5 Most Haunted Places in Bangkok, Thailand

Haunted Bangkok, Thailand

Thailand is a place of enchantment and superstition. Its capital city, Bangkok, is no different, yet one of the loudest, most colorful and lively places you’ll likely to find in the country. Despite the living being plentiful, there are also plenty of the dead to be found in the city and a number of places hold fascinating ghost stories. Let’s explore some of the most haunted places in Bangkok, Thailand.

5. Romaneenart Park

Our first haunted location in Bangkok is today a uniquely picturesque park but was once a fierce prison that held the country’s most hardened criminals. The former maximum-security prison dates back to the 1890s and sat abandoned for a number of years following its official closure. To preserve the history of the site and make use of the area once again, the prison was converted into a park in 1992 to commemorate the Queen’s sixtieth birthday.

The old prison remains quite intact with guarded walls, watchtowers, cells and even a full prison block still standing at the site. Countless people to visit have claimed to encounter the paranormal within the park, which makes sense given the history of the prison. There were many violent individuals held at this facility, as well as poor, torturous living conditions. This led to many deaths and from those deaths, a number of ghosts are said to have become trapped.

The most common report of the paranormal at the former jail is to sight apparitions and shadow figures. These entities are believed to be former inmates who lost their lives at the prison and they have been frequently sighted walking across the park or even around the cell block area.

Whether these sightings are caused by residual energy or intelligent spirits remains to be told, though I did personally pick up on a number of responses that seemed to indicate intelligence during a spirit box session I conducted in one of the jail’s holding cells. One of these voices seemed to ask for help, while another seemed to tell us when our session had been interrupted by some stray cats.

4. Ghost Tower

The next location on this list is said to be so haunted it’s actually been nicknamed the Ghost Tower. The 49 story building was abandoned in 1997 after a financial crisis struck Thailand. The tower was intended to be a complex of luxury condos but was never completed and today is considered one of the most haunted places in the city.

Though the reason why the construction of this building was halted was likely financial, many locals believe that the tower had been cursed, as it was built over the top of an old cemetery. Add to this, a death inside the abandoned tower in 2014, when a photographer discovered the body of a Swedish tourist on the forty-third floor. It’s rumored that this is the most haunted floor, yet many others claim that paranormal events happen all throughout the building.

3. Baiyoke Sky Hotel

The Baiyoke Sky Hotel is one of the tallest and busiest hotels in the city of Bangkok, Thailand. It stands at 88 stories, or 309 meters, and contains hundreds of attractions, such as a golf driving range and themed restaurants. It’s also said to be very haunted.

The hotel has been touched by death with many online articles reporting that an accident during construction led to the deaths of some workers, though there may be some confusion surrounding this and another incident that occurred in 2012. At this time, three men who were installing a billboard on the side of the hotel fell to their deaths. This occurred after the platform they were standing on broke, leaving three men to fall and die, and two others left clinging to the remains of the platform high above the city until they could be rescued.

Some have claimed that this tragic event could be the reason for the many paranormal events said to happen in the hotel. One just needs to take a quick look at Tripadvisor reviews to get a feeling for the type of activity that goes on. With the most reported types of spooky events involving poltergeist activity, shadow figures, and the feeling of an invisible presence nearby.

2. Mae Nak Shrine

We now move onto a shrine built for perhaps the city’s best-known ghost, Mae Nak. This ghost’s story is quite a sad one. It tells of Mae Nak, who was married to a man named Mak. The couple lived a humble and happy life along the canal system in Bangkok. Sadly, their peace was disrupted after Mak was enlisted to serve in the war. He was forced to leave his wife, who was pregnant at the time, alone.

Soon after being enlisted Mak was badly injured in battle. Around this same time, Mae Nak went into labor, experienced some complications and sadly both she and her baby passed away.

Once Mak was fully healed, he returned home and was greeted by a seemingly healthy baby and wife. Little did he know his family were now actually ghosts. Any well-meaning local who attempted to warn Mak of his ghostly family was said to be killed by the spirit of Mae Nak. Eventually, Mak realized what was going on and sought help from a temple that was able to perform an exorcism of sorts on Mae Nak.

Whether there is any truth behind this story remains to be told, but there is a very large shrine along these canals for the spirit of Mae Nak. It is quite a famous place and visited by many who wish to show their respects. People visit from far and wide to leave offerings for Mae Nak, with the only people warned to stay away being pregnant women. Some even seem to think Mae Nak possesses the power to provide them with winning lottery numbers!

1. Teochew Chinese Cemetery

The number one spot on this list has been reserved for a place that is pretty unique though said to be extremely haunted. Yet this may not be in the way you might expect.

The Teochew Chinese Cemetery in Bangkok is a lively place, filled with so much death. The cemetery was established here in the early 1900s as a place where Chinese immigrants to Thailand could be buried together. The cemetery soon grew to a sprawling mass containing thousands of graves. Sadly, time took its toll and the place of burial fell into disrepair and was abandoned in the 1990s. It was around this time that things started to get very strange within the cemetery. Allegedly, those buried at the cemetery became very disgruntled about the state of their burial place with it being overgrown and neglected. Spooky ghost stories started to spread, as well as fear. Many did not want to visit this area of the city due to the paranormal activity caused in and around the cemetery. Ghost sightings are even said to have become so prevalent that taxi drivers would refuse any ride that passed through the area of the cemetery. Just in case they accidentally picked up a ghost!

Due to the aggressive spirits and negative energy at the cemetery, a plan was devised by the city. They vowed to clean up the cemetery and convert it into a space where the living could congregate with the dead. They hoped this act would appease the angered spirits. It’s said to have worked, with those buried at the cemetery no longer remaining angry. If you visit today, you’ll find people picnicking, playing chess together, working out at the park’s Muy Thai gym or even singing karaoke!

If you enjoyed this article you might also like to learn about the most haunted places in India.

Thanks for reading!

xoxo