Destinations Known | Bangkok’s Khao San Road is preparing to ‘reopen’ – will it ever be the same again?
- After a US$1.54 million facelift, the notorious party street is being promoted as ‘a safe place to go for those worried about Covid-19’
- But the businesses that line the 410-metre stretch worry for their futures without the international tourists they rely on
Khao San Road’s reputation – as a place of hedonism where countless backpackers’ drunken dreams have quickly become SangSom-fuelled hangovers of nightmare proportions – was immortalised in Alex Garland’s cult 1996 novel, The Beach, and later in the critically panned film of the same name, starring Leonardo DiCaprio.
Once thronged by budget travellers in search of budget thrills, for whom the all-night party started in the 1980s and only got more debauched as the decades passed, the 410-metre Bangkok stretch has been quiet for months, and not just because of the coronavirus.
From January 30 to May 18, Khao San Road underwent a 48.4 million baht (US$1.54 million) facelift to improve its “ghetto” image. On August 18, the Bangkok Post newspaper reported that it was finally ready to reopen “next month”, although how a road that was never really closed can “reopen” isn’t entirely clear.
“The road and footpaths are now on the same level, gutters connected tothe main drainage system have been constructed on both sides of the road and there is designated space for emergency use, such as a parking space for fire trucks,” the report stated.
