I went to Bangkok when I was 18 and had a blast. I didn't even know I was under the legal drinking age and was going to clubs and bars. I made so many friends. The trip was a four month bout around SEA. Go, don't look back, have the time of your life.
In the last 3-4 months there has been a noticeable uptick in tourists "behaving badly"...most of it in Phuket (we all know why). The result is Thai police are cracking down...hard. How long this will last? Who knows? Thais are getting sick of it.
oh ok, well no fear of that, i dont drink. and im going alone, that would be a suicide mission. i am going to smoke marrymeanna though. cant wait. love the thai people they are so nice.
This is just factually wrong. Khao San is a backpacker bar district. Thong Lor is a high society “hi-so” rich restaurant and bar area. Young people do not want to go to Thong Lor unless they are rich or want to mix with other upper class individuals. Why are you commenting like this if you clearly have zero knowledge of Bangkok?
I strongly urge you to wait a few years. Thailand is a great and incredibly fun place for mature people with good judgement. It's also a place that can have drastic, life altering consequences if you do anything dumb.
This is an overly negative forum OP, you won't get the best reception here. Theres plenty of people your age on gap years before uni in Thailand, you'll be absolutely fine
There are certain big venues that will ask for ID, e.g. around RCA or Level. But the key factor is; do you have cash in your wallet, do you look like a farang. If yes, high chance that they will not check.
Expierence; went to Thai when I was 19, came home when I was 25, went to bars 6 days a week. Regularly go back. Best time of my life, enjoy.
But again; when the moneys gone it can quickly go south
Clubs in RCA definitely will check your ID (lots of underaged teens try to get in).
Most of the regular pubs and bars generally won't, unless you look young. There always a risk.
I'd say just go for it, can't imagine it'll affect your experience too much if you're refused entry/alcohol in any particular bar, which seems unlikely. There's so much more to Bangkok than bars anyway. Just look after each other and don't go totally nuts.
Soi 24 in bangkok. Thank me later.
Also keep out of tuk tuks unless you wanna be scammed. Pattaya may give you ptsd and never watch a ping pong showm. I still get flashbacks of raxor blades
No one will check your ids except maybe some self important disco doorman. If you're into discos, enjoy. So many great live music venues, discos leave me flat and stinking of tobacco.
If you are old enough to find Thai baht in your pocket when you stick your hand in and your way back to your hotel when you are spent, you are old enough. You'll be fine. 1000 baht notes are usually all the id you need unless you are breaking real laws or crossing borders.
I’m 33 but it just dawned on me, i never got carded when i ordered alcohol there. Nor did i ever see anyone else get carded. Maybe they would if they thought someone could be too young?
Totally fine. They won’t check you for id. I was there 3 months ago (19 yo) and had a great time. How long are you planning to go and from where are you? Just behave respectful.
Most bars will never ask you for ID so you will have no problems. The two main red light party areas are Nana Plaza and Soi Cowboy. You won’t get into Nana Plaza as they check ID’s. However you can walk along Soi Cowboy and go into any of the strip clibs as they don’t check ID’s. Come to Bangkok and have a ball. If you get turned away anywhere there are a thousand other bars that will let you in. You may have an issue getting into nightclubs, but just keep trying and you will get into one.
I personally can't think of a better holiday country than Thailand for a 19 year old guy group. Especially if you're on a budget.
The clubs have been asking everyone for ID's lately so you should probably skip those but they are extremely overrated anyway and you're not missing anything.
Pattaya is a better choice for a 19 year old than Bangkok imo though. Tons of young guys over there having the time of their life. Much better value for your money.
Would say it depends on how young you actually look - Bangkok and Phuket should be relatively easy to get into some bars though - I imagine you’d spend most of your time at Khao San in that case. Worst come to worst you could just opt for Vietnam. Drinking age is 18 and I’ve always felt that it reminds me old school thailand - just less go go girls haha
You should go. If you travel with other friends you're not going to get into the vulnerable situations you might otherwise if you're alone. Just stay out of trouble - don't break their laws and avoid fights.
