The river to campus closes on three August afternoons
The Marine Department announced today that a stretch of the Chao Phraya becomes a temporary navigation control area on three afternoons this month, while the Royal Thai Navy rehearses the royal barge procession for the celebration of Her Majesty the Queen's 48th birthday anniversary on 3 June 2026.
For the Chao Phraya Express Boat, this is not a delay. The middle of the line simply stops running, and the piers for Tha Prachan sit in that middle stretch. The cross-river ferry to campus stops at the same time, so the obvious fallback disappears with it.
17, 20 and 27 August 2026, from 12:30
No express boat service between Payap and Ratchawong. Tha Chang and Tha Phrannok, the two stops this site's route advice uses for campus, are both inside that stretch. The Wang Lang to Tha Phra Chan ferry runs its last crossing at 12:30 too. The notice says the closure lasts "until the rehearsal is finished" and gives no reopening time.
The three afternoons
| Date | Day | River services affected |
|---|---|---|
| 17 August 2026 | Monday | From 12:30 until the rehearsal ends |
| 20 August 2026 | Thursday | From 12:30 until the rehearsal ends |
| 27 August 2026 | Thursday | From 12:30 until the rehearsal ends |
Mornings are normal. An earlier restriction starting at 09:00 applies only to seagoing ships, tugs towing cargo barges, and vessels carrying dangerous goods, so express boats run their usual service up to 12:30. Everything below applies from 12:30 onwards.
What the boat does from 12:30
The control area runs between Krung Thon (Sang Hi) Bridge and Phra Pokklao Bridge. The closure cuts the express boat line into two halves that no longer meet.
| Where you are | What runs from 12:30 |
|---|---|
| North of the closure | Boats pick up and drop off at Payap pier and upriver |
| Between Payap and Ratchawong | Nothing. No express boat calls at any pier here |
| South of the closure | Boats pick up and drop off at Ratchawong pier and downriver |
There is no shuttle across the gap. If your pier is inside it, the express boat is not an option that afternoon, in either direction.
The piers you lose
Every express boat stop between the two bridges sits inside the closed stretch. Two of them matter for getting to Tha Prachan.
- Tha Chang. The stop you walk from to campus, and the end of the BTS Silom Line route (Taksin, then the express boat north).
- Tha Phrannok. The stop you use before the cross-river ferry to Tha Wang Lang.
Coming from Taksin or Sathorn?
The southbound half of the line still runs, but it now ends at Ratchawong, well short of campus. From there you are walking or taking a bus through the old city, so the land routes below are usually faster from the start.
The Tha Phra Chan ferry closes at the same moment
The other river route to campus is the short cross-river ferry from Tha Wang Lang, which most students on the Thonburi side use every day. The notice covers it as well, and it does not outlast the express boat.
| Crossing | Last service on those days |
|---|---|
| Tha Wang Lang to Tha Phra Chan, the everyday campus ferry | 12:30 |
| Tha Maharaj, Tha Chang and Wat Rakhang piers | 12:30 |
| Electric boat services | 12:30 |
| Tha Tien ferry, to and from Wat Arun | 15:00 |
So 12:30 is a hard cut-off, not a thinning of service. At that minute the express boat, the campus ferry and every pier along the old city stop together.
Stuck on the Thonburi side after 12:30?
The Tha Tien ferry is the only crossing near the old city still running, until 15:00. It lands at Tha Tien, about 1.5 km south of campus, which is a 20 minute walk north along Maharaj Road or a short bus ride. After 15:00 there is no ferry option at all and you are going by road.
Getting to campus on those afternoons
- Cross before 12:30. The last ferry to Tha Phra Chan leaves at 12:30, which turns the simplest plan into a firm deadline. Take your usual boat in the morning and stay on the campus side.
- Take the MRT Blue Line to Sanam Chai, then bus 32 or 53, or walk through Rattanakosin Island.
- Catch a bus to Sanam Luang or Tha Phra Chan. Routes 1, 3, 15, 19, 25, 30, 32, 53, 64, 80, 91, 123, 124, 189, 203 and 208 all get you there, along with air-conditioned ปอ.32 and ปอ.524.
Full details of every route are on Getting around.
What the Marine Department notice actually says about the boats
The notice designates the Chao Phraya between Krung Thon (Sang Hi) Bridge and Phra Pokklao Bridge a temporary navigation control area under section 52 bis of the Navigation in Thai Waters Act, B.E. 2456, as amended.
From 09:00 the Marine Department asks seagoing vessels, tugs towing cargo barges and vessels carrying dangerous goods to avoid the area. From 12:30 the request extends to all vessels, and the notice names the express boat specifically. Northern services may pick up and drop off passengers from Payap pier upwards, and southern services from Ratchawong pier downwards, in both cases from 12:30 "until the rehearsal is finished".
The same paragraph sets the ferry times. The electric boats, the Wang Lang cross-river ferry, and the Tha Phra Chan, Tha Maharaj, Tha Chang and Wat Rakhang piers carry passengers only up to 12:30, while the Tha Tien ferry may run until 15:00.
Operators who ignore the notice face a fine of 500 to 5,000 baht, and the Marine Department can suspend the boat master's certificate for up to six months. Expect them to hold the cut-off strictly.
Rehearsal timings can shift. Check the operator's announcements on the day before relying on a boat, and allow extra time for the buses, which absorb the diverted passengers.