No closing time on New Year’s Eve

PHUKET: Entertainment venues will be able to stay open as long as they wish on New Year’s Eve, Phuket’s top law enforcement official told the Gazette today.

Pol Maj Gen Decha Budnampeth, Commander of Phuket Provincial Police, said that the exception to the normal closing time would apply only on the night of December 31-January 1. From the evening of January 1 onward, all entertainment venues must close at their normal times of 1 am – or 2 am if they are in one of the government-designated entertainment zones.

Those seeing the closing time exception on New Year’s as carte blanche to overindulge might want to do so close to home; a series of manned police checkpoints will operate in strategic locations across the island during the holiday period, he said.

“It’s up to drivers to act responsibly. We are always prepared to serve the public, however,” he said.

The police will do their best to maintain order on New Year’s Eve, he added.