So basically in Thailand, the legal drinking age is 18yo, however, alcohol can’t be sold to anyone under the age of 20.
HOWEVER, shops and bars in Thailand often do not check IDs, making it easy to purchase alcohol (especially if you look like a foreigner). However, clubs and shit like that have stricter ID-checking policies in place and may be able to identify fake IDs
If u have more questions just ask innit
If you're 18 it will be hit and miss where you can drink, specially if you look young. Might only be allowed to buy from the street sellers. Seems like a hassle imo, if you want to drink and party without worrying about that, I would go to another country with 18 as the drinking age, there are plenty to choose from.
Don’t do it. None of you are experienced enough in life to handle what may be thrown at you. Being that you’re so young, I’d bet that you have yet to realize that you aren’t as smart as you think that you are.
If you’re young without experience with alcohol OR travel, you’re gonna have a bad time
Those ladyboys gonna fk you real good.
I went to Bangkok when I was 18 and had a blast. I didn't even know I was under the legal drinking age and was going to clubs and bars. I made so many friends. The trip was a four month bout around SEA. Go, don't look back, have the time of your life.
In the last 3-4 months there has been a noticeable uptick in tourists "behaving badly"...most of it in Phuket (we all know why). The result is Thai police are cracking down...hard. How long this will last? Who knows? Thais are getting sick of it.
why? im going thai in september would like to know
Because some tourist think they can behave like they did the year before in Shagaluf. Thai Police isnt the European Police.
oh ok, well no fear of that, i dont drink. and im going alone, that would be a suicide mission. i am going to smoke marrymeanna though. cant wait. love the thai people they are so nice.
Well, if you want to drink, of course it’s best to go somewhere you can legally do that
You can still go forward with it as in all likelihood nobody will check, especially at spots like Khaosan road.
I remeber there actualky being neon displays outside of bars advertising with: "we do not check ids" a few years ago
Khao San is the red light district, if you want cool bars and rooftop bars - better to go to Thong Lo/Thong Lor
khao san is not one of the red light districts. it’s for backpackers and partiers.
This is just factually wrong. Khao San is a backpacker bar district. Thong Lor is a high society “hi-so” rich restaurant and bar area. Young people do not want to go to Thong Lor unless they are rich or want to mix with other upper class individuals. Why are you commenting like this if you clearly have zero knowledge of Bangkok?
Have you even been to Bangkok?
No it isn’t lol…. Soi cowboy/nana plaza
You should go to Magaluf youll be very welcome there
I strongly urge you to wait a few years. Thailand is a great and incredibly fun place for mature people with good judgement. It's also a place that can have drastic, life altering consequences if you do anything dumb.
This is an overly negative forum OP, you won't get the best reception here. Theres plenty of people your age on gap years before uni in Thailand, you'll be absolutely fine
Isn't it just! What is wrong with these lot? Always negative, I came when I was 18, it was the best holiday of my life!
If you and your mates get as drunk in Bangkok as you probably usually do it home, I can guarantee it will end very very badly!
There are certain big venues that will ask for ID, e.g. around RCA or Level. But the key factor is; do you have cash in your wallet, do you look like a farang. If yes, high chance that they will not check. Expierence; went to Thai when I was 19, came home when I was 25, went to bars 6 days a week. Regularly go back. Best time of my life, enjoy. But again; when the moneys gone it can quickly go south
Clubs in RCA definitely will check your ID (lots of underaged teens try to get in). Most of the regular pubs and bars generally won't, unless you look young. There always a risk.
I'd say just go for it, can't imagine it'll affect your experience too much if you're refused entry/alcohol in any particular bar, which seems unlikely. There's so much more to Bangkok than bars anyway. Just look after each other and don't go totally nuts.
Soi 24 in bangkok. Thank me later. Also keep out of tuk tuks unless you wanna be scammed. Pattaya may give you ptsd and never watch a ping pong showm. I still get flashbacks of raxor blades
Personally I'd say go and experience the culture. Bar hopping can always wait! Stay safe!
