BANGKOK, Thailand — With its stark concrete walls, armed guards and electric fences, Bang Kwang maximum-security prison hardly looks like a tourist destination. But it has become an attraction to travelers wanting to experience something different — and at the same time do a good deed.

The prison on the outskirts of the capital houses Thailand's death row and more than 7,000 men serving sentences of 25 years or more for crimes ranging from drug smuggling to murder. Among them are a few dozen Western inmates, far from home and happy to be on the receiving end of what might be called prison tourism.

Their visitors are often complete strangers — tourists motivated both by curiosity and by a desire to cheer up a prisoner far from home, living in conditions that are harsh by Western standards.

"It's pretty shocking. I was on the edge of my seat, wanting to hear what he was going to say," said Anneke Wijne, 26, a Dutch traveler visiting her countryman, Machiel Kuijt.

"If he is innocent or not I really don't care," she said. "I just see a man behind bars, far away from his family."

Kuijt was acquitted on drug charges in 2002 but held in custody while the prosecution appealed. He then was convicted and sentenced to life in prison last year, prompting an outcry in the Netherlands. He has become a favorite among travelers. In fact, one recent week Dutch visitors had to wait their turn to see him.

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