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HCMC/Saigon   I arrived by train from Danang. It’s an 18-hour train ride, but at least half the time I was sleeping and during daylight I enjoyed watching the scenery. I also got a decent meal and coffee along the way. If you have time and enjoy travelling by train, I highly recommend it.   Arrival was around 730 in the morning, so my room at the Alagon City Hotel and Spa was not ready yet, but the receptionist directed me to the pool area, where I had a shower and a change of clothes. Thus refreshed, I consulted Grindr. One message was from an early 30s guy from Singapore staying in a Hotel close by. We had a nice quickie in his room and I set out to explore the city after that.   On a coffee break I chatted with a 21 year old student and we agreed to meet at the cafe where I was sitting. We had a nice chat, then a nice walk and then lunch. After that we went back to the hotel. He was with me as I completed check-in and followed me to my room, so it seems the hotel has no issues with guests. We had no less than three rounds of great sex interrupted by cuddling and conversation. After that we went out for dinner and he returned home.   The next day, I didn’t do much in the morning except enjoying the rooftop pool area and some reading. In the afternoon I visited Adam Spa (Nadam on google maps). It has excellent reviews on this forum and elsewhere. Well deserved as it must be the most aesthetically pleasing gay sauna I have ever been to (once my sight had adjusted to the dim light). There is a steam room, saunas and jacuzzi on the ground floor. On the next floor is a cruising area with several rooms where you can enjoy privacy. On the last floor is a warmish chill out room with an aroma steam room in the middle.   I came around 4 pm on a Tuesday and there were some 12-15 other guests at that time. From late 20s to 60s. I had fun with 4 of the other guests during my two hour visit. Adam Spa is around 6 km from district one. I took 40 minutes to cover that distance by car during rush hour traffic, so next time I go, I will book a motorcycle Grab instead of a car.   I had dinner again with the student from the previous day and we went to the hotel for another round of good sex and a couple of hours of cuddling and sleeping before he had to go home.    On the third day I had an early afternoon hook-up. He came directly to the hotel. It was meh, and the guy didn’t quite look like his pictures, so I let it be a reminder to myself either to meet people outside first or have validated photos or a video chat before agreeing to hook up.   In the evening, my fwb from Bangkok arrived, so for the next 5 days there was no need for saunas or Grindr. We had a good time visiting some of Saigon’s main attractions like the Independence Palace and the War Remnants Museum. We also did a day trip to the Mekong Delta and watched a show in the Opera House. It was dancing and acrobatics in the same style as the Hoi An Memories Show, but not quite as impressive.    There was hardly any smog in Saigon and the city is actually quite walkable with wide sidewalks lined with trees and numerous little parks that also offer a bit of refuge from the otherwise chaotic traffic.    Vietnamese food is really good, the coffee is excellent and prices are lower than in Thailand. hooking up via apps and in the saunas is easy, but judging from my one experience massages are probably not as good as in Thailand. All in all, I highly recommend a visit to Vietnam.

Both gyms have cafe settings, but I think the Pattaya seating is better, as you can sit inside or out on the deck  And if you can't see any eye candy at either gym, it's a bad day. By the way, the fees aren't cheap. More like Western prices.

Yes, both gyms have cardio equipment upstairs. If you did go to Muscle Factory  Bangkok, you might consider going afterwards to Krubb sauna at Phra Khanong, one BTS station away, to unwind!

Is there cardio equipment? Couldn’t see any in the photos and reviews. My regular guy and I are both gym goers and we talk about getting in a session together some time but somehow we just can’t work up the energy to go when I’m visiting, even when the hotel has a very good quality gym. We end up sleeping late and being lazy 😅  He used to only lift but has now started cardio with my encouragement, which is better for his overall fitness and vascular health than just being a muscle Mary.   

Just found a very recent video to illustrate what we may be talking about: I can see how impactful a video like this can have in directing newbie tourists to specific places, or in channelling those who want to go where the crowd goes. I think it goes a long way to explaining the long queues at some of these places' doors, and the surge during the annual White Party. The subtitles are in traditional Chinese, so this is probably a Taiwanese vlogger. Also, while I'm not even a Chinese speaker, let alone any expert on the language, the accent sounds very different from what I hear when in China, so again, I think it is Taiwanese. I know this topic isn't of any interest to most members of this board, and in fact it is off-script to the forum topic which is really about HK, China and Taiwan (apologies!), but for those like me who wonder how gay and erotic businesses should market themselves within a niche (not just to the Chinese market), this is instructive.