Thailand Alcohol Hours: 11:00-24:00 and Drinker Fines
Plan your drinks between 11:00 and 24:00, because shops and ordinary bars cannot sell outside that window. Hotels, international airport terminals and entertainment venues are exempt. Drinking at a selling or serving premises in banned hours can cost you a fine of up to THB 10,000. Sale is also banned on five Buddhist days.
On this page
Can you drink when you like? Not everywhere, so buy your drinks between 11:00 and 24:00 and you are fine: that is the sale window under the committee notice that took effect on 29 May 2026. The law reaches the drinker too, since Act No. 2 sets a fine of up to THB 10,000.
Sale hours and who is exempt
No person may sell alcohol outside 11:00 to 24:00. The notice exempts these sales from the window:
- Buildings serving passengers inside an airport that serves international flights.
- Entertainment venues, within the opening and closing times their own licence sets.
- Hotels.
- A dedicated area selling alcohol at a conference, exhibition, trade fair, festival or similar event.
Where you can still drink at 2am
Ordinary shops and bars cannot sell after 24:00. Licensed entertainment venues in Bangkok, Chonburi, Chiang Mai, Phuket and the Ko Samui district may open until 04:00. An entertainment venue inside a hotel has the same terms anywhere in Thailand. Venue by venue closing times are in Bangkok bar closing times.
The drinker can be fined too
Section 32 bans drinking, during the banned sale hours, at a place that sells alcohol or serves it for commercial benefit.
ห้ามผู้ใดบริโภคเครื่องดื่มแอลกอฮอล์ในสถานที่หรือบริเวณที่ขายเครื่องดื่มแอลกอฮอล์ หรือสถานที่หรือบริเวณที่จัดบริการเพื่อให้มีการบริโภคเครื่องดื่มแอลกอฮอล์เพื่อประโยชน์ในทางการค้า ในเวลาที่ห้ามขายเครื่องดื่มแอลกอฮอล์ตามมาตรา ๒๘
No person may consume alcoholic beverages in a place or area that sells alcoholic beverages, or a place or area provided for the consumption of alcoholic beverages for commercial benefit, during the time when sale is prohibited under section 28.
Alcoholic Beverage Control Act (No. 2) B.E. 2568, new section 32, Royal Gazette 9 September 2025 (editor’s translation)
A drinker who breaks section 32 commits an administrative offence and pays a fine of up to THB 10,000.
ผู้ใดฝ่าฝืนมาตรา ๓๒ มีความผิดทางพินัย ต้องชำระค่าปรับเป็นพินัยไม่เกินหนึ่งหมื่นบาท
Whoever violates section 32 commits an administrative offence and must pay an administrative fine not exceeding ten thousand baht.
Alcoholic Beverage Control Act (No. 2) B.E. 2568, new section 37/1, Royal Gazette 9 September 2025 (editor’s translation)
The seller has a separate penalty: selling in a banned place or outside the banned hours carries up to 6 months in prison, a fine of up to THB 10,000, or both.
Places where drinking is banned
Drinking is banned at temples, except as part of a religious ceremony, and at fuel stations. It is also banned in government public parks provided for general recreation and at state health facilities, hospitals and pharmacies, except areas provided as a personal residence. The penalty is up to 6 months in prison, a fine of up to THB 10,000, or both. Sale is banned at temples and fuel stations as well.
Age and ID
Nobody may sell alcohol to a person under 20, or to a person who is drunk. A seller who doubts the buyer’s age must ask for an identity card or another official document showing the age before selling.
Buddhist days
Sale is banned on five Buddhist days: Makha Bucha, Visakha Bucha, Asarnha Bucha, the first day of Buddhist Lent and the last day of Buddhist Lent. Airport terminals serving international passengers, entertainment venues, establishments operating like entertainment venues in tourist areas, and hotels are exempt. Dates change each year, so see the alcohol ban days page.
Not confirmed: A new sale-days notice may replace the 2025 one, so check the Gazette before relying on a date. The dates of the first and last days of Buddhist Lent are not in the official texts read. Ask the venue. The tourist-area venues exempt on Buddhist days come from a separate Health Ministry notice. Ask the venue.
Common questions
What time can you buy alcohol in Thailand?
From 11:00 to 24:00. Hotels, international airport terminals and licensed entertainment venues are exempt.
Can you buy alcohol at 7-Eleven after midnight?
Sale is banned outside 11:00 to 24:00. Hotels and entertainment venues are exempt.
Is there a fine for drinking during banned hours?
A drinker at a place that sells or serves alcohol during the banned hours faces an administrative fine of up to THB 10,000.
Where can you drink at 2am in Bangkok or Phuket?
Licensed entertainment venues in Bangkok, Chonburi, Chiang Mai, Phuket and the Ko Samui district may open until 04:00. Hotels are exempt from the sale hours.
Is alcohol sold on Buddhist holy days?
Sale is banned on Makha Bucha, Visakha Bucha, Asarnha Bucha and the first and last days of Buddhist Lent. Hotels and entertainment venues are exempt.
How old do you need to be to buy alcohol in Thailand?
Nobody may sell alcohol to a person under 20. A seller who doubts your age must ask for an identity card or other official document showing it.
Can you drink in a temple or at a petrol station?
Drinking in a temple is banned, except as part of a religious ceremony. Drinking at a fuel station is banned. The penalty is up to 6 months in prison, a fine of up to THB 10,000, or both.
Read next
Sources and reader comments
Official legal texts (Gazette, government portals):
- Royal Gazette vol. 143 special part 134 Ng, 28 May 2026, pp. 18-19: Notice of the Alcoholic Beverage Control Committee on prohibited sale hours B.E. 2569 (opens in a new tab)
- Royal Gazette vol. 142 part 57 Kor, 9 Sep 2025, pp. 8-29: Alcoholic Beverage Control Act (No. 2) B.E. 2568 (opens in a new tab)
- Royal Gazette vol. 142 special part 189 Ng, 9 May 2025, p. 1: Notice of the Prime Minister's Office on prohibited sale days B.E. 2568 (opens in a new tab)
- Royal Gazette vol. 140 part 70 Kor, 15 Dec 2023, pp. 7-9: Ministerial Regulation on opening and closing days and times of service places (No. 3) B.E. 2566 (opens in a new tab)
- Royal Gazette vol. 125 part 33 Kor, 13 Feb 2008, pp. 34-: Alcoholic Beverage Control Act B.E. 2551 (original text; sections 27, 31, 39, 42 not touched by Act No. 2 except s.27(3),(8) and s.31(3),(4),(7); read as page images) (opens in a new tab)
General information checked against the sources listed above. Prices, opening hours and other details change; confirm them with the provider before you act. See how guides are checked.
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Comments (5)
ogdave555
Unless there’s been an update, I don’t believe those exceptions you’ve linked have been passed yet.
sbrider11
It's easy to navigate this and it's not that big of a deal unless sitting in a bar all day is your thing. What's hilarious is every weed shop is open, lol. Only in Thailand.
View all 5 comments
william_longley
Alcohol ban Sorry for the ignorance, but is it really true that there is no alcohol being sold anywhere both today and tomorrow? Will bars even be open? Are there any places that get around this?
2 replies
platebandit
Officially no alcohol sold, some 'restaurants' may be serving it on the sly. Non chain stores also sometimes sell it. Half the gogo bars will probably still be open with the shutters down
bcycle240
If you need alcohol you can buy it any mom&pop shops (they are everywhere), and also a lot of markets. If you need to be at a bar you can walk up and down the bar streets and there will be a place with the gate 80% closed and a girl outside that will escort you in.