SELLING HOURS
Thailand alcohol sales hours: 11 am to midnight
You can buy alcohol at ordinary licensed shops in Thailand from 11:00 to midnight. There is no afternoon break under the rules effective 29 May 2026. Dry days and election bans still apply.
Rules reviewed · All times in Thailand
Can you buy beer at 3 pm?
Yes, on an ordinary day. You no longer need to wait until 5 pm. The old 2 pm to 5 pm break was relaxed in a trial beginning 3 December 2025, and the continuous 11 am to midnight schedule became the regular rule on 29 May 2026.
Beer, wine and spirits follow the same selling hours. A supermarket, convenience store or bottle shop still needs an alcohol licence, and its own opening hours may be shorter.
What happens at 11 am and midnight?
Sales can start at 11:00. At 00:00, ordinary shops must stop selling. If you arrive just before midnight, allow time to finish your purchase; a shop may stop accepting purchases earlier.
At 10:30 am on a normal day, you need to wait until 11 am to buy. At 3 pm you can buy; from midnight, sales stop again. The hours use Thailand time everywhere, including Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Phuket and the islands.
Why could the answer still be NO during selling hours?
Five Buddhist holy days stop ordinary retail sales for the full calendar day. Election bans have their own start and end times, and a local election may affect only one district. Check the live answer and any affected-area notice before heading out.
You must be at least 20 and not intoxicated. Shops in prohibited locations, including petrol stations, cannot sell alcohol during these hours either.
Can your hotel or a late-night venue serve outside these hours?
Registered hotels, qualifying international airport passenger areas, licensed entertainment venues and certain approved venues may serve outside ordinary hours under separate conditions. Ask staff whether the venue is authorised to sell at the time you want to buy. An ordinary bar is not automatically a licensed entertainment venue.
An exception to ordinary hours does not automatically remove an election ban. To check a purchase now, select your venue in the situation checker and enter what staff have confirmed about its permission to sell and any local ban.
PUBLISHED RULES
Sources & updates
Read the published rules below. Selling hours and Buddhist-day exceptions have separate announcements from election bans. Check which rules apply where and when you want to buy.
This is an independent visitor guide, not a Thai government service. The live answer uses published selling hours and the listed restrictions. Local orders and venue licences may add conditions. If a notice at your venue differs, ask staff to confirm which rule applies.