The country of Thailand is planning an extravagant coronation ceremony for their new king, Maha Vajiralongkorn, also known as King Rama X. King Rama X took over the monarchy following his father’s passing in 2016. The coronation ceremony was postponed for an extended period of grieving, but now Thailand is ready to celebrate their new king.
Thinking about the ongoing elaborate preparations for the ceremony, which is expected to ultimately cost millions of dollars, I find the words from the Lion King’s classic song, “I Just Can’t Wait to Be King” running through my head.
Then I think about traffic…
And if you are planning to visit Bangkok over the five-day coronation celebration running May 2-6, 2019, you probably should be too
.
The Thai government and royal family are planning numerous events over the five days of celebrations, with many of those events involving road closures in different parts of Bangkok.
The most impactful of the road closings will be on May 5 for the royal parade – over 30 roads will be closed starting at midnight to prepare for the parade and throughout the day until the parade ends. Popular impacted tourist destinations include the Khao San road, Ratchadamnoen Nok road, Charoen Krung road, and many others.
The period from May 4-6 is considered a national holiday to honor the ceremony, and the King’s actual crowning with take place on Saturday, May 4; therefore many shops and businesses will likely be closed in Bangkok that day.
In addition to the road closures, the Grand Palace, one of the most popular attractions in Bangkok, will be closed during the five-day coronation celebration.
However, in other parts of Thailand, things will be running as usual.
If you’ve booked a trip to Bangkok with us during the coronation celebrations, we will be working with our ground teams to handle the new traffic patterns. If you’re just starting to plan a trip to Thailand during this time period, we’d recommend visiting Bangkok either before or after the coronation to avoid dealing with all the road closures. You can visit another area during these dates such as Chiang Mai or Phuket, which won’t be affected.
