vaughn

The exact amount of time it takes to get to my hotel, both shower, do the deed and shower/pay. If I want more than that i'll do LT.

yeah, either could be right. the mind of a mamasan is a complex mystery 😂

I was thinking it could be that the customer had already prearranged to see the smaller guy so mamasan tried to divert attention from him

Rough night. you win some you lose some, hopefully the rest of the trip goes better

I usually walk slowly through the bars and take up the offer to sit at one of the bars in the middle of the row, order a drink and sit somewhere that i can see the surrounding bars and look for where i'm going next. You should expect the guys catcalling you as you walk around asking you to come for a drink, some will try to pull you into their bar, some will just smile and wave as you walk by. For the first time it can feel a bit overwhelming but smile and take it all in. If you sit with a guy but decide to keep looking a small tip 100B is usually a good idea. The mamasan (manager) will usually hover around asking for a drink and/or a tip as well, if you feel like it you can buy them a drink but if they're being annoying just say not right now. It can help to have the mamasan on side, especially if you plan to be a regular at that bar and need their help to translate or find a guy that meets your needs. Ask the guy you like to sit with you for a drink, confirm what you're looking for and ask how much they expect, pay the bill to the bar = you drink(s), his drink(s), his fee to leave the bar (off fee). If you take a guy back to your hotel, then in the room after your services you pay his fee that you confirmed with him. Short time (ST) = he leaves after service, Long Time (LT) = usually overnight, the prices can vary from guy to guy and bar to bar so it's better to just ask him rather than assume.

Speaking of short time rooms.. Has anyone used the ST room at freshboy? What is it like, clean? condoms and lube supplied? price? My next trip I have some friends that don't know what i get up to staying in the same hotel, so considering giving ST rooms a try to make things easier. Either that or maybe I'll switch hotels and make up an excuse.

Just doing some research and thought i'd share, I found a tour on tiktok, it's in thai but gives an idea of the layout.

1/0? it looks like just sauna, but I'm not sure yet.

Looks like they spent some money on the fitout, the photos on instagram look nice and location being directly across from LM couldn't be better. The real test will be if they can attract a local crowd or will prices dictate a tourist only venue. I'll check it out on my next visit in a month or so and report back.

That last one is very much my type, wonder if he's a working guy? just be wary of accounts using fake pictures to scam people, 'joined recently' can be a indicator of that

The busier than usual hotels might have something to do with Pattaya Music Festival, I think it starts this weekend and runs for 3 weekends.

the threesome experience with 2 guys from the same bar has been a little underwhelming for me, in the bar they will seem all for it, but in the room one seems to always get shy about it. It's still always been a good time, but keep expectations low

I've always been impressed with the Japanese agency model, the convenience and accessibility is great. I also like that they have index sites like https://tokyo-gay.com/index.html#23 and i know there are some craiglist-like freelancer sites for the M4W crowd, but i'm sure they exist for M4M as well. I'd pay to access a service like that in Thailand, professional photos, basic stats/body type, availability and the ability to book online easily without back and forth over Line. Stats-wise, i think everything listed is useful, but a recent photo and position/orientation is the main deciding factor for me. The japanese style profiles going into hobbies and likes/dislikes as well as reviews is nice to have, but not essential. It's not a technically difficult thing to setup and maintain a app or website like that, i think the problem is the legal aspect in Thailand, finding a payment processor that will do business with you there for that use case and possibly the reluctance of guys to publicly advertise.

yeah points value has been steadily decreasing, all part of the design to get people to use them and not have it burning a hole in their balance sheet I try not to worry about it too much, if i can subsidise a stay by using half points half cash or sometimes a full points, then i feel like i'm still better off than i was. Holding onto points seems to me like a waste, like cash in the bank slowly being eaten away by inflation.

I've given up on airline status, i will pick the best airline for the route and my timing then transfer out the points to whichever hotel group they partner with. e.g. Qantas points to Accor. I probably lose some of the points value because the value in the exchange seems a bit low, but at least i can regularly book rooms with my points unlike award flights that are more and more scarce.

When doing some research i found out dgdgdg in Osaka update their schedules for the next week at 6pm on Fridays, not sure if it's the same for all locations

No, don't swim at the Pattaya main beach. they pump waste water into the ocean just north of the beach so it's been known to cause rashes and sickness. Further south at Jomtien is a safer bet for swimming, but the main beach has lots of sunbeds to relax by the ocean. The area is good, connecting directly with the shopping mall below there's a decent food court and cafe options. The general area is busy with hotels and restaurants, walking distance to Boyztown and Walking Street. If you haven't been to Pattaya it's a good option to explore the central area.

That's just everywhere in Phuket now, same with Vietnam. It's the destinations for those migrating from the situation in their country and holiday makers getting warmer weather. The music playing through portable speakers and heavy drinking around the common areas can be annoying at some hotels, but the more expensive western brand hotels have less of it in my experience.

Yeah I've stayed there, the jacuzzi suite was great for me, overlooking the ocean and nice sized room. I didn't use many of the amenities in the hotel but the service was good and no problem with guests. It seemed to have mostly Japanese golfer guests and some older chinese tour groups when i last stayed, i remember seeing minivans loading up with their golf clubs of a morning.

The most redeeming part of the W is their cocktail lounge, but i agree, I was disappointed with my last stay too. Rooms are too small for the price and while still close to the BTS it's not the most convenient. It is gay friendly though, the W brand hotels are very focused on younger crowd of traveller.

Nice beaches are almost everywhere in Phuket and Samui, but the 5 star resort within walking distance to nightlife will be the more limiting factor. If you can sacrifice walking distance for a 10 minute Grab ride I would recommend Le Meridien Phuket, it has a small private beach, nice rooms and great service. It isn't walking distance to Patong's Bangala Road nightlife because of the hills, but it's not far. There are probably some more 5 star hotels closer to Bangala, but i haven't stayed at any. Samui has an abundance of very nice hotels and beaches, but more limited for nightlife, there are bars but not clubs like Phuket (that i know of). Koh Phangan has a lot of nightlife / partying and beaches, but limited on 5 star hotels with more local 3-4 star places.

I've spent a lot of time in HK many years ago and went back a couple of times in the last 2 years, it's definitely changed a lot, for the worse imo. FLM is one of the more popular gay bars, it's near Shueng Wan. Pottinger St is not as busy as it used to be, but there are a couple of gay venues still. Hutong Club in Mong Kok mentioned above is a gay sauna I haven't been to yet, but i've heard its still one of the better options remaining in HK https://maps.app.goo.gl/x5zHfM1cmxTs37ND9 I have always found HK guys to be pretty interested in foreign guys and open to meeting up from Grindr and Blued

me too, not the pee thing, the relaying of my trip report info to a guy. It's annoying to deal with, especially in a bar you like to frequent.

not to hijack the thread, but i was with some thai friends at dinner 2 years ago and they were talking about one of the Silom Edge public bathrooms being a popular cruising location. I'm not sure if it's still accurate, but might be worth keeping an eye out for guys hanging around if that's your thing and you're in the building.

Last time I went to paradise complex was 2-3 years ago, the bars seemed more like jomtien complex host bars than anything like gogos (this was during covid, so that may be a factor). There weren't as many guys, but you can ask one of the workers to have a drink with you and negotiate from there. I only had a few drinks with guys and didn't take anyone so i can't confirm price expectations. I had a few massages in the small soi in the middle of the complex, i had a decent experience there, same price as bangkok. I didn't see any other gay oriented places other than Paradise Complex, apps had a few guys around looking for customers.