Mainland China ?

[extronaut]

Off to the People's Republic soon, mainly for the experience, but also happy to check out by the scene if I can find any along the way.

Are there scams to be wary of there?

I've heard that it's a good idea to avoid anyone posing as a money boy for instance. They're generally just out to play you, or rip you off, or blackmail you (if they can).

I gather gay is still quite taboo over there, and so gay bars would be harder to find in some of the smaller cities.

Anyone care to share some info?

[fountainhall]

Once you know where to go, you'll find several gay venues In the big cities. Check on a variety of social media sites and you will also find many thousands of guys looking for chats and hook-ups. Being gay in China far more common now than, say, 30 years ago and it is no longer classified as a mental illness, for example (it was officially declassified in 2001)! But you should always be aware that attitudes towards gays in China are still very conservative, especially outside the main cities.

The main concern for visiting gays is outdoor cruising - especially in the cities. This is very much AYOR. Beijing and Shanghai, for example, have hundreds of thousands of young men from the countryside who have flocked there to find work, mostly as casual day labourers. Some know there is a demand for gay pick-ups. Being mostly young and fit, they can be attractive to some westerners despite their almost complete lack of English. Scams unfortunately are not uncommon. You can find a guy who tells you his price, then when he is about to leave your hotel room you find the price has increased very significantly. In cheaper hotels, you will sometimes find one or more of his pals arrive to make sure you pay up.

There is one notorious cruising park in Beijing - Dongdan Park. It's about 800 meters to the east of the front Entrance to the Forbidden City and then a short walk down Chongmenwen Neidajie. It's interesting just to walk through it in the late afternoon/early evening to see the guys sitting around or walking in the rocks and bushes. Some will be very attractive and many will make eyes at you, even offering a price. Just walk away. If one follows you, that's the time to leave for the guys can be very persistent.

The best bar/disco in Beijing is still Destination near the Worker's Stadium. This is a large space with several areas. Like all bars it is much busier on Friday and Saturday evenings. Go then and you will find throngs of handsome Chinese (and some westerners) - many tall, slim and shirtless. Most will be there with lovers or friends, but singles also go. Many CHinese guys will speak a little English and so you can try to start up a conversation with someone you like, but it helps if you have some basic Mandarin Chinese.

A fun area to walk around in the evening is Sanlitun in Chaoyang to the north of the Embassy district. Here are lots of trendy cafes, bars and restaurants. Near the corner at 11 Sanlitun Road is a luxury hotel named The Opposite House. It is unlike any hotel you have been in before. The lobby is more like a large minimalist barn! On the left, though, is Mesh bar which has become popular with gays. In fact Thursday used to be gay night, but I'm told that is no longer the case. Still, many gay businessmen and others still go there. Decorated with lots of chains, you'd expect it to be more for the fetish crowd. Drinks are expensive and it's unlikely you'll find anyone to hook up with. But it's fun even just to have a look at the space and the crowd.

Smaller bars come and go in Beijing. So check the internet before you go. In the meantime, here's a good up-to-date list from Time Out - http://www.timeoutbeijing.com/features/ ... -bars.html (http://www.timeoutbeijing.com/features/Bars__Clubs-Features/13466/Beijings-best-gay-and-lesbian-bars.html) Getting around Beijing is relatively easy. There is a good, cheap underground system (packed to the gunnels during rush hours) and taxis are plentiful although no longer cheap. If you take a taxi, you definitely need to have written instructions in Chinese for the driver. Even then, he may not know exactly where to take you. So make sure you are aware of a nearby landmark - office building, hotel, shopping mall - so he can drop you there and you can walk the rest of the way.

In Shanghai, the oldest established gay bar is Eddy's. It's changed locations a few times and is now in the Xuhui District at 1877 Huaihai Zhong Lu. Eddy's is friendly and attracts both Chinese and westerners. Time Out has more info - http://www.timeoutshanghai.com/features ... -bars.html (http://www.timeoutshanghai.com/features/Bars__Clubs-Nightlife_features/4471/Shanghais-best-quiet-gay-bars.html)

The bar scene in Guangzhou is pretty dead, so much so that my Chinese friends there do not go out to them. In fact, Guangzhou as a city does not have much to offer the tourist. Far better to spend more time investigating other towns and smaller cities like Suzhou and Hangzhou near Shanghai (both quick train rides away), Xi'an in the west (home of the terracotta warriors), Qingdao south-east of Beijing, or in the south-west places like Dali, Lijiang and ShangriLa. etc. You will find no dedicated gay bars in many of the cities. What you will find if you have the right apps are many thousands of guys wanting to chat with you and/or meet up. Indeed, I'd suggest to anyone visiting China for the first time and not part of an organised tour group (these tend to leave little time for bars and hook-ups), try to hook up with two or three guys from the net. Meet up with one on your first day, get some local info from him and, if you like them, try and get him to show you around their city.

[goji]

Sometime I intend to visit China. As it's a large country, I hope to enjoy several weeks there.

The comments in earlier posts are most probably accurate, however are there any opportunities for some reasonably safe fun in China?
There will be millions of cute guys, so to not indulge whist there would be very difficult.
If rent boys are too risky, what about massages?

[fountainhall]

The comments in earlier posts are most probably accurate

For your information, I have visited China regularly since 1996, twice already this year.

As I said earlier, you can have lots of success on the social networking sites. I have met guys in various cities without even transport costs being requested. There are a lot of guys around the country who are very keen to meet a westerner, although most are obviously clustered in the bigger cities - of which there are many! Chongqing alone has a population of almost 30 million! Not far away is Chengdu with the Panda Reserve - it has 14 million. I met three lovely guys there. Even in Harbin in the far north-east, there were two university students keen to meet me.

Although I rarely go for massages, there is also an increasing number of such establishments. Some will be properly equipped premises with a range of guys to choose from. You can get some information from http://www.utopia-asia.com/tipschin.htm There are also lots of outcall only establishments. Whilst the websites may show some really cute and handsome guys, the problem is that even in the big cities most will have only a little English. So arranging the guy of your choice to come to your hotel at a specific hour can take some time - and then you are never 100% certain that this will be the guy who turns up! Perhaps other readers have more experience of this.

As suggested earlier, before departure try to contact a local guy who is keen to meet up and let him help you navigate the local gay scenes. Note, though, that because lots of guys are in the closet, they may not actually know the gay scene in their areas - only how to contact guys through social media! Persevere, though. Some Chinese guys are great companions.

Whilst the websites may show some really cute and handsome guys, the problem is that even in the big cities most will have only a little English.The only two oral skills I require are sucking and rimming.

[fedssocr]

There seem to be tons of sites with "escort" type listings and spas. Can't vouch for any of them as I have never been...other than HKG. Shenzhen seems to be the sex capital though judging by all of the listings there.