On Friday, Khao San Road Business Association president Sa-nga Ruangwatthanasakul warned a more somber Christmas spirit may dampen Bangkok’s backpacker hub’s December 31 revelry.
Despite the New Year decorations and countdown, roadside entertainment businesses will remain open.
People celebrating the New Year at Khao San Road may still take selfies with the gigantic balloons and watch live countdown activities from other tourist destinations on a big screen.
Sa-nga noted that Thais were still at a “sensitive time” as they prayed for His Majesty the King’s eldest daughter’s health. After losing consciousness on December 14, the Princess is receiving heart treatment at King Chulalongkorn Memorial Hospital in Bangkok.
The Princess is the daughter of the king’s cousin, As a teenager she was educated at Heathfield school, a prestigious all-girls school in England, before earning two graduate degrees at Cornell University. She served as Thailand’s ambassador to Austria, going on to become an advocate for Thai female prisoners.
The government and judiciary have instructed their workplaces to cancel New Year celebrations out of respect. The Supreme Patriarch has ordered Thai temples worldwide to pray for the Princess daily.
Pattaya also canceled its December 29–31 countdown event’s grandest New Year fireworks spectacular. The beachfront city’s New Year’s concerts and festivals continue.
