Around 140 Bangkok entertainment venues now open until 4am

Bangkok Governor Chadchart Sittipunt said only entertainment venues that had received permission would be allowed to operate until 4am.

Of the 207 entertainment venues in Bangkok, only around 140 have survived, while the others have shut down, such as in the Thonglor area, he said.

He added that the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration would list the entertainment venues that would be allowed to remain open until 4am.

Friday marks the first day that pubs, bars and entertainment venues in selected areas of Bangkok, Phuket, Chonburi, Chiang Mai and Koh Samui in Surat Thani province will be allowed to remain open until 4am the following morning.

Services within hotel premises, in line with national hotel regulations, would also be allowed to operate until 4am.

To further promote tourism during the New Year celebration, the regulations allow night entertainment venues nationwide to operate until 6am on December 31.

Entertainment venues that are allowed to open until 4am must strictly comply with laws, especially the Entertainment Places Act and and the Alcoholic Beverage Control Act.

Sales of alcoholic beverages to people aged below 20 years and people who fail to remain conscious after getting drunk is prohibited.

Entertainment venues allowed to be open until 4am must follow these steps:

▪︎ Check blood alcohol level of customers before allowing them to drive home.

▪︎ Operators must arrange an area where customers with high blood alcohol level can rest.

▪︎ If visitors who have high blood alcohol level decline to rest, venue operators must contact their friends or relatives to take them home.

▪︎ Venue operators must provide transportation back home for customers, and charge them for the service fee.

Meanwhile, relevant agencies have been appointed to collect information and assess the impact of the extension of the service hours.