Londoner

If you are a newbie, as your post suggests, I'd advise you to present your companion to Reception so that his ID is checked and held until he leaves. In other words, choose a hotel which provides this level of security. And don't be embarrassed.

Is this not, in the main, an urban "thing"? In rural areas, Songkran is more traditionally-celebrated. Farmer know the value of water in Isaan and so on and don't waste it.

Nor I....but I found being the only customer in a bar- which made me the performer and the guys my audience- very off-putting. If the mamasan was standing outside and I was about to enter, a sure sign that something was amiss would be when started to clap to warn the dancers- who were sitting down in an empty bar- to stand-up. I'd get out PDQ!

Admittedly it was long ago, but I must admit that a customer sitting with a guy near me calling a waiter for a tissue, was perhaps one orgasm too far (or perhaps too close) for me. Another memory even more ancient, was of overt oral sex performed, again not far from me. I reflected that the toilets may have been a better venue, though I must admit that in those far-off days the toilets in many bars were, well.....I wouldn't have invited my mother to use them.

I have been told that NB isn't a typical go go bar, in that the guys tend to earn their money from tips within the bar rather than through offs. Hence the games. Not my cup of tea (it never was) but it has managed to provide entertainment for decades to a loyal fan-base....so it must be doing something right.

Sorry Caeron, I down- voted you accidentally.

Welcome! Your first visit....how I envy you. I can still remember my first night in Thailand, where I went, what I saw. And who I met. That was nearly thirty years ago. You're in for a treat. Any questions you have will be answered by regulars on this site.

Yes Tuesdays. We eat early (1800 or so) and always room then.By the way, it's gay, though women are (naturally!) welcome. Many will recall its older brother in Soi Twilight. There's a newish restaurant not far from the gay section on the beach....we ate there three months ago and were impressed. A little more expensive than Dick's. I wish I could remember its name... Thai menu and also drinks available from a bar.

Thai food? Dick's , two hundred meters from you, is reliable. And you can people-watch as well. It offers straightforward Thai food, nothing fancy, but well-prepared and generously dished. And well-priced.

No personal experience of Covid? or Hiv? Lucky man.

Very wise. Covid is still with us....and TB always has been and is often to an indication of HiV infection. i hope Win has recovered.

Nor for me. Other people have a right to their own enjoyment but not to impinge on mine, such as throwing a bucket-full of water in my face when I'm in a crowded a baht-bus.

The presence of so many cute guys around the Complex is really cheering. When I was a Boyztown regular I recall wandering through the JC after an afternoon at the beach and thinking how dull it was; not now. And I agree about Soda. The guys there are always so friendly even to those of us just passing by. And there are invariably plenty there, even in the early afternoons.

Plenty of cute guys in that area. The massage places are open during the daytime too. The guys sit outside and so it's easy to choose.

Though not over-impressed, I am always happy to see my beloved Thailand on the screen.

......and the traffic? what's the latest on the roadworks? I understand Beach Road is affected.

Thank you Vessey for the photos, particularly appreciated by such as I, whose bar-going days are over. Happy memories of twink-bars.....the photos we usually see tend to be of "the other sort" of bar. Cockpit, Moonlight, City, Sawatdee and (for personal reasons) the old Dream Boys. They cheered me up on a grey London morning.

I expect I've said this before but the traditional Thai Songkran is a beautiful festival, just as Loy Kratong often is now, at least it was on Jomtien beach this year. The tender sprinkling of water on grandparents and washing of Buddha images; quiet reverence and respect. Very Thai. Songkran's degeneration into an orgy of water fights and rowdiness is sad for some of us, something I experienced once and never again. Is this the result or a bi-product of tourism? Or would it have happened without us? By the way, does anyone recall the scandal of an embassy official's wife - Norwegian?- slapping a child who squirted water in her face in Pattaya?

In EuropeI think you'll find that one hour means exactly that. I can remember some Thai guys spending time with me before and after the event, particularly those who had a good grasp of English. I kept the refrigerator well-stocked with drinks. Soft drinks, before you ask. I learnt a lot from them in my early visits; about life in the rural areas, why they came to Pattaya, what life was like for them on the scene...it was part of the Pattaya experience for me and very different to what I had experienced in Amsterdam "houses", my only previous experiences. Different and better. And cheaper.

It interests me that SE Asians have difficulty in recognising each others' backgrounds. My Thai boyfriend- mixed Thai, Chinese and Hmong - was frequently mistaken for an Indonesian when we were in Bali. Even in Thailand when he is with me, he is sometimes asked where he's from. I stand out (like a sore thumb, some would say!) as British!

Wonderful....a priceless conversation. How I miss Thailand! I always tell P that I laugh more in a day when I'm there than in a month back home.

Travellerdave's "few boys" are sitting at home meeting customers via the apps. I see their point. Come to think of it, those at Dongtan Beach are probably glued to their screens too! When was it that the chair-concessions starting advertising their wi-fi? a defining moment in the history of Gay Jomtien.

We've been in Bali, Krabi, Samui (Chaweng and Lamai) and Phuket in the last few years. All gay-friendly, none "gay" in the sense that Jomtien's beach once was. The sheer openness of Thailand's gay scene-even now- has not been replicated anywhere I've visited across four continents. But I've not been ito Brazil, sadly.

My memories are sweet....and I was thirty years younger in the Golden Age. A mere slip of a forty five year-old! But Vinapu's right; it's good growing old with someone you love. It's good that we enjoy simple things together...a walk on the beach, a nice meal....an early night. Well, to be honest they all are now! Furthermore, Pattaya may have lost some of its attractive sleaze and a lot of its former vibrancy, but it is cleaner, has better air and beaches, better restaurants, better travel from a better airport. And much else. I no longer travel Economy. We stay in better hotels. We eat well. We spend money on clothes- well, one of us does. On a more melancholy note, an added sweetness results from the fact that we know that this won't last forever and so, as I often say, carpe diem. Each moment together- and in Thailand- is priceless.

Reader and Travellerdave have said more or less everything I wanted to post and so I'll add just a couple of comments. Now in my seventies and with my eightieth (more or less) trip only a few weeks away, I can express my profound gratitude to those who led me to Thailand in 1995, provided me with the necessary information to enjoy myself, and of course those who attended to my needs with a smile and, generally, good grace. Particularly one who remains the only love of my life. Consider; some of us lived through decades of concealment, fearing exposure and-at least in my case- suppressing an essential aspect of our character for fear of arrest or public shame. And then we experienced Pattaya. How lucky we were. How fortunate I still am. And grateful, even if the vibrancy of Old Boyztown is long since gone.