Inside Bangkok’s prison-themed hotel: get a taste of ‘life behind bars’

What is it? You’ll have heard of the Bangkok Hilton, which is not a chain hotel, of course, but pop-culture slang for the Thai capital’s Bang Kwang Central Prison. That notorious, high-security facility accommo­dates murderers, drug smugglers and long-serving prisoners, including foreigners.

Shorter-stay visitors to Bangkok (those, at least, with a quirky taste for the nefarious) are increasingly escaping to Sook Station. The jail-themed budget property sprang from husband-and-wife owners Sittichai Chaivoraprug and Piyanat Teekavanich’s love of affecting Hollywood prison drama The Shawshank Redemption (1994). Their surprisingly popular four-floor hotel, which opened this summer, is enclosed in a perimeter fence topped with razor wire. “People love it or hate it,” Sittichai has said.

How do you check-in? Each new “inmate” is processed on arrival. The procedure involves the taking of a photographic mugshot against a height chart, assignment of a prisoner number (used instead of a key to access a guest’s “cell”; top), allocation of black-and-white striped prison pyjamas and a lighthearted but environmentally friendly instruction to meet a lights-out curfew (guests have access to the hotel around the clock, of course).

How bleak are the cells? Spartan and poky, covering only about eight square metres. No-nonsense decor features clanging metal doors, barred windows, unfinished concrete floors and walls, and fuss-free lighting, often with bare hanging bulbs. Bunk beds grace cheaper rooms, and some guests must share a dimly lit communal bathroom (above). More privileged prisoners hunker down in double or family rooms with private bath­rooms. There are no televisions and no wardrobes; clothes can be hung on wall hooks fashioned from rock hammers (if you don’t know what a rock hammer is, take a look at what Tim Robbins’ character hides in his Bible in Shawshank).