Minimum Tip Increases

[macaroni21]

14 hours ago, colmx said:

Interesting that nobody has yet mentioned that there is also a different tipping rate for Asian (non Thai) and White Farang customers 

The Asian rate is much higher (hence the 2500b for ST being bandied around) than the expected farang rate. And of course the Thai rate is significantly lower again 

Not sure if that implies that farang are stingy or that Asians over pay, or it's somewhere in between!

First time that I am hearing this. Any idea what the rationale is? When you speak of "ST" it seems that you're referring to boys from the gogo bars; not the massage places. And are you referring to Pattaya or Bangkok or both?

[colmx]

15 hours ago, macaroni21 said:

First time that I am hearing this. Any idea what the rationale is? When you speak of "ST" it seems that you're referring to boys from the gogo bars; not the massage places. And are you referring to Pattaya or Bangkok or both?

I am talking about Gogo bars in Pattaya and Bkk. The average farang won't ask a mamasan "what does it cost to bring a boy home" and will likely negotiate with the boy directly. 

From my experience Asian customers will negotiate with the mamasan who will over inflate the asking price, whereas the average farang will do anything rather than deal with the mama!

I even remember Toyboys in Pattaya once had a written menu with different prices in Chinese and English that they would produce when it came to negotiations

[ChristianPFC]

On 11/22/2025 at 10:01 AM, PeterRS said:

There is even one poster (not on this Board) who put forward the view that with the minimum wage in Bangkok being just Bt. 400 per day, anyone being tipped Bt. 1,000 should be thrilled! That clearly takes no account of actual circumstances, even though there may be a certain logic to the argument!

He is absolutely right! Across all ages and places, the average price of prostitution is a daily wage. It's just when first world tourists meet second and third world prostitutes, that things get out of order.

Whereas in Saranrom (streettrade, predominantly local market with Thai customers and Thai providers) boys still go for 500. 

When I was in Myanmar in January, prices as low as 30k MMK (about 6 USD) tip for one hour massage and happy ending. 

On 11/23/2025 at 12:14 AM, emiel1981 said:

I was lucky finding a massage guy who offered to come visit me for 1500 baht for full service.

I have to admit I have problems finding boys for 1000 on the apps. I haven't been to Bangkok gogo bars for 6 years because I disapprove of their pricing.  

On 11/23/2025 at 12:14 AM, emiel1981 said:

Good-looking freelancers on grindr go as far as asking for 5k.

It is very important to distinguish what is asked for or offered and what is actually settled as a deal. 

On 11/23/2025 at 11:17 PM, colmx said:

Interesting that nobody has yet mentioned that there is also a different tipping rate for Asian (non Thai) and White Farang customers 

I didn't know and would never know (different tip expectations for non-Thai Asian and Farang).

Whereas that Thai (and I as a foreigner speaking Thai) can get it considerably cheaper, I'm aware of and take advantage of.

[vinapu]

On 11/24/2025 at 5:34 PM, colmx said:

I am talking about Gogo bars in Pattaya and Bkk. The average farang won't ask a mamasan "what does it cost to bring a boy home" and will likely negotiate with the boy directly. 

 

actually I have my doubts whether you are correct as over years  on this forum I'm always busy reminding readers to talk to boy directly, s as you advise,  instead of talking to mamasan who may be inclined to inflate price hoping for cut of increase for himself . And yet , next trip report and we hear the same story ' mamasan told me  xxx baht"

[vinapu]

47 minutes ago, ChristianPFC said:

He is absolutely right! Across all ages and places, the average price of prostitution is a daily wage. It's just when first world tourists meet second and third world prostitutes, that things get out of order.

..........................

Whereas in Saranrom (street trade, predominantly local market with Thai customers and Thai providers) boys still go for 500. 

 

Not quite. As younger then me , you don't remember that in ancient Milet price of prostitution was 3 tetradrahmas while daily wage was just 1 and 1/2.

Things don't get out of order as you state, it's simply how third world gets out of it's poverty - by being able to get more and more for what they can offer to sell, be it onion , banana or cock. Yes, tourists make things more expensive for locals  but on another hand  enable other locals to make more decent living by selling more and for more so those things  needs to be balanced.

Saranrom guys likely wont be asking the same amount if they were hustling in Surwoing. I suspect that  in Klong Toey slum one may get girl or boy for  much less  than Saranrom rates and it's reason why both sex workers and their clients are still living in the slum.

Difference in rates is normal everywhere. Upscale , well build call boy in Berlin will charge much much more than narco junkie offering quick BJ in the toilet of

ZOO Banhof, no ?

 

 

[mauRICE]

Please delete.

[macaroni21]

On 11/25/2025 at 6:34 AM, colmx said:

I am talking about Gogo bars in Pattaya and Bkk. The average farang won't ask a mamasan "what does it cost to bring a boy home" and will likely negotiate with the boy directly. 

From my experience Asian customers will negotiate with the mamasan who will over inflate the asking price, whereas the average farang will do anything rather than deal with the mama!

I even remember Toyboys in Pattaya once had a written menu with different prices in Chinese and English that they would produce when it came to negotiations

Thanks for elaborating. Excepting the case of Toy Boys (which I wasn't aware of) what you're describing isn't what I thought you were saying - that the boys were expecting Asian customers to pay more than farang customers. What you're describing is the well-known phenomenon where asking the mamasan about rates begets inflated figures. Many here have long suspected that the higher rate quoted is because she builds in an extra 1,000 for herself on top of the going rate, and she will demand her cut from the boy the next day.

It just so happens, if I read you correctly, that Asian customers may be more likely to refer to the mamasan than white customers, though my observation is that the situation is not as simple as a cursory reading of your description might suggest.

It's true, I have personally seen mamasans in action in exactly the way you describe. In fact, I wrote about one such instance (with a customer from China) in Pouffes ahoy at Fresh Boy. But I wouldn't suggest that it's a race thing. It's just a confluence of various factors, starting with the fact that perhaps 90% of customers in gogo bars are Asian visitors; many customers (whether East Asian, Southeast Asian, South Asian, Arab, European, or Latin American) are first-time visitors to Thailand and don't know how to negotiate directly with the desired boy (between the boy's weak English and the Asian visitor's weak English, it gets doubly hard); and so it will be unsurprising that most instances when we see mamasans over-quoting the rate to a customer, it will involve an Asian customer. Our observations are skewed by the statistical fact that the great majority of visitors to the gogo bars are Asian.

I have seen European visitors ask the mamasan too about rates; they are probably new or infrequent visitors to Thailand, but European customers (both new and wizened) in gogo bars are uncommon. Mamasans are not going to suddenly become non-greedy just because it's a farang customer asking.