9 Best Nightlife Experiences in Bangkok Old Town

Superflow Beach Club takes people from the bustling backpacker haunt of Khao San Road, straight into a funky outdoor beach party. The sand-covered floor, day beds and palm tree DJ booth all help to create a surprisingly realistic vibe – you’d never imagine you’re still in Bangkok.

You can’t tell from the narrow opening, but this open-air club is a surprisingly large space, which is shaped into a huge ‘L’. Labeled as a day and night club, the team behind Superflow Bangkok have definitely taken inspiration from the beach culture found in places like Ibiza and Bali. It opens midday for Khao San locals who want to do some lounging around, but once the sun sets it gets taken up a notch with live music and DJs.

Adhere The 13th Blue Bar is a tiny live blues bar that has a charged atmosphere, talented musicians and cheap beers. This is a winning combination that brings locals, expats and backpackers from Khao San Road just 5 minutes’ walk away. The decor of smoke-stained old record sleeves and music memorabilia adds to the authentic feel that this is a place for pure blues music lovers, though from the flowing conversation and collective cheers its clear everyone is welcome.

There’s no menu to speak of at Adhere the 13th and the musicians start playing sometime around 8pm so you should aim to get here around then if you want a seat. This place is narrow but that helps to create a friendly, fun-loving vibe.

The Club is one of the only out-and-out nightclubs in Old City Bangkok. It’s a cavernous space which fills up from midnight onwards and plays high-tempo trance and techno tracks to a tourist clientele, though on weekends plenty of Thai teens come to party on, too.

There are 2 large bars inside, though most of the interior is open space designed for dancing, with 2 podiums which fill up quickly. Unlike nightclubs in downtown Bangkok, The Club has no dress code, though it’s worth carrying some form of ID as security do sometimes check.

An extremely popular live music club on Khao San Road, Brick Bar is often missed by first-time visitors to Bangkok as it’s right underneath Buddy Lodge Hotel. Those who do make the effort to find this basement bar are often rewarded with a packed house all singing and dancing along to energetic, fun-loving ska and Thai pop covers from the excellent house band as well as visiting artists from across Thailand.

Certainly more authentic than other spots on this very foreign-dominated street, Brick Bar is a lot of fun and well worth the entry fee (which often includes a free drink coupon).

Jazz Happens is a simple live music joint that was established by a group of lecturers from the nearby Silapakorn University. It was meant to provide their students with a place to play and listen to quality jazz music in a nurturing environment. This down-to-earth bar offers a more personal experience than the other jazz clubs scattered around Bangkok.

The bar opens from around 7pm but it starts to get busy around 10pm when the band is in full swing. A menu of Thai food and bar snacks is available but most people are content with a cold beer to accompany the rhythmic live jazz.

Bombay Blues is a fun bar in Bangkok Old Town that’s housed in a bright red building with Indian motifs. It’s where you can try some delicious Indian curry then kick back for the night and enjoy playing a few board games and listen to the resident DJ play some Bollywood tracks.

The vibe at Bombay Blues is friendly and relaxed, especially on the second floor open-air terrace where shisha pipes are common and where conversation flows easily.