Is it Safe to Visit Bangkok at the Moment?
(*Please note:
This article refers to the problems in Thailand during 2008. If you are looking for information on the current political problems in April 2009, please check the regular updates and advice on the home page of this site.)
The trouble in Bangkok earlier in the week captured headlines and has no doubt worried people about to visit Thailand, but it’s important to get things in perspective. I don’t want to underplay the incidents which were very serious indeed with reports of explosive devices used, 2 people killed and over 60 hospitalised. At the same time, I don’t want to exaggerate the risk to tourists visiting Bangkok. The trouble was confined to a very small area of Bangkok close to parliament and Government House. There is the possibility of more trouble in the same area and tourists have been advised to keep away although curious tourists that have ignored the advice have been seen happily posing for photographs with police and the protesters.
Tourists aren’t being targeted and if you keep away from the area around parliament and Government House you shouldn’t get caught up in any problems. This is a domestic political feud and from a tourist point of view there is no need to panic or cancel trips to Bangkok. The popular backpacker district of Banglamphu (and Khao San Road) is reasonably close to the Dusit area where the violence occurred, but other than a few road closures life goes on as normal here as it does in other parts of Bangkok.
Will the Trouble Affect Other Parts of Thailand?
The protesters are anti-government and as such they have focused their attention on Government House and parliament in Bangkok. The PAD group who have led the protests have a bedrock of support in Bangkok but have regional support in some other areas of Thailand, particularly the south. A month ago there were regional anti-government protests which resulted in the temporary closure of airports at Phuket and Krabi as well as industrial action which halted train services for a time. If the protests in Bangkok continue then there is always a chance that other regional protests could happen again. These protests were non-violent, but did inconvenience travel for a proportion of tourists in the south of Thailand.
Like the rest of the world, the effects of the global economy have hit Thailand with rising food and fuel prices. It’s already been a tough year financially for many Thai people and for those that owe their livelihood to tourism the last thing they want is an ongoing internal dispute driving people away.
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