Rajadamnern Stadium opened in 1945 and bills itself as the world's first Muay Thai stadium. I went for the first time on a Thursday in October with colleagues visiting from Singapore, who had booked us into Club Class for the evening card. This post covers getting in, the seats and what they cost, the food and drink, the light show on the dome and which night to book if you only go once.

Sixteen seconds of our Thursday night at Rajadamnern.

Getting Into Rajadamnern Stadium

We took a Grab van from the office straight to the door on Rajadamnern Nok Road, where the front glows blue and gold under the Thai and English name sign. The stadium's own directions suggest a taxi from Sam Yot, Ratchathewi or Victory Monument stations rather than a walk. On a Thursday the booking page puts the doors at 5pm and the first bout at 6pm. A bout was already under way when we reached our seats at about 7pm.

Inside the entrance the counters split by how you bought: numbers 1 to 6 exchange online bookings and 7 and 8 sell tickets at the door. A teammate had booked online for the ten of us, so each of us got a paper wristband stamped with the date along with a leaflet about the stadium.

Two signs on a gold pillar inside the entrance, pointing online bookings to counters 1 to 6 and walk-in tickets to counters 7 and 8.
The counters split online bookings from tickets bought at the door.

Give the lobby a few minutes before you go in. A glass case under a Since 1945 sign holds what the stadium calls the world's first Muay Thai championship belt. The stadium's history page dates the first professional fight here to 23 December 1945. Beside the belt, an arched doorway opens into the official store, stacked floor to ceiling with fight shorts. I did not buy anything this time.

A Muay Thai championship belt with a silver medallion and red, yellow and blue bands in a glass case under a Since 1945 sign.
The belt the stadium calls the world's first Muay Thai championship belt.
A lit arch reading Store Rajadamnern Stadium over a doorway lined with shelves of folded fight shorts.
The official store off the lobby.

Club Class Seats

We sat in section 9, one of the two Club Class sections. These assigned seats sit in the raised tiers behind the ringside rows, so the whole ring is in view with the dome directly overhead, which counts for more than being close once the light show starts.

The official booking page lists Club Class at ฿1,800 a seat for the November cards, the same on a Thursday traditional night, a Friday Knockout night and the Saturday RWS card. Singha Ringside costs ฿2,500 and the Leo Section ฿1,500, while the private boxes and the balcony run from ฿3,500 to ฿10,000.

The arena from the raised seats, with spectators below, the lit ring in the middle and a big screen above the far stand.
Looking down on the ring from the Club Class tiers.
A dome covered in a projected gold floral pattern above the ring and the full stands.
The dome between bouts, lit with a gold floral pattern.

Food And Drink In Club Class

Club Class has its own food and drink bar, with staff walking the section to take orders. You order from your seat, pay and they bring it over. They take every payment method, WeChat Pay and Alipay included. Between us we ordered most of the menu: pizza, burgers, tortilla chips, fried rice and a salad bowl.

The stadium's main bar is the Knock Out Bar under the stands, beside the entrance to the toilets, with its menu on screens above the counter. Its boards list pizza at ฿150 a slice, burgers from ฿110 to ฿190, tortilla chips with salsa at ฿120 and fried rice with red pork at ฿180. Beer runs from ฿180 for a small Leo to ฿250 for a large Singha. An Aperol Spritz or a Margarita costs ฿350 and the Knock Out Bucket is ฿990.

The Immersive Show On The Dome

The dome above the ring is a show of its own. Between bouts it carries a projected pattern of gold flowers. At set times the whole ceiling becomes a screen: the leaflet we were given with our wristbands lists the Muay Thai History Immersive at 7pm and the Rajadamnern Legacy Immersive at 8.15pm.

We watched the 8.15pm show. The ceiling bursts into white light, then figures of fighters in traditional dress drift across it in purple, gold, red and green before it turns into a wall of old scrolls. The stadium's own site says the show runs on every fight night with no extra ticket, whichever seat you book.

The dome lit white in a starburst of light streaks above the darkened arena.
The 8.15pm show opens with the dome bursting into light.
A fighter in traditional dress drawn in light across the dome against a swirl of green.
A still from my video of the 8.15pm show.
The dome projected as a wall of written scrolls with a red panel in the centre.
The show turns the dome into a wall of old scrolls.

The Big Screen Between Bouts

Between bouts the big screens turn on the crowd, the way the big screen does at a sports stadium in the US. The Flex Cam picks out people to show their muscles and the Bottoms Up Cam catches them finishing their drinks. There is a kissing cam too. For visitors from the US or the UK, it turns the breaks between fights into part of the show.

A big screen above the stand showing a Flex Cam graphic that asks the crowd to show their muscles, between two tall banners.
The Flex Cam on the big screen between bouts.

Which Night To Book

Our Thursday was the Petchyindee card, a traditional night of eight bouts over five rounds each. Honestly, it was slow: the fights we saw were short on action and not very entertaining. People who work at the stadium had already told us that traditional nights are the quiet ones and pointed us to the Knockout cards on Monday, Tuesday and Friday or the RWS card on Saturday instead.

The leaflet bills Knockout as three-round bouts with an 80% knockout rate, while the traditional cards run five rounds and draw the local betting crowd. Knockout and RWS nights open at 6pm, with the first bout at 7pm.

Two fighters in red and blue shorts squaring up in the middle of the ring with the referee between them, under Singha screens and a full stand.
A Thursday bout on the Petchyindee card.

Is Rajadamnern Stadium Worth It

The building, the belt and the light show on the dome make it more than a fight venue. Club Class at ฿1,800 gives a clear view of the whole ring for ฿700 less than Singha Ringside. I will go back for a Knockout or RWS night, which the stadium bills as its wildest and greatest events. For a first visit, book one of those nights and arrive in time for the 8.15pm show. For a drink afterwards, read my post on Crimson Room or the rooftop at Friendly Stranger. For more things to do in the city, start with our Bangkok guide.