Sunday 1 March 2026

Good morning Bangkok. We're looking at 30–34°C (86–93°F) today with broken clouds and 59% humidity, proper hot season weather. PM2.5 is sitting at 53 µg/m³ (moderate/yellow), so maybe skip that jog around Lumphini if you're precious about your lungs. Today's newsletter: election drama, festival news that'll blow your Bluetooth speaker out of the water, and a Pattaya heist that sounds like a Netflix script.

Tomorrowland is officially coming to Thailand — December 11-13 at Wisdom Valley, Pattaya

After years of rumors and satellite events, Belgium's Tomorrowland is making its first full-scale Asian debut right here in Thailand. The Tourism Authority of Thailand made it official yesterday, confirming six stages including the legendary Main Stage, plus CORE and Freedom stages appearing in Asia for the first time. They're expecting 50,000 people per day. Hotel packages went on sale today (Feb 28) at 4 PM via thailand.tomorrowland.com, with general tickets following on March 7. Four ticket tiers: Day Pass, Full Madness Pass, Comfort VIP, and Full Madness Comfort VIP.

Bottom line: This is massive for Thailand's festival scene and Pattaya specifically. But plan early: 50,000 daily attendance means hotels, transport, and Grab pricing will be chaos. If you're going, lock in a hotel package before general sale opens next Friday.

The EC has filed criminal complaints against six people including former Election Commissioner Somchai Srisutthiyakorn, People's Party spokesperson Parit Wacharasindhu, and a photojournalist from Spacebar, for photographing ballots and attempting to decode QR codes during a Feb 22 re-run election in Bangkok's Kannayao district. The charges include obstruction of officials, Computer Crime Act violations, and unlawfully opening sealed documents. The backlash has been intense: the People's Party called it a SLAPP suit, the Thai Journalists Association warned it could stifle press freedom, and iLaw's director said scrutinising barcodes on ballots isn't illegal. The EC insists it's following legal procedure, not targeting ordinary citizens.

Bottom line: The bigger story here is the barcode controversy itself, ballot papers in the Feb 8 election contained codes that could potentially trace votes back to individual voters, which critics say violates constitutional guarantees of ballot secrecy. The EC prosecuting the people who exposed this isn't a great look.

SOMEWHERE — Chatuchak

A community space and cafe tucked away on Soi Pradipat in Chatuchak. It's part cafe, part creative hub, think coffee, workshops, and weekend markets all in one compound. The space itself is beautiful greenery everywhere, open-air seating, and that laid-back northside energy that Sukhumvit doesn't have. 4.5 stars with 70 reviews and 312+ photos on Google should tell you it's legit. Opens 8 AM Sunday.

TIP: Go on a weekend morning when they usually have pop-up vendors and markets running alongside the cafe. It's a full vibe, not just a coffee stop.

Saturday, 28 Feb — Chatuchak Weekend Market, Chatuchak, 9am–6pm (all the plants, vintage Levi's, and coconut ice cream you can handle)

Saturday, 28 Feb — Muay Thai fights, Rajadamnern Stadium, 6:30pm (classic Saturday night entertainment)

Sunday, 1 Mar — Or Tor Kor Market, Chatuchak, 6am–6pm (pricier than Chatuchak but the produce is immaculate)

Tuesday, 2 Mar — Jodd Fairs Night Market, Rama IX, 4pm–midnight (street food circus with air-con seating)

Thursday, 4 Mar — Live jazz at Bamboo Bar, Mandarin Oriental, 7pm onwards (dress smart, bring your wallet)

Friday, 5 Mar — Full moon party prep shopping, Khao San Road, all day (if you're heading south this weekend)

28 February 1986 — Swedish Prime Minister Olof Palme was assassinated in Stockholm after leaving a cinema with his wife. Forty years later, Bangkok's cinemas are considerably safer, though getting out of Siam Paragon's car park on a Saturday night still feels life-threatening.

See you tomorrow morning. — Devon