The Sunset of Soi Twilight: The End of Soi Pratoo Chai’s Gay Entertainment Era
Soi Pratoo Chai, once famously known as “Soi Twilight” was a former side street in the Bang Rak district of Bangkok, renowned as a hub for gay entertainment. The businesses there primarily catered to an international clientele of tourists and expatriates. Soi Pratoo Chai was well-known internationally as the heart of gay entertainment in Bangkok.
Soi Twilight closed down in April 2019. A number of the bars relocated to the Phatphong area, while others shut down permanently. Since its closure, the land has been purchased and is being developed into a 32-story condominium named Culture Chula by Ananda Development, with construction anticipated to be completed in 2025.
Soi Pratoo Chai was geographically situated between Surawong Road and Rama IV Road, close to the BTS Sala Daeng Station and MRT Si Lom Station. It was a cul-de-sac with significantly less vehicular traffic compared to Phatphong.
The history of Soi Pratoo Chai as a “gay” alley began in 1971 when the gay a-go-go bar named Twilight relocated there from Sukhumvit. The bar Twilight is notable for being one of the first establishments mentioned in Thai media in the context of “gay” as men who love men, distinguishing them from katoey (transgender women). Initially, the bar had no chairs, requiring patrons to stand, ostensibly to facilitate the “Twilight handshake” (referring to their genitals being touched) by the performers. Within two decades, by the 1990s, Soi Pratoo Chai had fully transformed into an entirely gay bar alley. By 2019, there were over 10 gay bars operating within the soi.
The entire land of Soi Pratoo Chai was sold in 2019, marking the end of its gay commercial sex service businesses. The subsequent global COVID-19 pandemic also contributed to the ongoing changes, severely impacting the nightlife industry. During the height of the pandemic, only three gay bars reportedly remained open in the overall Phatphong area.
Most of the a-go-go bars in Soi Pratoo Chai featured male dancers performing on stage. Customers could engage and negotiate to “rent” the stage performers, as well as waiters, to take them out for services outside the bar. Some establishments in the alley, though advertised as “massage parlors,” also offered sex services. Many bars in Soi Pratoo Chai had upper floors that hosted sex shows, which are illegal under Thai law. These shows were exclusively male-on-male. Generally, the businesses in the alley closed around 2 AM.
Currently, some of the former Soi Pratoo Chai gay bars that have relocated to Phatphong and remain open include Hotmale Bar, Dream Boy, Fresh Boys, Good Boys, and Rainbow Dragon. For Banana Bar moved to Silom Soi 4, and Moonlight Bar is now located in the Surawong Hotel.
If you plan a safe night out, remember to practice safe sex. Please come back and visit; they miss you.
บ้านเดี่ยวพร้อมอยู่ตกแต่งสวยมาก 4 ห้องนอน 2 ห้องน้ำ มีแอร์ 4 ตัว พื้นที่จอดรถ มีสวนหย่อม รปภ 24 ชั่วโมง วิวหลังบ้านติดสวน บรรยากาศร่มเย็นสบายมาก และยังมีสโมสร สระว่ายน้ำ สนามเทนนิส สนามบาส ใกล้เซ็นทรัลพระราม 2 และเดอะมอลล์บางแค
