Bangkok's party on hold after king's death

Lights out in Soi Cowboy. Photo / AP

On an ordinary Saturday night, the Soi Cowboy red-light district in Bangkok is ablaze with neon lights as skimpily clad women in go-go boots chat up tourists and twirl seductively around poles.

But the decadent flesh parade came to an abrupt halt last week when soldiers marched in and shut the dance bars down. It was a gesture of respect for the country's long-ruling monarch, King Bhumibol Adulyadej, who died after a long illness and 70 years on the throne.

Soon, word came down from the country's Prime Minister and head of its military: Thailand would be in mourning for a year, flags would be at half-staff and "joyful events" should be avoided for 30 days.

Although the Government made it clear that visitors should continue their travel plans as normal - as long as they tried to dress and act respectfully - bars and restaurants have since been closed, loud music avoided and alcohol sometimes difficult to come by. All of this has put a damper on one of the world's most popular party spots.

About 30 million visitors came to Thailand last year, a number that is expected to reach a record high this year because of an influx from China. Tourism contributed US$81 billion to the country's gross domestic product in 2015, nearly 21 per cent, according to the World Travel and Tourism Council.

Workers are worried about their lost wages and tour companies and airlines about declining business - although most experts think that the impact on tourism will be modest in the long term. The V8 Diner in the Sukhumvit area of Bangkok was closed for two days, for example, losing about US$2800 of business in the process. "We didn't feel like working anyway in this kind of mood," said Bam, the manager. "Everybody was crying."

Nobody was really sure when the night clubs - especially the fleshy ones - would reopen. Yesterday, one sex worker said hopefully in a week. Many of her dancers have left the city to return to their home villages to wait out the break, she said.

One Australian bar owner in the bustling Khaosan Rd area, which is popular with backpackers, gave his customers paper cups to discreetly sip their beer in case police were watching.

On Saturday night, on the Soi Cowboy strip, the lane of about 40 night clubs was eerily silent and dark except for the occasional bright light of a street vendor passing through with a rattling cart. As near as anybody could remember, the place had been open nightly since a retired US airman named T.G. "Cowboy" Edwards opened up the first bar there in 1977.

Even through military coups.