Deva Manor, the 130-year-old Bangkok mansion, will close to the public at the end of this month after 18 years of welcoming visitors.
The venue announced the closure on its Facebook page, setting the date at around August 31, 2026, while noting the schedule could still change.
The building’s formal name is Phra Tamnak Yai, the main residence at Wang Pak Khlong Phadung Krung Kasem. Most people know it as Wang Thewet.
According to the notice, King Vajiralongkorn wishes the work to continue in line with the royal intention of the late Queen Sirikit The Queen Mother. The restorer and the custodian are now drawing up an agreement through the Royal Secretariat.
The point of that agreement is to keep the place cared for after it stops welcoming the public.
King Chulalongkorn had the mansion built for Prince Kitiyakara Voralaksana, his twelfth son. It was finished in 1896.
The prince later became Krom Phra Chanthaburi Naruenat and lived there for the rest of his life. He died in 1931.
The following year his heirs split the Wang Thewet land into three parts and sold it. The main residence went to Phraya Aniruth Theva, whose given name was Mom Luang Fuen Phuengbun.
He bought it as a private home after selling Baan Narai Banthomsin to the government. That house is now Government House, where the prime minister works.
Phraya Aniruth Theva died in 1951. The mansion was shut up after that and fell apart slowly over the following decades.
It stayed that way until 2007, when Colonel Fuangwit Aniruththeva moved in. He is a third-generation heir, and he started repairing the house a little at a time.
He researched the building’s history as he went, so that as much of the original as possible survived the work. The restoration took 12 years.
Deva Manor opened to the public around 2020. Counting from the year the repairs began, that makes 18 years of conservation and public access, which is the figure the Facebook page uses.
Colonel Fuangwit is planning a set of farewell events before the doors shut, with special admission rates for anyone who wants a last look. Dates, times and conditions will go up on the page.
For now the ground-floor cafe is open every day from 10am to 6pm. It is on Krung Kasem Road in Wat Sam Phraya, Phra Nakhon district, a short walk from Thewet Pier.
The upper floor is only open by prior arrangement.
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Source: Deva Manor on Facebook
The story Deva Manor, Bangkok’s historic royal mansion cafe, to close by 31 August as seen on Thaiger News.
