an adventure

[bazzabear]

hi all i am new here , and i am planning to go to malaisia , cambodia, vietnam. and thailand i would very much appreciate if anyone can tell me the best way to do this , i mainly want to stay in gay friendly hotels and go to the gay areas of these countries . all help appreciated . many thanks guys, i am in my sixties but still fit ok

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[RonanTheBarbarian]

Hi Bazzabear and welcome to the Forum.

There are lots of people who can give advice on that here, but usually people are a bit put off by a very general question as they aren't sure if their advice will be that relevant to you.

Or you will get opinionated people pushng their hobby horse on you - "I know absolutely nobody else think Udon Thani is the best place to go for gay life, but I think it is great, definitely head there...."

I suggest do a search on the forum for threads relating to place you are interested in then come back with some more specific questions - Like "I see that when x went to Phnom Penh in 2013 he said that the Rainbow Hotel was the best gay hotel, but it seems a bit steep for my budget, can anyone suggest a cheaper place? is the Pink Palace still the bets gay bar there?" etc.

If you are looking for online gay listings, http://www.utopia-asia.com is probably the main one for south-east Asia

[fountainhall]

Agree totally with the last post. Why not give us an approximate idea of the following and then we can try and help?

1. Time of year you are likely to be visiting - as there is a difference been rainy and non-rainy seasons.
2. You are new to the forum. Have you been to South East Asia before? (lots of advice will be useful if you have not)
2. How long will you be in Asia to cover 4 countries?
3. Roughly how long are you thinking for each country?
4. What sort of budget are you thinking of for hotels per night?
5. What are essentials for your hotel - swimming pool, for example?
6. What are your main interests - apart from the gay scene (as you will certainly get info on that)?

The more info you can provide, the more advice members can provide.

[christianpfc]

There is a gay scene in all these countries, but when it comes to accommodating the not-the-native-language-speaking foreign tourist, Thailand wins hands down. If you are looking for (easily accessible to foreigners) money boys and affordable prices, Pattaya is the place to go.

For sightseeing, all of them have something to offer.

When I went to Malaysia in Jan 2011, smoking of cigarettes in gay disco and saunas totally put me off.

Read this or other gay forums or search the internet to get a first impression of what is available and possible.

[bazzabear]

thanks guys i will later give you all more idea of my plans ok once again thanks

[bazzabear]

right guys i want budget rooms say mid range. i have never been to kuala lumpur before , so would like hotel to be close to some gay venues. i will fly from london to kl . would like to stay about 3 days or 4 , then fly to phnom phen with a budget airline. stay there for about 5 or 7 nights then travel to seam reap for about 4 nights . and then to hoh chi min [ saigon ] for about 5 nights and then to thailand maybe north thailand. what i need to know is how easy is it to get visas to all of these places and the best way from cambodia to vietnam time is not too much of a problem as i am retired. but would like to know what the best gay establishments are in these places. sorry i am not very good at writing messages or spelling . but what the heck , if you dont ask you dont get . cheers guys and i appreciate your time and replies

[cdnmatt]

No idea about gay venues, and others can fill you in on that. Not sure, but one possibility for accomodation in Kuala Lumpur would be Bricksfield. From the airport you'd take the train to KL Sentral, which is one of the main transit hubs for the city. Has everything -- train to/from airport, skytrain, monorail, buses, taxis, the older trains for out-of-town travel, etc. Go out the back of KL Sentral, cross the street to the monorail, but go around to the street behind the monorail. It's a little community called Bricksfield, and is filled with budget hotels, restaurants, etc.

Again, no idea about gay venues, and I only suggested that because, a) it's budget, and b) you're directly beside all the transit you could possibly want.

Oh, and in Kuala Lumpur, never just hop into a taxi from KL Sentral. Instead, just at the front of KL Sentral to the left there's a little booth. Tell them where you're going, you pay for your (cheap) taxi there, and get a receipt you give the taxi driver.

As for VISAs, I'm not the greatest at adhering to immigration law, so others can fill you in. What nationality are you? If you have a passport from a Western nation, you should be able to just walk through the border of most of the countries. Only one you may want to check is Vietnam. Not sure if they offer VISA on arrival (someone?), but I know when I went years ago, I got a VISA from te embassy in Kuala Lumpur, and it took an extraordinarly long time. It was about 10 days to process the VISA, and they held on to my passport the entire time.

Others can give you way better advice than I can though. Although I don't know anything about gay venues in Kuala Lumpur, I'm very familiar with the city, if you have any questions. My parents previously lived there for 3 years, so I used their place as my "home base" while I popped around all the countries in SE Asia. That's actually how I discovered this region of the world.

