Pai cracks down on boozy tubing after westerners spotted having sex

Chucheep said on Monday that he had sent senior officials to hold talks with two tubing businesses to enforce the no-drinking rule in the northern tourism hub.

The governor took action after the owner of a riverside resort said she caught a western man and woman engaged in sex on her premises. 

The resort operator said her husband spotted the drunk couple and asked them to leave. The couple snatched her husband's smartphone, threw it to the ground and fled, she said. 

After filing a complaint with police, the resort owner told media on Sunday that local tubing operators were routinely breaking the alcohol ban by selling alcohol disguised as soft drinks or water.

She complained that western tourists were getting drunk while tubing and then walking around the town almost naked day and night. This behaviour was a nuisance to other tourists who wanted to enjoy the nature and culture of Pai, the owner said.

Pai district chief Anek Panthayom said the couple were spotted having sex at 9.26 pm when the tubing service had ended. Pai tubing activities normally run from 1pm to 7pm on Tuesdays and Fridays.

From now on, he said, staff would check to ensure tourists were not carrying alcoholic drinks while tubing. He said most visitors complied with the rule and only a few took alcohol onto the river. 

The rule may be difficult to enforce, however, as the tubing tours run past bars and resorts where alcohol is sold on the riverside.