On 22 May 2014, Thailand’s military seized control of the government in a self-professed effort to 'reform the political structure, the economy and the society.' Coups are nothing new in Thailand – this is the 12th since 1932 – but the current situation has understandably left travellers with a few questions.
So what does the military coup mean for travellers?
Despite the military’s declaration of nationwide martial law (which effectively rendered the Thai constitution null and void), daily life more or less continues as usual in Bangkok and elsewhere in Thailand – tourist attractions are still open, and tourism-related businesses and services remain operational. Yet there are a few issues that could impact travellers directly:
A curfew is in place across Thailand from midnight to 4am local time (relaxed from 10pm to 5am). Although we’ve seen some people out in Bangkok past 10pm, most businesses (including restaurants and bars) are closing early, and Bangkok’s BTS (elevated monorail) and MRT (metro), including the Airport Link train to Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi International Airport are running on truncated schedules. Among those declared exempt from the curfew are people travelling to/from Thailand’s airports.
All airports in Thailand remain open, yet security-related roadblocks mean that travel to/from airports – especially at night – could take bit longer than usual; we suggest allowing an extra half hour and preparing travel documents for possible inspection along the way.
What's the safety risk for travellers?
Although there’s always a risk that the situation could escalate – already there have been heated anti-coup protests, and a potentially violent backlash by pro-government supporters is possible – relatively little of the country’s tourism infrastructure has been impacted by the coup, and at the time of writing Thailand remains a safe place to visit.