[Moses]

1. Visas. It depends on your nationality, country of living and even what countries you have visited at prev. 7 days. Best way to check visas requirements is TIMATIC database - it is used by ALL airlines when they are doubt about your visa status for flight. There are no direct free access to this database from web, but you can use websites of airlines or alliances. For example here at Skyteam page you can check visas via TIMATIC for free http://www.skyteam.com/en/flights-an...sa-and-health/

2. About what country to visit step by step. On your place I will travel KL - Vietnam - Phnom Penh - Siem Reap - Bangkok if I'm on budget. And for section Siem Reap - Bangkok (or Pattaya) I will choose taxi. I did it many times and it takes the same amount of time (almost, 1 hour more than by air if count from door to door), but is much more simple for me just to sit to car in Siem Reap, then cross border by foot and again to sit to car just behind border and find myself in 3.5 hours in front of hotel in BKK or Pattaya (there are taxi to Bangkok/Pattaya with fixed price 2100/1900 respectively just behind of door of Thai immigration at left side).

Also for Cambodia my schedule will be no more 4 days in PP cus it is boring city (IMHO) and 5 or even 6 days is Siem Reap - Angkor is very big, also many things to do and watch around, night life is a little bit smaller but few saunas, gay men's club/sauna and few gay bars still exist. On budget I will stay in Golden Banana in Siem Reap (up to $40, has pool, owners are gays, just 7 min of lazy walk to main nightlife, they serve "die for it" ice-lemon-tea-mohito in half-liter beer glasses) http://www.golden-banana.info/rooms-rates/ they also have 2 sister hotels "next door" with lower and with higher prices (and level of comfort). I had my stay there at least 5 times already, for more upscale stay - Men's (hotel/club/sauna) is great (60-100$ depends on room), by evening many locals visit sauna and you will have free direct access to it). They have massage 3 stars of 5 and restaurant with quite good breakfasts. But to visit nightlife you will have to take hotel's tuk-tuk (1$, 5-7 min ride) or walk about 20 min via local living area and then by riverside road.

[fountainhall]

Two assumptions – 1) that you are British and have a British passport, and 2) the region is new to you. You still have not said when you are likely to travel, so take the following prices with a pinch of salt as rates vary according to season and general holiday periods.

That said, let me suggest that you first check for each city on the utopia-asia site –

http://www.utopia-asia.com

I know some of their information is out of date but generally it’s a decent place to start. Here are my thoughts on your specific questions.

Kuala Lumpur

General – I have been many times to KL and really like the mix of colonial and contemporary Islamic architecture. It is also very cruisy and in the main cruising area around Bukit Bintang you’ll find lots of guys, probably many of whom will give you eye contact. Also some gay venues. KL is subject to sudden monsoon downpours which can last an hour or more and when taxis will be almost impossible to find. So you should ideally find a hotel near the Bukit Bintang area or very close to a monorail stop (Bukit Bintang has a stop). If you take the bus from the airport (cheaper than the train) the KL Sentral monorail stop is a short walk through a market area.

http://www.malaysiacentral.com/information-directory/kl-monorail-light-transit-train-in-kuala-lumpur/#sthash.1GoIEgFo.dpbs

The only thing to be careful about here is that Malaysia is a majority Muslim state and there are strict penalties for ethnic Muslim Malays who engage in homosexual acts. Same is true for Chinese, although I believe to a lesser extent. Mind you, that doesn’t stop many Malays from making themselves available. Just be careful being too “close” in places like shopping malls. I prefer Chinese guys and have never had any problem taking them back to hotels.

Malaysia Visa – not necessary for UK passport holders.

Hotels – I only stay in higher quality hotels and cannot advise. Utopia lists two budget hotels which seem to get good reviews and are close to Bukit Bintang, especially Orange Pekoe Guesthouse which has a number of Tripadviser Awards – double rooms between about US$22 and $25. The other is Travellers Palm Lodge at $20. Tripadviser has others at around the same price. Still don’t know the time you plan to travel and so cannot be more accurate. Best, though, may be accommodations recommended by other posters if they have actually stayed in them.

http://www.utopia-asia.com/acckl.htm

Gay areas – the map on that Utopia page is quite useful. In the Bukit Bintang area tucked into a side street up a flight of stairs is the Day Thermos sauna. This is small on two floors but often can be quite active. The nearby Blue Boy bar used to be a great place for hook ups but I haven’t been in years and am told it has gone way downhill with a lot of rent. There is a bigger sauna further away named Otot2, a couple of blocks from Chow Kit monorail station. I was one of the first members in the mid-1990s! It has never had private rooms but there is a big dark room and lots of fun in the communal shower. You have to become a member but the fee is nominal. Worth visiting.

