Pattaya downturn

[Gaybutton]

Most importantly... enjoy your holiday to the max!

IF they let you in to have that holiday.

Great idea, whoever came up with it - here is Thailand in need of tourists, so somebody comes up with a way to create uncertainty whether you will be admitted (without hassle) or turned away for no good reason, especially after arriving on an expensive long haul flight.

Excellent way to attract and welcome tourists . . .

They never tell who comes up with these brilliant ideas. Somebody was at work one day and flash! I just had a terrific idea!

[Jun]

Whilst we're on the subject of uniformed officials, all the tea money paid by bars goes onto the drink prices.

That doesn't stop me coming to Thailand and visiting all the Jomtien bars, but the higher prices must discourage some price sensitive customers.

There's also no way I'm paying 350~400 baht to watch overdressed gogo boys in Bangkok. To be honest, I don't know how much of the price is tea money, but when gogo boys are in shorts or jeans, reluctance to pay sufficient tea money is the likely reason.

[Dodger]

Great idea, whoever came up with it - here is Thailand in need of tourists, so somebody comes up with a way to create uncertainty whether you will be admitted (without hassle) or turned away for no good reason......

I know...baffling.

I think a lot of this has to do with opposing objectives.

Immigration, which is run by the Royal Thai Police, has the primary objective of keeping the bad guys out - and TAT wants anyone and everyone charging through the flood gates.

Maybe Thailand would operate better if Immigration was run by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) and the police could start doing what police are supposed to do and that's enforce the law - versus - creating constant uncertainty because they can't even comprehend their own laws.

Where's the Marx Brothers when you need them?

[Gaybutton]

That doesn't stop me coming to Thailand and visiting all the Jomtien bars, but the higher prices must discourage some price sensitive customers.

What are typical drink prices and off fee prices in the Jomtien bars these days? How much do the boys usually get for their tip when taken off?

I really don't know because it is rare for me to go to the bars. It's been ages since I have been in any of those bars. If I do go I'd like to have some I idea what I'm walking into. I think those not too familiar with those bars would also like to know current prices.

[Jun]

Jomtien
Customer drink 80 to 100. 100 more common
Boy drink 140 to 160
That's host bars.

Coqtales is at the lower end of the price range and is popular.
I believe the off fee is 300, but I have only paid about 1 off fee in Jomtien in the last 2 years.

I usually meet boys earlier in the evening these days. Also, at some of the bars, the boys can come and go as they please, since all they get is commission on drinks and tips. So if you message a guy on Line, he can walk out of his bar and come to you any time he likes.

Boy tip. Short time 1000 to 1500. It's years since I've tipped at the bottom of that range, but I believe some still do. If service is good, I tip at the top of that range. I've consistently been getting good service for a while now.

[Gaybutton]

Immigration, which is run by the Royal Thai Police, has the primary objective of keeping the bad guys out

I understand the objective, but I don't understand their connection between "bad guys" and frequent trips to Thailand. I would think even if that really is a way to keep the bad guys out, it will also keep good guys out.

"If they think we're really guilty, let's at least commit the crime."
Dom DeLuise (Barney Cashman), Neil Simon's 'Last of the Red Hot Lovers'

[Dodger]

I understand the objective, but I don't understand their connection between "bad guys" and frequent trips to Thailand. I would think even if that really is a way to keep the bad guys out, it will also keep good guys out.

There are hordes of inbound foreigners that are coming here for nefarious reasons including, but not limited to, working without a work permit and/or working in illegal enterprises which are not always easy to spot or catch once they're in-country.

High frequency visitors are apparently raising some red flags, thus the reason for the badgering that sometimes happens. In the mean time all the law-abiding sex tourists are being inconvenienced.

[Gaybutton]

There are hordes of inbound foreigners that are coming here for nefarious reasons including, but not limited to, working without a work permit and/or working in illegal enterprises which are not always easy to spot or catch once they're in-country.

Most of the time when I see news about foreigners caught engaging in illegal activity, they are not "frequent fliers", but just the opposite, staying in Thailand for long periods of time, quite often caught overstaying also for long periods. I almost never see news about "frequent fliers" causing the kind of trouble I believe immigration is looking for. Often short term people get into fights or drunk problems, but those are police matters, not immigration matters - at least not based on whether they should be allowed entry.

I guess those who wish to go frequently to Thailand - this is just one more hassle you need to be prepared to have to deal with.

[Jun]

There are hordes of inbound foreigners that are coming here for nefarious reasons including, but not limited to, working without a work permit and/or working in illegal enterprises which are not always easy to spot or catch once they're in-country.

High frequency visitors are apparently raising some red flags, thus the reason for the badgering that sometimes happens. In the mean time all the law-abiding sex tourists are being inconvenienced.

Last night, I was talking to 3 people working in Thailand, probably without work permits. One has no passport. The other two have many immigration stamps every 60 days. They're from Cambodia. I didn't mention tea money, but several other boys have told me they pay 1000~1500 at Aranya Prathet. So working here illegally is OK, as long as tea money is paid.

The last time I used the Aranya Prathet-Poipet border, Thai immigration took about 2 hours 20 minutes, as they were on a deliberate go slow. Apparently the way to speed this up is to pay 1000 baht.

If Thailand wants to find illegal activity, the first place to look might be among their own uniformed officials.

Also, one of my Lao friends wants to get a regular job. He's applying for a work permit. He also had to pay an agency to open a bank account. Again, the malpractice here is on the Thai side. People should be able to open bank accounts at banks, without paying tea money to agencies.

[Dodger]

I guess those who wish to go frequently to Thailand - this is just one more hassle you need to be prepared to have to deal with.

There is a solution: Just live here and never leave...