March 2026 trip Thailand & Cambodia

[thaiophilus]

10 hours ago, Keithambrose said:

I agree, but I'm talking about ordinary, non ballistic, crises. If you follow the travel blogs, there are many complaints  about Emirates  and Qatar, who frequently loudly publicise their virtues, but, it seems, don't lift much of a finger when things go wrong. Their customer service reputation is at odds with their glitzy image.

Not to dispute what you've said, but on a related note I've found that online review websites are useless for comparing airlines, because most of the reviews are of flights where something went horribly wrong. Pick almost any airline and there will be a worryingly long list of 1-star reviews from badly-treated customers. If they've had a satisfactory flight most people don't bother to leave a review.

My only experience of problems with Gulf carriers was Emirates in 2020 when I had to cancel a flight because of COVID. They refunded my flight in full within a couple of days, and unlike many of the other airliness there was no pressure to rebook or accept vouchers instead of cash.

[Keithambrose]

19 minutes ago, thaiophilus said:

Not to dispute what you've said, but on a related note I've found that online review websites are useless for comparing airlines, because most of the reviews are of flights where something went horribly wrong. Pick almost any airline and there will be a worryingly long list of 1-star reviews from badly-treated customers. If they've had a satisfactory flight most people don't bother to leave a review.

My only experience of problems with Gulf carriers was Emirates in 2020 when I had to cancel a flight because of COVID. They refunded my flight in full within a couple of days, and unlike many of the other airliness there was no pressure to rebook or accept vouchers instead of cash.

Fair enough, though I do get blogs from industry websites, that highlight endemic issues.

[hank75]

21 hours ago, emiel1981 said:

I found a flight from Bangkok to London with Eva Air for around €700.

A smart move. A friend was searching for alternative flights from New York to Europe and back to Asia (due to a hard to adjust schedule) and has to pay something like $10,000 extra

Others in my work and social circles are predicting this could drag on for another five, six weeks. Not being American I have no insight as to which way policy will swing. 

[emiel1981]

After checking out of Le Méridien, I relaxed by the pool. It's vacation, after all. Late afternoon, I took a short stroll with my suitcase to Quarter Silom, where I'll be staying for the next two nights. I'd specifically requested a room in Tower 3, as it's easy to pick up a guy there without having to go through the main building and reception. After settling in and freshening up with a shower, my regular was at the door as agreed. Promptly at 5 p.m. 

He's half Thai and half Dutch. And being punctual isn't the only thing Dutch about him. It's also the price he charges. The same price you pay for an escort in Europe. Anyway, as mentioned in previous trip reports, I know he's worth it. And this time was no exception. I had an extensive massage that became increasingly erotic, and the extra service after the massage was five-star. A wonderful blowjob and a willing bottom. With a good body. And he moans in a very exciting way. For your entertainment, here's another picture of him:

Tonight, I met up with a forum member for drinks. He arrived at the boy bars a bit earlier because I was still having dinner. We discussed our options via chat. I wanted to go to a different bar than Freshboy or Goodboy, as I'd been there a few days earlier. We decided to try Hotmale. By the time I got there, around 9:30, he was already inside and the only customer. Even though he hadn't been inside long, he already had a guy sitting next to him. He doesn't waste any time.

The show started at 10 p.m. It was a short one. Still not many customers. During our time there, a few customers came in, usually ordering a drink but generally not staying very long. We saw quite a few customers come and go, but it was never crowded. The number of guys on rotation was also a bit disappointing. I recognized two guys from previous visits. When the fellow forum member left with his guy, I had one of the two guys I knew join me for a drink.

The boy told me that other bars have more customers, but they also employ more attractive guys. This makes it harder for him to get a customer in a busy bar, due to the "competition" from his colleagues, than in a quieter bar. Because he's worked at the same bar for a long time (10 years), he performs in various acts on the show. On a night when he works and performs, he earns 1,000 baht from the bar for performing in the show numbers. That's a nice basic income. And if he occasionally accompanies a customer home/to a hotel, it's a nice supplement. Somehow, a threesome with a customer and a second guy from the bar also came up. He's done that before. But he and the other guy from the bar don't have sex if it's a friend of his from the bar. In that case, both guys in the threesome would focus solely on the customer and not on each other. There are also guys working at the bar with whom he's less close, and he'd have sex with them.  It's happened a few times that he and another guy from a bar have sex, and the customer just watches and masturbates. I asked some more questions, and that led me to discover that he's also open to going to another bar with a customer and finding a guy to go with for a trip, and then having sex with him. Something to keep in mind... Haha.

[PeterRS]

17 hours ago, thaiophilus said:

Not to dispute what you've said, but on a related note I've found that online review websites are useless for comparing airlines, because most of the reviews are of flights where something went horribly wrong. Pick almost any airline and there will be a worryingly long list of 1-star reviews from badly-treated customers. If they've had a satisfactory flight most people don't bother to leave a review.

Totally agree. Hotel review sites are the same with Tripadvisor heading the list, at least according to one Business Travel Magazine. I once complained to Tripadvisor Head office about obvously fake one-line reviews (allthough these were praising one hotel obviously to get it up the city's 5-star hotel rankings). I was rather surprised when Triadvisor then took down half those reviews.

Qatar has ben my airline of choice on annual trips back to Europe, largely due to cost. Once when in the UK I was living about 50 ms from the airport and so checked the incoming flight on Flight Radar. Just as well because that flight was going to be 4 hours late in arriving, meaning I'd miss my connection in Doha. I was shocked that QR never once advised me of any late arrival, never provided any information of what onward flight to BKK I was booked on, and left me on my own in that huge biz class lounce in Doha. I know they have cabins for longish layovers and other semi-flat seats. I expect they were pre-booked, but no one told me about it. The 8-hour overnight layover in Doha was not pleasant.

[vinapu]

12 hours ago, hank75 said:

Not being American I have no insight as to which way policy will swing. 

don't worry, I doubt American president himself  does either