Flight Kuala Lumpur/Phnom Penh – Air Asia has flights in mid-May at around US$43 which includes 20 kgs of baggage. June and September are more expensive months.

http://www.farecompare.com/flights/Kuala_Lumpur-KUL/Phnom_Penh-PNH/market.html#quote

Cambodia Visa - Get an e-visa on line for US$37. You can get one on arrival for $35 (seems to have been raised recently from $30 but not 100% sure) but you might have to stand in a line for some time

https://www.evisa.gov.kh

Phnom Penh

Too long since I was there (13 years) to advise. Agree with Moses – take road travel to Siem Reap rather than fly.

Siem Reap

Again not much I can contribute due to having visited so long ago. I do suggest, however, that you buy the 3-day pass to the Angkor Wat site - $40. Remember that the site covers a massive area and it will be a mad rush to see the main temples in just one day. Three gives you time to see many more temples at a more leisurely pace and still have time for massages and enjoying nightlife. I also found it invaluable to hire a guide and a driver. Sorry I cannot advise you on approx. costs – but professional guide fees seem in the region of $40. My guide was recommended to me by friends who had engaged him previously. He was amazing.

Flight Siem Reap to Ho Chi Minh

There are no budget airlines currently on this route and so you have to fly via somewhere like Kuala Lumpur or Bangkok. But you don't save much cash and the flight times are much longer. So take Vietnam Air which has several flights at around $140. Or you can consider switching your itinerary. Fly from KL to Siem Reap for $60 on Air Asia to $90 on other carriers). After your time in Siem Reap go by road to Phnom Penh for your stay there. Then take either an early morning Air Asia flight via Kuala Lumpur or Bangkok (around $100 but total travel time of up to 7 hours) or spend a bit more and take the fabulous Qatar Airlines on a non-stop one-hour flight for just $123. The Qatar departure time is also great – 5:30 pm. Book Qatar on its own website.

https://booking.qatarairways.com/nsp/views/index.xhtml

Ho Chi Minh Visa - If you are a UK citizen and enter and depart prior to 30 June 2016, the UK government site states you do not need a visa and thereafter you need to check with the Vietnamese Embassy in London. I believe you should be able to get a visa on arrival but send a PM to Scottish Guy here who goes to HCMC regularly and will know. Note that there are a lot of companies online offering to obtain Vietnam visas. Some are legit; some are not.

Never been to HCMC and so leave it to others to suggest ideas.

Chiang Mai

Visa - automatic 30 day entry with UK passport

Flight Ho Chi Minh City to Chiang Mai – I can’t find any non-stop flights between these cities. Most go via Bangkok. I suggest you book separate sectors on the same airline. Nok Air, for example has flights including 15kg baggage from HCMC to DMK (Bangkok’s Don Mueang airport) for $$41 connecting at DMK to Chiang Mai at $32.

https://www.nokair.com/nokconnext/aspx/lowfare.aspx

Accommodation – A vast array of choice. I know that PJ’s Place (gay friendly and near some gay venues including Adam’s Apple gogo and the main sauna House of Male set in a lovely Thai-style House where Tuesdays and Thursdays are two-for-one buddy nights and so popular with students) is highly recommended. I stayed once. Large room, excellent breakfasts and PJ’s partner is a tour guide and so can give you lots of help. Cost less than US$50 per room and includes airport transfers, breakfasts etc.

http://www.pjs-place.com/prices_enquiries.htm

Finally 3 Reminders –

1) flight costs are for an arbitrary day I checked in late May. Other days can be more expensive. You have to check around. I use mostly http://farecompare.com

2) For visas on arrival in Cambodia and Vietnam you will need one or two passport size photos. Take at least two for each entry. And make sure your passport has at least 6 months validity as of the last port of entry.

3) For on arrival visas, you will need the exact change in US$ in new, crisp notes. Old notes will not be accepted.

[christianpfc]

As for VISAs, I'm not the greatest at adhering to immigration law, so others can fill you in.

Poor choice of words, you have to adhere to immigrations laws, otherwise they would not let you in (or you would get in trouble upon leaving the country).

Your nationality? As a German, I can travel visa exempt to Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Vietnam (all recently tested, no problems), Thailand; for Cambodia visa on arrival or e-visa in advance. Tourist visa on arrival at the airport (Phnom Penh, 30 USD in Jan 2016, raised from 20 (?) in 2014) was quick (5 to 10 minutes?), I wouldn't bother with an e-visa.

From Siam Reap to Bangkok or Pattaya, there are frequent buses. You can even take the train from Aranyaprathet (train station about 5 km from border crossing; whereas bus station of the name Rong Kluea Market is directly at the border) to Bangkok for 48 Baht! But it takes 5 hours or longer.

If you want to travel from Phnom Penh to Saigon, I found bus (6 hours) and border crossing (1 hour) cheap and easy.