ?  Not many.

they are the ones that contribute nightly to the single mothers & associate club of issan silly...the single biggest earner for LOS...where have you been?

[Bday Prang]

13 minutes ago, mberbae said:

How many people who go to night clubs until 4 am are quality tourists who

will contribute to the over all economy ?  Not many.

                           I'm still wondering what people like you, who use the words "quality tourist " actually mean,  Are you referring to "family types" who eat only at overpriced tourist orientated restaurants, spend most of the day visiting temples, taking rides on speedboats,or hiring jet skis, and then safely tucked up in bed by 9pm having consumed no more than a glass or two of overpriced wine ?  All fully paid up members of the Temperance Movement ?  (people just like you perhaps ?)

                         I also cannot understand, how you have come to the conclusion that people attending night clubs or enjoying themselves in other less "family orientated " ways  are not contributing to the overall economy, they also like to eat and drink, they also require accommodation, they may also purchase souvenirs , and any number of other things, Is their, money not worth as much because they enjoy themselves in ways that you personally disapprove of ?   

                        This is Thailand not Lourdes most people who come here are looking for fun and not seeking  a religious retreat, although that is also available for those that want it. 

                       Thailand currently welcomes all tourists , even, or maybe, especially,  the ones that people like you disapprove of , but if the TAT change their minds about the kind of tourists they want I am sure they will get in touch with you for help regarding the definition of "quality"

[Emdog]

I wonder why the bar flies can't just start 4 hours earlier on their drinkathon and finish it off at midnight instead of 4 am.

[jacko45k]

1 hour ago, Daithi85 said:

Are you serious??man the roads are full of drunks every morning.your in the Pattaya area, go walk down jomtien pratamnak beach early in the morning and watch the show.

I used to go sea fishing which required a very early start time and drive down Sukhumvit in the early hours.... saw many.

[Cake Monster]

As if the carnage on the Thai Roads is not bad enough already.

This proposal that will see people drinking till 4 AM, then driving Home for a couple of Hours sleep before then driving to their place of work will only add fuel to the fire of Road Deaths in Thailand.

There is no need at all for either Tourists or Locals to drink until 4 AM.

They all just need to start an Hour or so earlier in the Evening to acquire the same amount of consumption.

As seems to be the way here, Money overshadows all else - even lives.