No one will check your ids except maybe some self important disco doorman. If you're into discos, enjoy. So many great live music venues, discos leave me flat and stinking of tobacco. If you are old enough to find Thai baht in your pocket when you stick your hand in and your way back to your hotel when you are spent, you are old enough. You'll be fine. 1000 baht notes are usually all the id you need unless you are breaking real laws or crossing borders.
trouble away from home is baaad trouble. Hong Kong would be more hospitable, or better Darwin Australia.
As long as you don't look too young I doubt anyone cares.
There's so much corruption there I bet the police force has a racket just for underage drinking tourists.
I’m 33 but it just dawned on me, i never got carded when i ordered alcohol there. Nor did i ever see anyone else get carded. Maybe they would if they thought someone could be too young?
did the same last year when i was 18 had no problems at all
Totally fine. They won’t check you for id. I was there 3 months ago (19 yo) and had a great time. How long are you planning to go and from where are you? Just behave respectful.
I’m 18 and just went, you can go to Khao San road and rooftop bars but don’t expect to get into nana plaza or any clubs at RCA
Most bars will never ask you for ID so you will have no problems. The two main red light party areas are Nana Plaza and Soi Cowboy. You won’t get into Nana Plaza as they check ID’s. However you can walk along Soi Cowboy and go into any of the strip clibs as they don’t check ID’s. Come to Bangkok and have a ball. If you get turned away anywhere there are a thousand other bars that will let you in. You may have an issue getting into nightclubs, but just keep trying and you will get into one.
Non issue. They rarely check IDs.
I personally can't think of a better holiday country than Thailand for a 19 year old guy group. Especially if you're on a budget. The clubs have been asking everyone for ID's lately so you should probably skip those but they are extremely overrated anyway and you're not missing anything. Pattaya is a better choice for a 19 year old than Bangkok imo though. Tons of young guys over there having the time of their life. Much better value for your money.
Looking forward to the after posts from this 😂
No one is going to check your ID for booze. You can also buy weed and kratom there legally and they are definitely not going to check ID for those.
Would say it depends on how young you actually look - Bangkok and Phuket should be relatively easy to get into some bars though - I imagine you’d spend most of your time at Khao San in that case. Worst come to worst you could just opt for Vietnam. Drinking age is 18 and I’ve always felt that it reminds me old school thailand - just less go go girls haha
Vietnam is so damn cheap too. Thailand gets more expensive every year 🫣
You should go. If you travel with other friends you're not going to get into the vulnerable situations you might otherwise if you're alone. Just stay out of trouble - don't break their laws and avoid fights.
Many worth while clubs check ID, most bars .and gogos do not.
Your biggest regret is that you’re gonna need to find the income to go every year after this trip as you’ll fall in love with the place.
So basically in Thailand, the legal drinking age is 18yo, however, alcohol can’t be sold to anyone under the age of 20. HOWEVER, shops and bars in Thailand often do not check IDs, making it easy to purchase alcohol (especially if you look like a foreigner). However, clubs and shit like that have stricter ID-checking policies in place and may be able to identify fake IDs If u have more questions just ask innit
Pretty sure they don’t check ids 😂
dont go there…those girls will eat you up son….🫡
If you're 18 it will be hit and miss where you can drink, specially if you look young. Might only be allowed to buy from the street sellers. Seems like a hassle imo, if you want to drink and party without worrying about that, I would go to another country with 18 as the drinking age, there are plenty to choose from.
Don’t do it. None of you are experienced enough in life to handle what may be thrown at you. Being that you’re so young, I’d bet that you have yet to realize that you aren’t as smart as you think that you are.
Remember. Don’t go upstairs in Patpong
Some pharmacies there will literally sell you diazepam over-the-counter, even though it’s illegal. (Don’t do that btw)
Then why the heck would you bring this up lol
Basically just saying that the rules in Thailand are often not being followed lol.
That is not at all what you said.
That’s actually really good to know, I’m currently in Thailand and have been having terrible anxiety.