ALCOHOL BAN FOR WEDNESDAY – VISAKHA BUCHA DAY 2024

ALCOHOL BAN FOR WEDNESDAY – VISAKHA BUCHA DAY 2024

 Phuket government offices, Immigration and most bank branches will also be closed (except in the major shopping centres).

Phuket’s three Immigration offices will be closed on Wednesday, May 22, in observance of one of three major Buddhist holiday, Visakha Bucha Day.

There will also be the customary alcohol sales ban tomorrow as part of a national regulation announced by the PM’s Office in 2015, which prohibits alcohol sales on five specific religious days…. Makha Bucha, Visakha Bucha, Asarnha Bucha Day, Khao Pansa and Wan Org Pansa (as well as on election days).

All shops, bars and restaurants are prohibited from selling alcohol for 24 hours, from midnight Tuesday night until midnight Wednesday night. This prohibition extends nationwide, with exceptions only for duty-free shops at airports.

Visakha Bucha Day is a holy day that marks the birth, enlightenment and death of Gautama Buddha. Buddhists worldwide commemorate these events on the full moon of the sixth lunar month, Wednesday, May 22).

Many Thai Buddhists will visit temples early in the morning to make merit and listen to sermons on the Buddha’s teachings. After sunset, candle-lit processions will take place at major temples, with participants walking clockwise three times around the principal chapel, carrying three incense sticks, a lighted candle, and lotus buds.

Tomorrow is also Thailand National Arbor Day. So, to celebrate this concurrence, the Tree for Dhamma Foundation and the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration are inviting residents to make merit by planting trees through the ‘Wian Tian Using Tree Seedlings’ activity.

Most government offices in Phuket, including the Labour Office, Land Transport Office and the island’s three District Offices, will be closed. The Royal Thai Police and Tourist Police stations will continue to operate, and some local consulates may be open but you should call first to check.