Bridge over the River Kwai

สะพานข้ามแม่น้ำแคว

The steel bridge over the River Kwai on the Thailand–Burma 'Death Railway,' made famous worldwide by the film The Bridge on the River Kwai. You can walk across the deck or ride the sightseeing train.

The Bridge over the River Kwai is a railway bridge that spans the Khwae Yai River. Japanese forces built it during the Second World War as part of the Thailand–Burma Railway, known as the Death Railway. It was completed in 1943 by Allied prisoners of war and Asian laborers, and at the time there was also a wooden bridge beside it. In 1945 the bridge was bombed by Allied aircraft, and after the war it was repaired with reparations from Japan. The curved steel girders you see today are original, and the two sections of straight trapezoidal girders in the middle were replaced after the war. The 1957 film The Bridge on the River Kwai was shot in Sri Lanka, but it made this place a pilgrimage site. Visitors can walk across the bridge along the tracks (there are refuge platforms on the bridge, so step aside when a train approaches and keep children close where there are no railings). At the bridge's end are a memorial, an old steam locomotive, a war museum and a row of souvenir shops and riverside restaurants. You can also take a sightseeing train from the bridge end and return. Every year from late November to early December, the 'River Kwai Bridge Week' takes place, with an evening light and fireworks show recreating the bombing. Admission is free. Getting there: the bridge is in the north of the city, about 4 km from the bus station, reachable by tuk-tuk or bicycle. Trains from Bangkok to Nam Tok stop at River Kwai Bridge station. Notes: watch young children where there are no railings on the bridge, and visit early morning or evening to avoid the midday heat.

Bridge over the River Kwai

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