Travellerdave

Hi Giudeneeded The Dongtan Beach is certainly not a meat market now if it ever was one. To find it you turn right at the police station onto the pedestrian walk-way past the motor bike and car parking. After about 300 yards you will see on your left a toilet block with an old fat lady sat outside. Do not enter unless it is a case of dire necessity !. From there the beach is divided into sections or concessions providing chairs, shade and a food / beverage service. What is regarded as the Gay Beach are about 8 of these sections stretching maybe 200 yards. Most of the customers comprise older gay farang men who sit chatting, sleeping and reading, although increasingly the area is being encroached by women and families, often Russian. Some of the men have their young Thai boyfriends with them. A few Thai boys turn up in the late afternoon and attract attention from the farangs. This is a lot less common than a few years ago as a result of Gayromeo.

Yes I like it and have a few posts. I notice that there are more than 600 members. It's a pity that only a tiny proportion are active.

I think I prefer the high season, which I take to be Mid January to April. Christmas /New year is better described as Peak Season, and I have never been in Thailand at that time. I like to avoid 4 weeks of the worst British weather in January/February and I used to do that in the years before I discovered Pattaya. I used to spend a few weeks in Playa del Ingles on the Island of Gran Canaria, with its gay beach and nightlife. Ok hotels and air transport are more expensive than in low season. My air ticket for 15 January is £100 more and my hotel say 300 baht more per night. So for a 4 week stay I'm looking at maybe £268 or 15000 increase compared with my last visit in September. Not a major factor for me. Of course the Uk Pound has recovered to 53 from 44 in Sept - a really welcome development. I am a beach person and in low season there is a lot of rain so no beach for quite a few days. I dislike going into a bar or gogo and finding nobody else there, which is more likely in low season, I'm not really aware of any difference in what I pay to boys. And there is more of a selection in high season. Anyway I will perhaps revise my opinion when I get to Pattaya. I anticipate filing a report !.

Well I think there are plenty of reasons why that schedule will not come to pass, such as flight delays or general exhaustion on my part. Or maybe a nice sleep will seem more attractive when I eventually check-in. "Don't make plans in Pattaya" was a motto I heard a few years ago !. Pouring with rain here in England and about 5 degrees C. A dismal New Years Eve weather wise. Wish I could be beamed up to Pattaya !.

Yes it will be 24 hours in transit for me in 2 weeks. 2 hours to UK airport. 2 hours waiting to board plane. 7 hours to Abu Dhabi, 3 hours wait. 6 hours to Bkk, 2 hours to Pats hotel. 1 hour unpacking and shower. 0.5 hour scanning Gayromeo, 0.5 hour to in bed with GR boy.

Love those pictures of the boy in your room. He looks so beautiful with smooth brown skin against the background of white sheets and the towel. Lovely lips and hair style. I'm in Thailand in two weeks and am following your reports closely.

I resist the request for "taxi money". In Pattaya they have in mind for example 50 baht for a motor bike taxi ride Boystown to Tukcom where a lot of then live. When I've paid a fair price, usually 1500 for long time I don't want to be screwed for this small increase. It's a minor fraud anyway as they would walk and keep the 50. Vinapu - we are going to agree to disagree about your practice of offing boys without buying drinks in the bar. I still think it is better to enter and buy at least one drink. This gives you the opportunity to appraise the available boys before making the major investment of offing long time or short time. Just looking at the results of the poll I see one member has quoted 3500 + as the LT going rate in Pattaya. I wonder if he would like to give the justification for this figure?. I think I could pay 2000 on occasions for a particularly attractive boy giving me a good experience, but I would say it's too high for the "going rate". Do tips go up during peak season over Xmas / New Year ?. I'm never in Thailand then but will arrive mid January when it's. Regarded as High Season.

Boy I met on the beach, following a connection on gayromeo. This is not my picture - it's taken from his GR entry. I love those cute speedos.

You would not be popular with bar owners if you just go inside and try to off a boy without buying drinks !. Bars don't make money from the off fee. When you take a boy you are depriving the bar of future revenue in that he attracts custom. A gay bar without boys would not be busy !. Of course if you are working to a budget you have to factor in the cost of drinks, boy drinks and tips, so your nights pleasure will cost rather more than the standard 1500 baht. There might be other incidentals like transport bar to hotel (eg bar in Sunee to hotel in Boystown) and even breakfast for the boy. One things for sure - the 2000+ baht total is a hell of a lot less than you would pay in Europe or North America. I usually don't discuss the tip and I don't remember bar boys often bringing it up. Boys on gayromeo do however sometimes, possibly because they cannot accurately appraise the customer.

Thanks Guys Yes I remember the reduced number of boys being the situation during my last trip in September. Of course the explanation is Gayromeo. I think most of the beach concessions have wifi now so indeed that's an option, as is inviting a suitable "boyfriend du jour" to accompany me, although sometimes an exciting boy in bed turns out to be rather a bore on the beach. I prefer my IPad to the iPhone for this purpose - better for pictures and I have my books on it as well as on my Kindle. Another pleasant way of finishing a few hours on the beach is a massage in the complex before heading back to my hotel in Pattaya. Love the sound of the weather ! - it's cold 5 deg and raining a lot here in England plus gales.

I'm due in Pattaya mid January for a month and am looking forward to renewing my acquaintance with Thai boys and the gay scene in general. I'm a regular on the Dongtan Beach usually from about 2 pm onwards generally seated in the Rit concession enjoying the sun and sea air. I like reading my Kindle, having a small meal and chatting to acquaintances. But especially I love looking at and flirting with the boys and on occasions taking them back to my hotel. Anyone tell me how things are on the beach and what's the weather like ? Do boys still come in the afternoons ?.

I have stayed at the Ambiance 3 times. The first two occasions I just walked in as it was not high season and got an excellent room. I was not bothered about noise as this largely ceases about 1 to 2 am. On the third occasion I made the reservation though booking.com. My room was ok but on the wrong side of the hotel "noise wise". In Pattaya I don't go to bed early to say the least, but the noise lasting till about 4 am from the Karioki bar was horrendous for both me and my "boyfriend du nuit I checked out after 2 nights and my explanation for this early departure was accepted. I wonder if making a reservation via an agency is not advisable in this regard ?.

I stayed there in September and can agree with the previous comments. It was a little difficult to locate being tucked away in a side Soi, but this is an advantage in so far as it makes for a lack of noise at night. It's close to the gay nightlife and also to Lumpini Park where I like to jog in the early evening. Not all guests are gay, but whilst sitting in the lobby I observed a steady stream of guests taking boys up in the elevator.

I certainly concur that the gay Dongtan beach has changed for the worse over the last few years. The encroachment of women and families, particularly Russians, and the shortage of attractive boys are both negatives. Most days I turn up at Dongtan about 2 pm, having spent the late morning in the gym. I buy a cooling drink and do a bit of reading, but inevitably I start looking around for eye candy, but in March It seemed in short supply, although there was usually a group of boys playing handball at the edge of the sea. I occasionaly invite a boy to accompany me to the beach, but unless there is money involved I think they like to meet up with their friends. Also they are often shy and dont like wearing brief swimwear. Maybe Gayromeo has had an effect - there seems to be more and more boys and farangs using it, but surely lying by the warm blue sea is better than crouched in front of a screen in an internet cafe or your room. The bars in the Jomtien Complex dont really get going until about 6.00 pm and I found the Bamboo Bar to be the same. The policy of the Samsuk Sauna is not to admit money boys, so I found a load of older guys wandering about wanting sex but not finding it. So really I think the best option is to chill out relax and wait for the evening fun.