Kanchanaburi (Thai: กาญจนบุรี (Pronunciation)) is a town (thesaban mueang) in the west of Thailand and the capital of Kanchanaburi province. In 2006 it had a population of 31,327. It is located where the Khwae Noi and Khwae Yai rivers converge into the Mae Klong river, spans the northern banks of the river and is a popular spot for travelers. Once a year a carnival comes to town and is set up in the area next to the bridge. At night there is a small pyrotechnics display that re-enacts the wartime bombing of the bridge.
In 1942 Kanchanaburi was under Japanese control. It was here that Asian forced labourers and Allied POWs, building the infamous Burma Railway, constructed a bridge; an event immortalised in the film Bridge on the River Kwai. Almost half of the prisoners working on the project died from disease, maltreatment and accidents.