Bangkok…Khao San road. Amidst the hippies, armed with a Lonely Planet guide under their arm looking for the nearest banana pancake vendor, I always feel I am transcending into a surreal part of Bangkok. Countless tourists come to this road so that they can claim they “have done Bangkok”. Think cheap accomodation, happy hours, fake driver’s licenses and degrees, henna tattoos, dreadlocks and acoustic guitars.

Sponsored Pad Thai stand

Fly for less than a Pad Thai

The last time I visited, I saw an interesting advertising concept that plays straight into the target audience. Nearly every pad thai noodle stand on Khao San road is now sponsored by Air Asia. What an absolutely brilliant move! Cheap flights, offered to those tourists that are always looking out for the cheapest deal available. The call to action is as simple as a website URL for Air Asia where bookings can be made on-line. And on Khao San road, one never has to go very far to find an internet cafe.

The only question that remains…will the hippies forfeit the pad thai in favour of the ticket, or will they splurge on both?